Thanksgiving travel in region will be up 11.2%, AAA estimates

By Elise Franco

efranco@vindy.com

As Thanksgiving approaches, people are preparing for what is one of the most heavily-traveled holiday weekends of the year.

Bevi Powell, AAA East Central division director of communications, said Thanksgiving is traditionally a holiday when more people travel, compared to summer holidays such as Memorial Day or Labor Day.

Powell estimates that this year, the number of people traveling at least 50 miles from home, will be up 11.2 percent from 2009.

“The spending is lower because Thanksgiving travel is more family-focused. Because more people are staying with friends and family, it keeps the cost down,” she said. “The other holidays are more about the summer travel vacations.”

Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com.