Holiday travel gets under way this week in Oklahoma

Travelers often are unwilling to give up visiting family for Christmas, resulting in a stable travel volume, AAA says.

“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 Chuck Mai, a spokesman for AAA Oklahoma.

“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.”

A recent drop in gasoline prices will be a treat for those taking a road trip, which includes 800,500 Oklahomans, with the state's average price for a gallon of regular unleaded at $3 a gallon Tuesday and expected to drop below $3 a gallon for the first time since February 2011. At many metro area stations, gasoline was hovering in the $2.80 range.

Motorists may want to watch out for winter weather as varying forecasts show a white Christmas possible in parts of the region.

“The whole world wants a white Christmas except those who work at an airport,” said Alexis Higgins, a spokeswoman for Tulsa International Airport, when asked about the possibility of snow this year. Winter weather even in other states could cause flight delays in Oklahoma.