MILWAUKEE — The unofficial start to summer is almost here. Many of you may be preparing to travel this Memorial Day weekend and you are not alone. The I-Team found more people are traveling for the holiday than we've seen in years.
It's a day to remember those who served our country, but for many, the time off work also means time to travel.
"[I plan to] head back to Texas, spend time with family and friends," Erfan Vatanpour said.
Vatanpour is one of more than 800,000 Wisconsinites planning to go out of town this holiday weekend, according to AAA. This year is coming close to the record-high travel rate in the Badger State in 2019 when nearly 830,000 people traveled.
"Now that the pandemic is really in the rearview for most folks, we're seeing a resurgence of that. We're seeing a lot of pent-up desire to travel," Nick Jarmusz with AAA said.
AAA booking data shows airfares to top destinations increased 40 percent from this time last year.
"It's definitely more pricier. It's harder to find the seats that I want, it's harder to find flight times I'm looking for, so I definitely have to plan ahead of time," Vatanpour explained.
For Memorial Day weekend, AAA said nearly 90 percent of travelers prefer hitting the road. There's good news for drivers too.
"The cost associated with travel this year are up from last year, but gas prices are significantly down from where they were last year," Jarmusz said.
According to Gas Buddy, gas is about $1.00 cheaper, and in some spots more, than this time last year.
To ensure safe driving wherever you're at this upcoming weekend, AAA is offering a free ride and tow for drivers who may be impaired or need help getting home. To find a list of locations for this, click here.
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