Holiday travel outlook: Daytona tourism officials, hotels expect 'promising' Thanksgiving

DAYTONA BEACH — An estimated 2.85 million Floridians are expected to travel this upcoming Thanksgiving weekend, an impressive 13% increase over last year.

The upbeat forecast by AAA Auto Club anticipates a 9% increase in Floridians traveling at least 50 miles or more by car and a whopping 79% increase for Sunshine State residents traveling by plane during the holiday weekend.

"Thanksgiving is looking very promising," said Bob Davis, CEO of the Lodging & Hospitality Association of Volusia County. "It's blossoming, especially now that international travel has opened back up."

Travel to Daytona Beach: 'My flight was packed'

Davis typically cites reports he gets from area hotels that are members of his association. This time, he also turned to another source: his daughter, who just flew in to Daytona Beach from Chicago.

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"My flight was packed and, oh my god, at Daytona Beach International Airport, there were more people than I've seen in a long time," said Davis's daughter Rita Erwin, who periodically comes back to where she grew up to visit her father.

John Betros, area general manager for the oceanfront Daytona Beach Regency and the Cove On Ormond Hilton Grand Vacation resorts, said he expects both hotels to be sold out Thanksgiving night as well as Black Friday and Saturday, Nov. 27. The two hotels combined have 250 rooms.

"We're pretty much in line with where we were (for Thanksgiving weekend) in 2019," he said. "Last year, we didn't sell out any of the nights. We were only about 75 to 80% full."

Lori Campbell Baker, executive director of the Daytona Beach Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, also offered a bullish outlook for the local tourism industry for the fast-approaching holiday season.

"As of this (past) week, Canadian snowbirds are able to come back and, of course, increased air service at DAB (Daytona Beach International Airport) is always a positive factor, too," wrote Baker in an email.

American Airlines is set to resume offering seasonal daily nonstop service to Daytona Beach from Philadelphia as well as from Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, Dec. 16 through Jan. 3, confirmed airport spokeswoman Joanne Magley,

"While we don't have access to advanced booking data, we do expect air traffic to be up this year compared to last year," she said.

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2021 looking like a 'normal holiday travel season'

Nationally, AAA predicts 53.4 million Americans will travel this Thanksgiving weekend, also a 13% increase over last year.

That would bring travel volumes within 5% of the pre-pandemic levels recorded in 2019 when 2.91 million Floridians and 56 million people nationwide made long-distance treks during that year's Thanksgiving weekend.

"It's beginning to look more like a normal holiday travel season, compared to what we saw last year," said Debbie Haas, vice president of travel for AAA, in a news release. "Now that U.S. borders are open, vaccinations are readily available, and new health and safety guidelines are in place, travel is once again high on the list for Americans who are ready to reunite with their loved ones for the holidays."

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Daytona Beach hotels expect 'promising' Thanksgiving bookings