ST. LOUIS – Summer travel kicked off with plenty of people traveling for the Memorial Day weekend. Almost two weeks after the busy weekend, things showed no sign of slowing down at St. Louis Lambert International Airport.
“This is our first time out traveling in a little while. So we’re very excited,” said Jackie Kessler.
Kessler and her family were on their way to Florida for a summer getaway. AAA expects a busy summer for family vacations, like Kessler’s.
“That’s even despite travel prices in general hotels, rental cars, flights, all those prices are up just like everything else we’ve seen,” said Nick Charbarria, a spokesperson for AAA. “Yet we’ve still seen people take trips in numbers that they haven’t done since 2019.”
The TSA reported nearly one million more passengers this Memorial Day weekend compared to last year. AAA said more people are out on the roads too.
“This time last year, gas prices were headed for an all-time record high in the month of June,” Charbarria said. “Nowhere near that right now, and we certainly think that the lower gas prices is certainly influencing folks to take road trips and venture out a little more from home this summer.”
Kessler said she’s looking forward to her family trip.
“People are traveling again, which is good. Yes, it’s disappointing to see the higher prices, but life is short,” she said. “I believe in living in the moment, and if you can swing at least one fun trip, you need to enjoy yourself and relax a little bit. Looking forward to it. Some sun and some cocktails.”
