Even with prices at the pumps the highest they have been since 2022, travel experts are expecting a busy Memorial Day weekend with millions of Americans packing up and gassing up the cars for road trips.
AAA Mississippi spokesperson Don Redman said Tuesday the automobile association is “staying with” its national forecast issued earlier this month that projects 45 million domestic travelers between Thursday, May 21, and Monday, May 25.
“A lot of the plans were booked before the war with Iran,” Redman explained, pointing to the surge in gas prices since the U.S. and Israel first attacked Iran in February. “Though the gas prices are higher, I think that when people look at their overall travel budget or vacation budget, gasoline overall doesn’t play that big of a role.”
AAA’s forecast shows that of the 45 million people projected to travel more than 50 miles away from home, 39.1 million are expected to travel by auto. If the numbers stick, it would be the busiest Memorial Day weekend for travel on record, breaking the previous mark of 44.8 million set in 2025.
For Mississippians, Redman said popular destinations will be local beaches, as well as sandy spots in Alabama and Florida, along with Gatlinburg, Tenn, and Branson, Mo.
While the current price of gasoline – about $4 for a gallon of regular fuel in Mississippi and about $4.50 nationally – is not expected to ruin many Memorial Day vacations, Redman did say if a decrease doesn’t happen in the coming months, travel projections may decline for post-summer holidays.
“If these prices continue…well into the summer, that may absolutely have an impact once we talk about the Thanksgiving and Christmas travel,” he said. “Because the long-term impact on disposable income of a family definitely will be eroded if these high prices continue.”
President Donald Trump announced Monday that he was calling off what he said was a scheduled Tuesday attack on Iran as the two sides continue negotiating a potential peace agreement. The ongoing conflict has resulted in a closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical passageway for global oil transportation. That supply chain disruption has, in part, resulted in U.S. average gas prices soaring above $4 for the first time since August 2022.
In theory, if and when a peace agreement is reached and energy markets stabilize, gas prices will eventually ease.
But Redman, when asked for a prediction on the timing of it all, responded, “I don’t even know what the price is going to be at the end of the day. I mean, it’s that volatile.”