Have you bought your turkey yet or made travel plans for Thursday? Most folks have already made their travel plans, and if you are cooking, food shopping may still be on your list of things to do. Officially, the Thanksgiving travel period begins Wednesday and continues through Sunday. I have always found the AAA report about holiday travel of interest. They do a great job in researching travel plans for the holidays. Here are a few points of interest from the AAA Thanksgiving 2011 Travel Forecast publication:

• This is the fourth Thanksgiving since the start of the most recent recession and some Americans who may have put off their travel plans over the past few years have a strong intention to travel this year.
• 42.5 million travelers will journey at least 50 miles from home this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. This represents an increase of four percent from the 40.9 million trips that occurred over the holiday period in 2010.
• Spending on travel and tourism increased at an annual rate of 4.3 percent through the first half of the year.
• Automobile travel will account for approximately 90 percent of total travel this Thanksgiving holiday period. About 38.2 million Americans are expected to travel by automobile. Despite an increase compared to last year, gas prices are not expected to significantly influence travel this Thanksgiving. The national average price of self-serve regular gasoline in October 2011 was about $3.43 per gallon.
• Air travel generally accounts for a smaller share of total travel and is projected to make up eight percent of travel this Thanksgiving holiday period, with approximately 3.4 million travelers expected to fly to their destination.
• Other modes of travel (bus, trains, watercraft, multi-modal travel) will make up the remaining two percent of the total person-trips, with just over 900,000 people expected to travel by these modes, 14.7 percent higher than in 2010.
• Florida contributes over 41 percent of tourism output to the South Atlantic tourism industry with its draw of high-profile beaches and amusement parks in the state.
• Travelers intend to journey an average of 706 miles round-trip this upcoming Thanksgiving, which is a decline of 13.5 percent from last year when travelers planned to log an average of 816 miles.
• The median Holiday Traveler Profile respondent expects to spend $554 this upcoming holiday period, which is nearly 12 percent higher than the expected median spending of $495 from intending travelers in 2010. The Thanksgiving holiday is a less expensive holiday compared to other travel holidays because of its emphasis on the gathering of friends and family.
• The only other activity (other than spending time with family) that more than one-quarter of travelers intend to do is shopping, which is not surprising given that Black Friday occurs during the holiday weekend and is the largest shopping day of the year.

While visiting family ranks highest in the activities during Thanksgiving at 68%, AAA also notes that dining will rank at 60% and touring at 25%. Night life is at 13%, attending a play/dance at 8% and visiting amusement parks at 4%. At Capone’s Dinner & Show, you have the opportunity to do ALL of these activities! Bring the entire family this week to our show. You’ll be able to visit and spend time with each other. Our dinner buffet will be loaded with fresh food for dining. We even offer a traditional Thanksgiving menu on Thanksgiving Day. You can shop at our newly stocked gift shop which is now loaded with one of the BEST Al Capone merchandise selections anywhere. And since Capone’s Dinner & Show is considered an Orlando theme park of sorts, you can check that activity off as well! With tickets at HALF PRICE, it will be one of the best bargains you’ll find when shopping in Orlando.

Last Updated on January 19, 2018