Being thankful from home: Fewer Missourians expected to travel over the Thanksgiving weekend

Despite a recent decline in gas prices, more Missourians are expected to stay closer to home this Thanksgiving, according to AAA Missouri.

The travel organization forecasts that, for the first time since 2002, fewer Americans will travel during the holiday weekend. About 41 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home this Thanksgiving, a 1.4 percent decrease of 600,000 travelers from last year.

AAA Missouri spokesman Mike Right said estimates in the state should mirror the national figures.

"The economic stress people are experiencing trumps any decrease in gas prices," Right said. "We've seen all holiday travel down this year compared to 2007 and that should continue to be the case in the future."

Locally, gas prices can be found around 40 cents lower than the national average. AAA reported that the average price of regular gasoline nationwide was $2.82 per gallon a month ago, compared to $1.95 Nov. 16.

Right said people are looking for alternative modes of transportation such as the train or bus, with 3.26 million Americans expected to choose this method of travel.

AAA estimates the cost of a round-trip plane ticket will be eight percent higher than in 2007. Most airlines have begun charging for extra fees, such as checked baggage and snacks. Nearly 4.54 million, or 11 percent of holiday travelers, plan to travel by airplane, a 7.2 percent decrease from those who flew in 2007.

"The increase in bus and train travel has to do with the increase in plane prices," Right said. "Earlier this year people started to see an increase in fuel costs for their motor vehicles, so they began looking at rail travel as an option. In addition to both methods of travel being cheaper, it's also less of a hassle compared to airline travel."

Greyhound bus service recently returned to Cape Girardeau after an 18-year absence. Buses make four stops a day at 937 Broadway, with trips to St. Louis and Memphis, Tenn. The company also has a depot in Sikeston, Mo., and 33 other communities in the state.

Travel by Amtrak -- whose station in Carbondale, Ill., is about an hour's drive from Cape Girardeau -- has seen six consecutive years of ridership increase. From September 2007 to September 2008, 112,096 passengers traveled on the train from the Carbondale station and 4,631 from the Poplar Bluff, Mo., location.

Thanksgiving week is typically Amtrak's busiest travel period of the year, carrying more than 665,000 passengers in 2007. Wednesday is expected to be its heaviest travel day of the year, with 128,000 passengers anticipated systemwide. On a typical Wednesday, 78,000 passengers ride on Amtrak trains.

"We expect a strong Thanksgiving, despite the fact that fuel prices have fallen that help many drivers," Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said. "The economy has gone sour, so that impacts people's travel plans."

Despite the popularity of the bus or rail system, Right said the automobile still will be the choice of travel by Missourians.

Eighty-one percent -- 33.2 million Americans -- will travel by car, a 1.2 percent decrease from 2007. Around 6.5 million of those traveling by car will be Midwesterners.

While many Missourians will spend the Thanksgiving weekend visiting friends or relatives, others are opting for a vacation on the sea.

Andrea Samons with First Class Travel in Cape Girardeau has seen an increased number of customers booking cruises.

"A lot of people get away for the holidays," Samons said. "A lot of people are choosing to go cruising for the weekend to Jamaica or Cancun.

"In this area we haven't noticed a dip in sales," she said. "People in this area don't seem affected by the economy like in others that aren't faring so well."

bblackwell@semissourian.com

388-3628