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The 2022 holiday season is shaping up to be much more active than last year, and the busiest travel days of the entire season are already bearing down on us here in Minnesota.

After two pandemic years where we likely either hunkered down at home or had much smaller holiday celebrations, it appears that many Minnesotans are going to get back to heading out to be with friends and relatives this holiday season.

So if you're going to be heading over the river and through the woods to celebrate the holidays this year, you can expect there to be WAY more travelers out and about this year than the past two, approaching pre-pandemic levels.

That's the word from Triple-A's 2022 Holiday Travel Forecast, which predicted 54.6 million people across the U.S. will travel 50 miles or more from home this Thanksgiving. That’s a 1.5% increase over 2021 and 98% of pre-pandemic volumes. This year is projected to be the third busiest for Thanksgiving travel since AAA started tracking in 2000

Axios Twin Cities reported that officials at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in Bloomington predict Wednesday (Nov. 23rd) will be the busiest departure day of the holiday period in Minnesota with more than 32,300 passengers projected to be screened at MSP’s security checkpoints. Sunday (Nov. 27th) is anticipated to be the second busiest day, with more than 32,200 passengers expected.

MSP officials also caution that there could be more congestion on highways and roads around the airport this year. And they still recommend that you arrive at the airport two hours ahead of any domestic flight, while three hours ahead is recommended if you're flying internationally this holiday season.

Meanwhile, no matter WHERE you might be this year, travel safely! And, keep scrolling to check out 10 Things You'll Only Hear at a Minnesota Thanksgiving Dinner!

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11 Things You'll Only Hear at a Minnesota Thanksgiving

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