Travel Tips During the Holidays
Americans love to travel and one of the biggest travel holidays is right around the corner. Whether you’re traveling to visit family for Thanksgiving or planning to host a ‘Friendsgiving’, planes, trains and automobiles will be central to gathering. According to new travel projections from The Economic Times, travel by air will shatter last year’s record with flight bookings up over 2.2% so far for the Thanksgiving Holiday. Data from AAA shows that over 79 million Americans traveled in 2024 for Thanksgiving with almost 72 million by car.
Predictions for this year show approximately 28% of Americans are planning to travel over 100 miles round trip [1]. Past data from the National Household Travel Survey have shown that the average distance among travelers by car is 428 miles round trip. That’s almost 31 billion (with a B) miles traveled just in the U.S. during the Thanksgiving Holiday season!
Unfortunately, there are a few negative environmental components associated with travel, and more specifically the negative impact of these miles on the atmosphere. Based on the average gasoline vehicle [2], CO2 emissions released to the atmosphere are roughly 400 grams per mile. Quick math shows travel by cars during the Thanksgiving Holiday alone could cause more than 12 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂) to be released into the atmosphere in 2025.
So what can you do? Carpooling, electric vehicles, and use of public transportation are good ideas to reduce your individual footprint. Offsetting your travel emissions with the purchase of carbon credits is also another feasible option. The Climate Trust has a platform for you to purchase as little as one credit at a time. Purchasing carbon credit help support landowners continue positive land stewardship to sequester carbon on their lands. Check out the carbon footprint calculator on our website here, to start your purchase today. Happy Thanksgiving!