Oklahoma holiday travel jump expected by AAA

This increase brings national holiday travel figures to within half a million of the decade high mark seen during the 2006/2007 season.

Of total travelers, 84.4 million will drive, 5.6 million will fly and 3.27 million will go by other means, including bus, train, cruise ship or multimodal travel.

 The auto club projects 852,300 Oklahomans will travel by all modes of transportation over the holidays, a jump of 1.9 percent from last year.

Of this number, 800,500 will drive, 47,550 will fly and another 4,250 will get there by other means. The year-end holiday travel period is defined by AAA as Saturday, Dec. 22 to Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013.

Year-End Holiday Travel Highlights

• Nationwide, 90 percent of travelers (84.4 million) are expected to travel by passenger car, pickup or RV, representing 26.7 percent of the total U.S. population. Ninety-four percent of Oklahomans will drive to holiday destinations.

• Christmas/New Year’s highway travel this year is predicted to be 1.3 percent heavier this year across the U.S. and 1.7 percent thicker in Oklahoma.

• Holiday air travel is projected to increase 4.5 percent among all Americans and 5.9 percent among Oklahomans.

• Median spending is expected to increase almost six percent to $759, compared to $718 in 2011, with transportation costs consuming about 29 cents of every travel dollar.

• Average distance traveled will increase to 760 miles round-trip from 726 miles; no doubt due to the increase in air travelers.

• Travel volumes for the year-end holidays are generally very stable; only once in the past decade has there been a change in travel volume greater than five percent.

 “The year-end holiday season remains the least volatile of all travel holidays as Oklahomans will not let economic conditions or high gas prices dictate if they go home for the holidays or kick off the New Year with a vacation,” said AAA Oklahoma spokesman Chuck Mai.

“Primary economic indicators all show modest improvement from last year and AAA is projecting an increase in the number of Americans stuffing their stockings with airline tickets and hotel reservations.”

Impact of gasoline prices on travel plans

AAA estimates the national average price of gasoline will slowly drop through the end of the year and average between $3.20-3.40 a gallon by New Year’s Day. Gas prices dropped about 50 cents a gallon on average from September through early December, but remain at record highs for this time of year.

AAA does not expect gas prices to have a major impact on travel volume, but consumers could have more money to spend on holiday shopping, dining and entertainment if prices drop through December as expected. For the latest gasoline price averages, visit AAAFuelGaugeReport.com.