2024 Labor Day Outlook

Summary

• Almost 23 million seats are scheduled to depart from US airports over Labor Day weekend, up 2.4% from the same week last year. Most travelers are headed to domestic destinations for the weekend. 

• Domestic airfare is down 5% compared to last year’s Labor Day airfares, and down 17% compared to 2019 levels. 

• Hopper users going to international destinations for the long weekend are headed on regional flights to the Caribbean, with destinations like San Juan, Punta Cana and Cancun ranking as the most booked destinations on the Hopper app.

Labor Day Weekend Outlook

22.8 million seats are scheduled to depart from US airports over the week of Labor Day weekend, up 2.4% compared to Labor Day weekend last year. Around 86% of that capacity will be headed to domestic destinations. Thursday the 29th, and Friday the 30th will be the busiest dates to depart on a weekend trip, with around 3.6 million seats scheduled to depart on each day. Travelers returning from a long weekend trip will see the largest crowds Monday, when a further 3.5 million seats will depart to bring travelers home after a weekend away. 

The busiest airports over labor day weekend will be Atlanta, Chicago O’Hare and Dallas Fort Worth. Atlanta will see more than 1 million seats depart over the 7 days, while O’Hare and DFW will see just shy of 1 million seats depart. Major international hubs, JFK, DFW and ORD will be busiest in the evening, while other airports will be busiest earlier in the day. 

Based on Schedules as of August 19th, 2024

Airfare for Labor Day weekend this year was down 5% compared to last year, and down 17% compared to Labor Day weekend in 2019. Prices are low due to high supply in the market from airlines and more favorable fuel prices in today’s market compared to last year.

Most Booked Destinations on Hopper for Labor Day Weekend

Most Searched Destinations for Labor Day Weekend

Most searched destinations over the previous 6 months for trips over Labor Day weekend, and the average good deal airfare associated.

Last Minute Labor Day Weekend Deals still Available on Hopper:

• Boston to Miami - $123 round-trip on Hopper

• Chicago to Denver - $52 round-trip on Hopper

• Dallas to Las Vegas - $90 round-trip on Hopper

• LA to Dallas - $106 round-trip on Hopper

• NYC to Nashville - $90 round-trip on Hopper

• San Francisco to Denver - $173 round-trip on Hopper