NORFOLK, Va. — Thanksgiving is a few days away, and local airports will soon be filled with travelers heading to their destinations.
"Travel is up again. Flights are being sold out and overbooked," said the Macy Travels owner, Maceon Miales. She has been a travel agent for nearly six years.
She said travel has returned to pre-pandemic levels.
According to the travel website Hopper, if you're traveling for Thanksgiving, airfares are down 14% from this time last year. However, despite travel, returning to the website suggests that 41% of those traveling for the holidays are concerned about how they will afford to travel.
Miales said there are ways to get to your destination affordably.
"If you're a person who travels on a specific airline, consider getting the credit card for that airline," said Miales. "But if you're a person who just wants one card and just want to do a lot of travel, I would say consider American Express because you can earn a lot of points for travel."
However, traveling for active members of the military can be challenging, according to Destination Anywhere Travels Dream Vacations Travel Advisor Jim Kippenhan. Still, he recommends members of the military to book in advance anyway.
"The best advice I can always give anybody is to try to book anything you're doing as far in advance as you can, and if you're not sure you'll be able to go, use a refundable fair," said Kippenhan.
"A refundable fair will cost you more, but it's refundable. If it's a non-refundable fair, you're out of luck."
Airlines are expecting record demand for the 2023 season, which means availability is going to be tight. Be sure to book your tickets as soon as you can.