Travelers swarm Philadelphia International Airport for the holiday

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- It was another incredibly busy day of holiday travel at Philadelphia International Airport on Friday.

"We are going on a Caribbean cruise to St. Kitts, St. Thomas, Puerto Rico and Haiti! The whole family," said Judy Kaminski from Mount Laurel.

In our region, AAA says 92,000 residents will fly to their holiday destination. That's a 4% increase from last year.

"I know a lot of people say that sounds silly, we just keep breaking records. But travel has rebounded substantially post-pandemic and we saw that trend throughout 2024," said Jana Tidwell, spokesperson for AAA.

Philadelphia International is one of the largest East Coast hubs for American Airlines.

"Our entire fleet is going to travel about 100,000,000 miles during this holiday season. If you stacked up candy canes from end to end, it will be about a trillion candy canes," said Lakshrnan Amaranayaka, American Airlines Vice President of PHL Hub Operations.

And while the airport is busy, AAA says most holiday travelers will drive to their destination.

"Ninety percent of all holiday travelers here in the area, which is 1.2 million in the Philly five-county area, are traveling by car for the holiday," said Tidwell.

Whether you're driving or flying, travel experts remind everyone to plan ahead, and pack your patience, along with those Christmas presents.