Top Thanksgiving Destinations for 2017; Islands, South Beat North

WASHINGTON (TVR) – Americans are skipping the cold for their Thanksgiving destinations.

Instead, the most popular locations this year for Turkey Day are in the warm southern part of the U.S. and on tropical islands, according to an analysis by AAA.

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The number one Thanksgiving destination for 2017 is Orlando, Florida, the auto club said.

There is also a famous theme park in the second-most popular destination, too: Anaheim, California, home of Disneyland; another amusement park, Knott’s Berry Farm, is in nearby Buena Park.

More Americans are expected to travel for this Thanksgiving than in a dozen years, AAA predicted, with nearly 51 million people expected to drive, fly, take the train, and cruise more than 50 miles away from home—a 12-year high.

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Top Thanksgiving Destinations

Here are the top Thanksgiving destinations, according to AAA:

Orlando, Florida
Anaheim, California
New York City, New York
Honolulu, Hawaii
Las Vegas, Nevada
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
Cancun, Mexico
San Francisco, California
Kahului, Maui, Hawaii
Fort Lauderdale, Florida

AAA considers the Thanksgiving travel period to be Wednesday, Nov. 22 to Sunday, Nov. 26.

AAA is warning people that travel times during the Thanksgiving holiday “could be as much as three times longer” than normal, and determined the best and worst times to travel.

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Thanksgiving Travel by Air Surges

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) spokesperson Lisa Farbstein said the agency expected to screen 6% more travelers during the Thanksgiving travel season compared to 2016, with more people beginning their travel earlier than in past years.

Thanksgiving Travel TSA canine team DCA IAD

TSA explosive detection canines on duty at Washington Reagan National Airport (DCA) and Dulles International Airport (IAD); courtesy: TSA

And she said TSA would be using 30% more screening canines on passengers this holiday travel period than during the same period last year.

The agency added 50 canine teams, along with 2,000 officers, earlier this year nationwide.

Recently-disclosed findings from the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General found TSA screeners missed detecting weapons, bombs, and mock explosives more than 70% of the time.

On Tuesday, new TSA administrator David Pekoske told CBS News, “enhanced training” and “changed procedures” would improve screeners’ effectiveness during the Thanksgiving period.

“The procedures we use today are not the procedures that were in place when that testing was done,” Pekoske said.

Correction: This article has been updated to reflect that Knott’s Berry Farm is in Buena Park, Calif., not Anaheim.

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Mark Albert

Mark is a Peabody Award-winner who has reported in newsrooms across the country, most recently as a freelance correspondent at CBS News. He's traveled to 60 countries so far and plans to get to the rest—with a little luck.

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