MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FLA. (WSVN) - A day before Tranksgiving, the roads and airports are filled with travelers heading home to see their loved ones, many of them coming from South Florida.
Travel experts predict Wednesday and Sunday to be some of the busiest travel days of the holiday season.
An estimated 2.2 million people are expected to head to airports nationwide.
Thanksgiving travel is expected to be up 100% from 2020.
Miami International Airport officials said they expect to see 86,000 passengers on Wednesday.
“Pack your patience,” said Miami International Airport spokesperson Jack Varela.
MIA has been ranked the fifth busiest airport in the U.S. for Thanksgiving travel.
“We came here like four hours before flying,” said one traveler.
“A little bit of traffic but other than that, just great!” said another traveler.
MIA officials expect 1.7 million passengers over the 12-day holiday period.
Airport officials said they are ready for what could be a record number of people to fly.
“The record number the airport’s ever seen here is in January 2018 where we saw 160,000 passengers,” said Varela. “We saw 158,000 on Sunday. This Sunday, we may even see more than that.”
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport is also expecting big crowds, with more than 600,000 travelers.
Transportation Security Administration officials said they are fully staffed to keep lines moving.
Experts predict the roads are also going to be busy. AAA officials predict 48 million people will drive at least 50 miles or more for the holiday.
“From 2:30 [p.m.] to 6:30 [p.m.] Wednesday, the day before the holiday, we are anticipating a 480% increase in traffic volumes,” said AAA Senior Manager of Public Affairs Robert Sinclair, Jr.
AAA officials suggest leaving for destinations as early as possible to avoid the afternoon rush and finding a backup route in case of heavy traffic.
“It is full, the lots are full, the check points are full but moving quickly,” said Varela.
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