Pent-up demand fuels spike in Memorial Day weekend travel plans

Long Islanders and more than 42 million other vacationers nationwide are expected to take to the roads, skies and seas over the Memorial Day weekend, according to travel experts.

The unofficial start of summer will see an increase of 2.7 million travelers over last year, making it the third busiest Memorial Day holiday since 2000, according to AAA, the nonprofit auto club and travel group.

Besides this coming holiday weekend, some Long Island travel companies have been feeling the getaway buzz with an uptick in customers. Europe tops Long Islanders' lists for summer vacation destinations.

Increased travel booking

Rebecca Alesia, owner of Oyster Bay-based agency Wanderology Luxury Travel, said her company is handling significantly heavier booking loads.

“We've already done a full 12-month cycle, which is crazy,” Alesia said. “Everybody wants to go to Europe, so getting drivers, guides, ferry and train tickets has become a challenge."

In fact, trains, buses and cruise ships have also experienced a resurgence with an anticipated 1.85 million vacationers using these options, 20% more than last Memorial Day weekend, according to AAA.

Discontinued COVID-19 restrictions are fueling increased demand for destinations 50 miles or more from home, said Robert Sinclair, Jr., a spokesperson for AAA Northeast. 

Last year, some countries in Asia were still closed to foreign tourism and others in Europe still had testing and vaccination requirements, travel experts said.

“More and more Americans are exercising the desire to go somewhere and do something, venting their pent-up wanderlust that was suppressed for three years,” Sinclair said, adding that international bookings are up 250% despite costlier fares.

A spike in air travel

Air travel nationwide is projected to increase by 11% compared to last year, totaling 3.4 million passengers, according to the AAA.

Kennedy Airport is expected to have been the eighth busiest airport in the country by the time the Memorial Day weekend comes to a close Monday night. Nearly a half-million passengers are expected to depart from Kennedy, according to Lindsay Schwimer, a spokesperson for Hopper, a travel booking platform.

“We are expecting a busy Memorial Day weekend, both domestically and internationally,” Schwimer said.

Airlines are attempting to better manage the volumes of travelers with additional staffing and adjusted schedules but passengers should also prepare for any hiccups, including long lines at the airport, according to Schwimer.

“As with any busy holiday weekend we do expect some delays and disruptions … but we do anticipate that airlines and airports are better equipped this summer to handle the new normal of demand,” Schwimer said. “I think a lot of Americans are looking to get those bigger bucket list trips across the summer that they might have missed out on during the pandemic."

Preferred travel mode

While flying is seeing a comeback this holiday weekend, driving still remains the preferred travel mode, with more than 37.1 million Americans expected to get behind the wheel for a trip, a 6% spike from last year.   

Hitting the roadways before noon on Thursday or Friday will help motorists steer clear of some of the worst traffic, from 3 p.m. to about 6 p.m. both those days, according to INRIX, a Washington-based transportation analytics firm.

Motorists departing on Monday will run into the most congestion from noon to 3 p.m., according to INRIX.

Traffic is expected to be lighter on Saturday and Sunday.

“We need to pay attention to any construction, collisions, weather and road closures. Stuff like that can really screw up everything … stay up to date with all the latest information,” said Bob Pishue, a transportation analyst at the company. "With more cars on the road, there is much more severe impact to travel length of the backup and the duration of it."

Get an early start

Holiday travelers heading to the Hamptons this weekend would be wise to allow for extra time on Long Island roadways. Traffic is expected to be about 23% higher, mainly on the Long Island Expressway, Pishue said.

Returning from the Hamptons on Monday, motorists may see traffic increases of up to 44% on the Long Island Expressway, compared to the average, non-holiday Monday, according to Pishue.

Said AAA Northeast's Robert Sinclair: “Come hell or high water people travel for a holiday. We get the fewest number of vacation days of any workers in the industrialized world so when we get a free holiday, we make the most of it."