This Labor Day travel weekend is gearing up to be a very busy one, with experts and officials warning travelers to give themselves extra time and to check real-time status updates to the most out of their trip.
Here are some simple tips on how to travel smarter:
Traveling by air
Labor Day weekend will cap off a very busy summer for the Transportation and Security Administration, which reported performing 239.8 million screenings since Memorial Day. The agency expects that 17 million people will travel from Thursday, Aug. 29 to Wednesday, Sept. 4.
In fact, it's been so busy that the top 10 travel days in TSA's history have all happened this summer. The agency set a record of 3 million screenings on July 7.
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The busiest travel day is expected to be Friday, when TSA expects to screen 2.86 million passengers. That's slightly more than this summer's daily average of about 2.7 million screenings per day.
Though the agency said in a statement it's increasing staffing to keep up with demand, TSA still recommends arriving two hours before your boarding time for domestic flights and three hours before international flights to make sure you have enough time to pass through security.
Speaking of security, this may be the last Labor Day weekend you won't need a REAL ID while flying, as those requirements kick in on May 7, 2025. (Assuming they aren't pushed back once again, that is.) If you haven't started on that yet, see the DMV's website.
Hitting the road
If you plan to start a road trip Friday, the best time to do so will be after 7 p.m., and you'll want to avoid peak traffic times between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m., according to AAA's projections.
If you have plans to take a road trip Saturday, but can hold off on leaving until the afternoon, you'll avoid some of the worst traffic between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. This Sunday will the opposite: You'll want to leave before noon, and it'll be busiest between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Meanwhile, Monday will be busy most of the day — from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. — but if you can leave before 10 a.m. you'll likely avoid the worst of it, according to AAA. Tuesday will likely see the busiest roads between 8 a.m. and noon and best after 1 p.m. (though obviously, there will be rush hour traffic to deal with later in the afternoon).
These are general guidelines, so make sure to check real-time traffic conditions before you head to your destination.
You'll also want to make sure your car is in good working condition, as AAA said they anticipate they'll rescue 300,000 drivers nationwide this Labor Day weekend.
“The best way to avoid spending your holiday on the roadside is by getting a full vehicle inspection before your trip,” AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said in a statement. “This will help ensure everything from your battery to brakes is in proper working order.”
You can also use AAA's tools to track gas prices along your trip.
