With a few days off of work this week, Joe and Kim Red made the 285-mile trip from their home in Red Banks, Mississippi, this week to enjoy some of Chattanooga's most popular tourism attractions.
"We sometimes go to the beach, but I really like the mountains better, and both of us have a lot of fond memories about Chattanooga," Joe Red said after spending most of Monday atop Lookout Mountain at Rock City Gardens. "I still remember going through Fat Man's Squeeze here as a kid, when it was a lot easier to get through. We love it here."
The Reds are among nearly 71 million Americans expected to head 50 miles or more from their home over the July Fourth holiday in what AAA projects will be the busiest travel year ever for the Independence Day holiday. Thousands of tourists are expected to visit the Scenic City during what is one of the busiest times of the year for the city's $1.6 billion-a-year tourism industry.
"It's a great town we've always wanted to visit," Panama City, Florida, resident Cole Floyd said during his first visit to the Scenic City on Monday.
Amid the summer heat, the mountains of Tennessee are appealing to many tourists like Floyd, who decided to spend a few days in a stopover visit in Chattanooga on the way to visit family in Virginia. With the July Fourth holiday on Thursday this year, millions of Americans are projected to hit the road Wednesday afternoon or evening for the start of a four-day holiday. INRIX, a provider of transportation data and insights, said the worst times to travel by car are between 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Road trips over the holiday week could take up to 67% longer than normal.
(READ MORE: Summer travel heats up in 2024)
To help cope with the expected increase in travel on Tennessee highways, the Tennessee Department of Transportation is suspending all construction-related lane closures on interstates and state routes, beginning at noon on Wednesday and continuing through 6 a.m. Monday. AAA predicts record travel in Tennessee this year, with 1.4 million Tennesseans taking a road trip this week.
More Americans are also taking extended trips around Independence Day with summer vacations and the flexibility of remote work, according to AAA.
(READ MORE: How to avoid the July 4th rush)
PRICES AT THE PUMP
Chattanooga gas prices jumped nearly 24 cents a gallon last week to an average of $3.06 per gallon, according to online gasoline reporting service GasBuddy.com. Prices still average 40 cents a gallon less than the national average, according to the GasBuddy survey of 170 area stations, and are up only 6 cents a gallon, or 2%, from where they were a year ago. Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said fuel prices could go higher, especially if Hurricane Beryl in the Caribbean disrupts oil deliveries or refineries.
(READ MORE: Chattanooga gas prices were below a year ago in June)
TAKING FLIGHT
The number of air travelers is also hitting records. AAA projects 5.74 million more people will fly to their July Fourth destinations, up 7% from last year. Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration said a record number of Americans went through airport inspections while boarding flights across the country,
"July Fourth week will mark the busiest time of the year for travel with an additional 37 million people passing through our nation's airports," Kristen Behm, vice president of air service development and public relations for the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority, said in a statement.
(READ MORE: Airline boardings up in Chattanooga)
A White House economist said the increase in travel this week underscores the economic confidence of Americans and the continued growth in the economy, even amid concerns over lingering inflation.
"We know that the job market has been strong with U.S. unemployment below 4% for the past two and a half years and the jobless rate has been even lower in Chattanooga," Jared Bernstein, economic advisor to President Joe Biden, said in a telephone interview with the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Unemployment this spring in Chattanooga dropped to an all-time low of 2.5%, which Bernstein said helped wages to stay above the inflation rate in the past year for most workers.
"With higher pay and gas prices pretty stable, you have more breathing room at the pump, which is helping those who are driving on their vacations this week, and we also know that there are a lot more people flying," Bernstein said. "We have a president who is banning junk fees and requiring ticket refunds on canceled or major delayed flights, so I think the White House is trying to help people have a better travel season. The job market is helping to support this increase in travel."
SPENDING LIMITS
But inflation-wary consumers are still reining in their overall spending this year, with 60% of the respondents to a WalletHub survey saying they will spend less money this year than a year ago during the week of July Fourth. Among more than 200 adults surveyed in late May, three of every five respondents said inflation is affecting their Fourth plans.
"We're having to watch more closely what we spend because everything seems to cost more these days," Floyd said while helping to load up his family near the Tennessee Aquarium on Monday night.
As consumers watch their wallets, Ruby Falls President Hugh Morrow said Chattanooga remains a relatively affordable place to visit within a day's drive of most of the U.S. population.
"We're seeing s strong summer this year, although it may be hard to beat the really strong year we had coming out of COVID last year," Morrow said in an interview Monday.
Contact Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6340.