2024 Thanksgiving Outlook & Busiest Airports

Hopper’s Thanksgiving 2024 Outlook

• Airfare for Thanksgiving trips this year is averaging $273 at the close of October, up 9% compared to the end of October in 2023. Despite the increase compared to last year, airfare for the holiday remains lower than 2022 and pre pandemic levels. 

• Travelers who are planning to fly over the holiday should book now, as prices are expected to spike by as much as 54% in the last 3 weeks before the holiday. 

• 36.5 million seats are currently scheduled to depart from US airports between Saturday November 23rd and Travel Deal Tuesday (December 3rd), representing a 4.8% increase compared to what was scheduled at this time last year for the holiday. 

• The busiest single travel day of the Thanksgiving period will be Sunday December 1st, as millions of Americans head home from their Thanksgiving trips.  Atlanta, Dallas Fort-Worth and Denver will be some of the busiest airports over the Thanksgiving week, serving 1.5 - 2 million scheduled passengers each. 

Thanksgiving Airfare

Airfare for Thanksgiving trips this year is averaging $273 at the close of October, up 9% compared to the end of October in 2023. Despite the increase compared to last year, airfare for the holiday remains lower than 2022 and pre pandemic levels. Travelers who are planning to fly over the holiday should book now, as prices are expected to spike by as much as 54% in the last 3 weeks before the holiday. 

Flights to Mexico and the Caribbean this Thanksgiving are averaging between $400 and $500 per ticket this year, up compared to last year. Those headed to Europe over the holiday week will pay just under $600 per ticket, in line with last year, but still higher than over Thanksgiving in 2019 or 2018 as international fares to Europe have remained high post pandemic. 

Passenger Volumes

36.5 million seats are currently scheduled to depart from US airports between Saturday November 23rd and Travel Deal Tuesday (December 3rd), representing a 4.8% increase compared to what was scheduled at this time last year for the holiday. The busiest single travel day of the Thanksgiving period will be Sunday December 1st, as millions of Americans head home from their Thanksgiving trips.  To avoid the crowds this year, plan to travel on Thanksgiving day (11/28), Black Friday (11/29) or Travel Deal Tuesday (12/3). 

Busiest Airports Thanksgiving 2024

This Thanksgiving week major US airports like Atlanta, Dallas Fort-Worth and Denver will be some of the busiest, serving 1.5 - 2 million scheduled passengers each. The morning will be busiest in most airports, with the highest volume of seats scheduled to depart between 8am and 12pm in most major cities. With the exception of Orlando and Charlotte, which have been impacted by inclement weather this year, most airports are seeing the same or better disruption rates headed into November compared to this time last year. 

Table: Total seats scheduled to depart on flights leaving between November 23rd and December 3rd. 

Tips for Managing Holiday Crowds & Disruptions

Thanksgiving is one of the busiest weeks of the year to travel, with packed airports, highways and hotels across the US. For those hitting the skies- plan for longer lines at security and potential delays or cancellations as the airports are packed with larger schedules than usual. 

Travel disruptions are top of mind for those looking ahead to holiday trips, especially among those who traveled during the holiday season last year. 87% of Hopper customers who traveled for the holidays last year say they are concerned about the impact of disruptions on their travel plans this year. 

Last year the Sunday following Thanksgiving had a flight disruption rate almost 4x higher than that of Thanksgiving Day, and more than 2x higher than Black Friday. Travelers flying on the sunday following the holiday this year should plan ahead for potential disruptions.

Thanksgiving 2023 Travel Disruption Lookback

Though travelers can’t predict when a travel disruption will impact their travel, they can plan ahead to minimize the potential impact, both travel related and financial, of unexpected disruptions. 

How to prepare before you book holiday trips: 

• Add trip protection: If you’re flying this holiday season, we recommend adding trip protection like Disruption Assistance offered on Hopper and other travel providers. If your flight is delayed, canceled or you miss a connection, you can immediately rebook on any flight, regardless of carrier.

• Book the first flight of the day: In general, flights departing after 9am are 2X more likely to be delayed than departures scheduled between 5-8am. To avoid travel disruption, fly as early in the morning as possible.

• Fly direct: You will usually pay a premium to fly direct, rather than with stops, but it may be worth the cost for travelers concerned about getting to their destination on time. Missed connections following flight delays or cancellations can make getting to your destination on time challenging during busy travel periods marred by bad weather or other disruptions. 

• Build in a buffer day: Travel a day early to your holiday celebrations if possible, that way if you’re impacted by a delay or cancellation you will have 24 hours to reschedule your travel and get onto your final destination. 

• Book with flexibility: With recent disruptions at the airport, travelers may want to consider adding extra flexibility to their travel plans in the future in case they want to make last minute changes. Travelers should take advantage of plans like Cancel for Any Reason or Change for Any Reason available on the Hopper app. With these plans, Hopper pays the difference to the airline if you make changes or cancel your trip all together - with no additional cost to the traveler.

How to prepare before you head to the airport: 

• Sign up for alerts & check flight status before you go to the airport. You’ll want to know about delays and cancellations as early as possible. On most U.S. carriers, passengers can sign up for text, email, and/or in-app notifications about any changes to their itinerary including delay and cancellations.

• Know what options you have available: Know what other flights are headed to your destination the same day as your trip in case you’re disrupted and need to get on another flight. Be sure to check airline policies, many carriers will waive change fees if there is a weather advisory or give compensation/travel credit if your flight is canceled within a few hours of departure.

What to do if you are impacted by travel disruptions: 

• Multi-task. As soon as you learn of a disruption, hop in line to speak with a customer service agent in your terminal. At the same time, try to change your flight yourself in the airline’s app and/or call the airline’s customer service call center. Oftentimes you can reach an agent via phone before an agent at the airport can get to you. Sometimes you can even reebok yourself on the airlines own app!

• Consider alternate airports. If you’re flying out of a major city with multiple airports, check out flights still scheduled to depart that may get you onto your destination more quickly. If you’re stranded in cities like New York, Chicago, and Dallas, your ticket home may be just a train or Uber ride away. 

• Pack your patience. It’s impossible to predict travel disruptions but we should expect there will be more of them during the busiest travel weeks of the year. With more passengers departing from airports over these holiday weeks than usual, everything from backups on the tarmac to bad weather can impact your travel plans. Pack your patience and plan ahead to make sure you’re prepared for anything unexpected. 

Accommodation Prices

Across the US, hotel stays for Thanksgiving week are averaging $213 per night, with rates as low as $140 per night still available. In top cities around the world prices range from $139 per night in Orlando and as high as $423 per night in New York City, as the annual parade draws crowds. 

Nightly Rates for Thanksgiving Stays

Most Booked Destinations Thanksgiving 2024

The most booked destinations for domestic travel this Thanksgiving season are primarily major US cities with access to much of the United States. International destinations are spread worldwide, with travelers flying to warmer weather destinations in the Caribbean or staying in top Caribbean and European markets for the holiday. 

Last Minute Thanksgiving Booking Tips

• Book ASAP!: Prices will only increase as we get closer to Thanksgiving. Travelers who are planning to fly over Thanksgiving should book now, as prices are expected to spike by as much as 54% in the last 3 weeks before the holiday. 

• When it comes to your hotel stay, it can pay to book last-minute: Hotels often drop prices in the days leading up to the holiday, especially in big cities. Be sure to favorite a few hotels on Hopper and the app will alert you as soon as a good deal becomes available.

• Plan a Staycation: Planning to stay home for the holidays? Or wondering if you’ll need to escape to a hotel at the end of a long day with family and friends? With everyone getting out or away for the holidays and corporate travel slowing for the end of year, Thanksgiving can be a great time to schedule a staycation in a major city near you! Hotels in big cities see a slow down in reservations at the holidays, leading them to drop prices at the last minute for interested travelers. Over the Thanksgiving holiday, cities like Cancun and Atlanta will see last minute check in prices drop over 10% compared to a similar week.

• Be flexible on travel dates: You can save the most by being flexible with your travel dates. You can save nearly $200 off per ticket, just by being flexible with your travel dates for the holidays. The cheapest days to travel? On the holiday themselves – think: Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day & New Year’s Eve.

Deals Available to Book Now on Hopper:

Domestic:

• Atlanta, Georgia to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for as low as $74 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Boston, Massachusetts to New Orleans, Louisiana for as low as $88 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Chicago, Illinois to Miami, Florida for as low as $106 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Las Vegas, Nevada to Portland, Oregon for as low as $66 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Miami, Florida to Newark, New Jersey for as low as $97 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• New York City, New York to Nashville, Tennessee for as low as $85 per round trip ticket on Hopper

International:

• Atlanta, Georgia to Stockholm, Sweden for as low as $509 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Boston, Massachusetts to Toronto, Canada for as low as $313 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Charlotte, North Carolina to Venice, Italy for as low as $499 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Chicago, Illinois to Mexico City, Mexico for as low as $355 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Chicago, Illinois to Rome, Italy for as low as $448 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Dallas, Texas to San Jose, Costa Rica for as low as $351 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Las Vegas, Nevada to Dublin, Ireland for as low as $592 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• Miami, Florida to Madrid, Spain for as low as $370 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• New York City, New York to Barcelona, Spain for as low as $405 per round trip ticket on Hopper

• New York City, New York to Copenhagen, Denmark for as low as $413 per round trip ticket on Hopper

Methodology

Average airfares are calculated as a demand weighted average of the 10th percentile of prices available to book during the period of searches utilized for the report. This report looks at prices based on the previous 1 week of searches for holiday dates. Prices for Thanksgiving travel dates are defined as departures beginning November 24th, 2024 and ending on Thanksgiving Day, unless noted otherwise. Year over year comparisons are adjusted for the movement of Thanksgiving Day and look at the period from Sunday before Thanksgiving through Thanksgiving Day. Average hotel rates and average rental rates are calculated as demand weighted averages of rates available to book in the two weeks ending October 25th, 2024. For trip level recommendations on when to purchase a flight to get the best price, set up a price watch in the Hopper App. Hopper supplemented this report with surveys of Hopper users who were recently active in the app, survey results have a N > 580.