Thanksgiving travel begins: How to avoid a holiday headache

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM)- Millions of Americans are getting ready to travel for Thanksgiving. Travel experts say Thanksgiving tends to be busier than Christmas.

Amtrak says the busiest day for train travel will be Wednesday.

“We still have capacity available, we’ve added extra capacity to all our trains including the Keystone service and Pennsylvanian here in Pennsylvania, so we encourage folks if you haven’t already booked your ticket, go ahead and do that now,” said Beth Toll, Amtrak senior public relations manager.

Reservations will be required for all trains on the Keystone and Pennsylvanian line. Instead of getting on a train and then buying your fare, you’ll need those reservations all this week through next Monday. You can get a tick for a specific train in person at the station.

Harrisburg International Airport is expecting 26,000 passengers this week.

“It’s kind of a typical day here for us traffic-wise, except the difference is it’s leisure travel, not business travelers, so things take a little bit longer because not everyone is as comfortable with the process,” said Scott Miller, HIA spokesperson.

Watch for us in your inbox.

Miller says to come to the airport prepared and check flight times and bag limits.

“The longest checkpoint line will be 15 or 20 minutes, most of the time, it’s under 10,” said Miller.

The busiest mode of travel will be on the roads.

“We’re looking at 55.4 million Americans traveling this week for the Thanksgiving holiday,” said Doni Lee Spiegel, AAA Central Penn public relations manager.

If you want to avoid traffic, avoid traveling on Wednesday between 2 P.M. and 6 P.M.

“If you can travel earlier in the day or later in the night, you’ll see some less traffic,” said Spiegel.

Gas prices are also down compared to last year.

“Pennsylvanians are seeing on average, 44 cents less a gallon than we did last year, that’s certainly something to be thankful for,” said Spiegel.