Labor Day Getaway: Travelers Hit The Road As Gas Prices Drop

Travel over the Labor Day holiday has picked up significantly from a year ago, data revealed.

Domestic travel is up 9% from the same period last year as American Automobile Association (AAA) booking data shows a 30% jump in trips to Seattle, partly because Seattle is a major port city for cruises to Alaska.

"This is a great time of year to take a cruise to Alaska. Crowds are smaller than earlier in the summer, the weather is still decent, although chillier than in July and August, and you may even see some fall colors," said Doreen Loofburrow, senior vice president of travel at AAA Oregon/Idaho.

Gas prices over Labor Day are averaging $3.35 a gallon nationwide, down from an average of $3.81 a gallon during the same period in 2023, according to AAA.

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The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said it plans to screen more than 17 million people at airports during what is expected to be the busiest Labor Day travel period on record from Aug. 29 into Sept. 4. TSA expects to screen 2.86 million travelers on the busiest day of Aug. 30.

The TSA said this summer’s air travel volumes have been the highest it has seen in its history, and it expects passenger volumes to be 8.5% higher than last year during this time.

“People are traveling more than ever this summer and TSA along with our airline and airport partners stand ready to close the busiest summer travel period on record during this upcoming Labor Day weekend," said TSA Administrator David Pekoske.

Price Action: Rental car companies, airlines and cruise providers gave varied performances on Wall Street into Friday’s early-afternoon trading as the busy travel period was underway.

• Hertz Global Holdings HTZ declined 3.1% to $3.10
• Avis Budget Group, Inc. CAR fell 0.99% to $81.82
• Delta Air Lines, Inc. DAL gained 1.1% to $42.01
• United Airlines Holdings, Inc. UAL rose 1.92% to $43.46
• Carnival Corporation CCL slipped 1.42% to $16.31
• Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. NCLH slid 0.98% to $17.67

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Photo: Ozkan Ulucam via Shutterstock