Summer Travel Begins: Millions Travel During Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day weekend marked the start of the summer travel rush. Memorial Day weekend resulted in two of the busiest days in US air travel since the pandemic started.

According to the US Transportation Security Administration, 1.96 million people were screened by US airport security on Friday before Memorial Day weekend. And on Monday, TSA recorded 1.90 million travelers. For industry experts, we haven’t seen the peak yet. With more Americans vaccinated, analysts expect travel demand to go higher in the coming days.

In May, the average daily number of passengers screened at US airports hit 1.6 million. Though it is still lower than 2019’s numbers, it is an improvement compared to last year’s number of travelers.

Summer Travel Rush Trends

From reduced COVID19 case counts to lifting travel restrictions, these are some of the reasons why tourists are now confident to travel once again. However, the pandemic is still not yet over. And unlike past summers, 2021 is still a bit different.

Amadeus’ research discovered certain trends this summer. One, travel bubbles are now becoming popular. There were even reports about a possible travel bubble between the US and the UK.  Governments are establishing travel bubbles to lessen the hassles of pandemic travel while still maintaining safety. Travel bubbles may even take out mandatory quarantine allowing travelers to enjoy their trip better.

Another trend noticed by Amadeus’ research is the spike in online searches for longer stays. Given quarantine periods, many travelers are now looking to stay longer in certain areas. Plus, some would even bring their work with them given the popularity of remote work setup.

Overwhelmed Airline Crew Members

Though the summer travel rush is good news for the financially struggling aviation industry, it comes with a  few drawbacks.

Given the recent jump in the number of travelers, airlines are dealt with new challenges. Most airlines are understaffed to deal with a large number of travelers. On top of that, airlines also dealt with incidents involving unruly passengers. Most of these reported cases were because of mask compliance. In January, the Federal Aviation Administration adopted a zero-tolerance policy to minimize these incidences.