LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The summer travel season is kicking off with one of the busiest Memorial Day weekends since AAA began tracking travel data in 2000.

Nationwide, more than 43.8 million Americans are projected to travel over the Memorial Day holiday weekend. That figure is 4% higher than last year and comes close to matching 2005’s record of 44 million Memorial Day travelers.

AAA projects a record 38.4 million people will travel by car over Memorial Day weekend, up 4% compared to last year. That means plenty of drivers filling up their gas tanks this weekend.

The average price of gas is $4.33 a gallon in Nevada, nearly $0.10 from last year. However, the price is down from this time last month, which sat at $4.62, according to AAA.

In addition, AAA expects this will be the most crowded Memorial Day weekend at airports since 2005 with 3.51 million air travelers this holiday weekend, an increase of nearly 5% over last year.

“We’re expecting Memorial Day weekend numbers like we haven’t seen in almost 20 years,” said Brian Ng, Senior Vice President of Membership and Travel Marketing for AAA Nevada. “It’s not just a return to pre-pandemic levels but also foreshadows the robust summer travel season ahead.”

Watch our previous reporting regarding why gas prices are going up in Las Vegas.