It's as American as apple pie — every year, millions of Americans hit the roads and airports for an early jump on their July 4 weekend.
The number of Americans expected to travel this holiday weekend is up more than 17 percent compared with last year's levels, according to AAA predictions. The jump is due to optimism about the state of the U.S. economy, the travel and auto group said.
About 34.9 million travelers will take a trip at least 50 miles away from home, up sharply from 29.8 million last year, AAA said.
The number of Americans traveling by car is expected to jump 17.7 percent, while the number traveling by air is expected to increase 8.2 percent.
"While financial markets continue to have volatility related to the European debt crisis, the landscape of the U.S. economy is in a much different place than it was one year ago," said Glen MacDonell, director of AAA Travel Services.
Last year, on the U.S. Independence Day holiday weekend travel tumbled 21.2 percent from 2008 levels as the recession depressed travel. AAA defines the Fourth of July holiday travel period this year as July 1-5.
The national price of gasoline sits at $2.76 a gallon, according to the national Lundberg Survey of fuel prices, released Sunday. The level is up from an average of $2.64 last year, but considerably lower than the $4.04 average in 2008.
At $2.80 per gallon, a typical motorist using about 50 gallons of fuel per month will spend about $140. AAA has said higher gas prices don't keep people from driving until they approach the $3 per gallon level — a sort of psychological barrier.
Air fares are expected to increase 13 percent from last year, but will still remain below the average two years ago.
Car rental rates will increase 4 percent to an average of $54 per day.
Travel will likely increase across the United States this year, even in the Gulf Coast region, where there has been some concern that the BP oil leak will keep tourists away.
However, the South Atlantic will likely not experience the same amount of growth as elsewhere in the nation due to the spill, AAA said.
Despite the increase in travel, AAA reported that the median spending is estimated to be $644 per household, nearly $50 less than last year.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
