Best times to hit the road this holiday season

Wondering when the best time is to hit the road during the holiday season? AAA has some valuable advice.

Transcript

00:00With Christmas fast approaching, many folks will hit the roads in hopes that they'll be

00:04fast approaching friends and family. This holiday break, AAA is estimating that 119

00:09million Americans will travel more than 50 miles across this entire holiday season.

00:14So many people have a different mix of days off. Some people are still

00:20waiting for their kids to get out of school. So in terms of during the week, yes, you're still

00:25going to have rush hour for people who are not off the days surrounding the holidays.

00:30AAA recommends those that are hitting the road try to do so in the off-peak hours.

00:34While your local rush hour may be slightly less busy, expect the off times to be a little more

00:39busy. We do expect the two weekends, the weekend before Christmas and the weekend after, to also

00:43be very busy on the roads. Getting an early start not only gives you a full day to get to your

00:48destination, but will help avoid traffic congestion. You want to leave as early as

00:52possible. The more you delay your departure during the day, the more congestion builds on

00:57the interstates. Some may opt to leave later in the day after rush hour, but that poses a risk

01:02of drowsy driving. If you're driving during hours that you're not normally awake, let's say you're

01:07driving at night and maybe you go to bed at like 10 o'clock and now it's 11 p.m. midnight,

01:12you're going to naturally get tired. Leaving in the morning after a full night's sleep will

01:15be a safer option and also allow for a full day to get to where you need to be. But if you're

01:20going at it solo, be mindful of your energy. Pull over to a rest area, somewhere safe,

01:26a location where you can park, you know, drink a little water, use the restroom and just take

01:31a little rest. Even a 20-minute nap, if you are in a safe location and you can do that,

01:35will make you a little bit more refreshed behind the wheel. Please stay safe on the

01:39roads this holiday season. For AccuWeather, I'm meteorologist Tony Laubach.