A record number of Americans are expected to travel during Thanksgiving this year. Nearly 80 million people are expected to travel 50-plus miles by car, train or plane during the holiday, estimates AAA Travel.

How could weather impact Thanksgiving travel plans? Snow, rain and other weather could complicate travel plans during the upcoming holiday.

“The final week of November could be turbulent across the U.S. as several storms track coast to coast, delivering rain, wind and even a bit of snow to some major cities and well-traveled interstates,” reports AccuWeather. “Travel troubles may start brewing the weekend before Thanksgiving as rain and mountain snow clobber the West Coast, and a slow-moving storm spins over the Northeast.”

In most regions of the Midwest, Southwest and Southeast, weather over the holiday week is expected to be mild, dry and unlikely to cripple travel plans.

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A record-breaking number of people are expected to hit the road this Thanksgiving

Snow begins in the Northeast, Great Lakes

A brewing snow storm will begin rolling in over the Northeast and Great Lakes area during the weekend before Thanksgiving.

Over 23 million people in the Northeast and Great Lakes regions are already under winter weather advisories this weekend, per USA Today. Advisories have been issued in New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, western Virginia, western North Carolina, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin.

“Unsettled weather expected across much of the Northeast and Great Lakes over the next few days, including the likelihood of heavy snow in the central Appalachians and higher elevations of northeastern Pennsylvania and southern New York,” The National Weather Service reported on Thursday.

The storm is expected to pick up by mid-week with snow, rain and strong winds. Some areas could see between one to three inches of snowfall, reports Fox Weather. But according to the outlet, big cities along Interstate 95 — such as New York City, Boston and Philadelphia — will likely only get rain.

In zones where the storm is more severe, anticipate flight delays and cancellations before and after Thanksgiving.

Potential for heavy rain in Tennessee and Arkansas

AccuWeather forecasts “periods of rain dampen areas from the Ohio Valley southward into Arkansas and Tennessee,” leading up to Thanksgiving.

Storms on the West Coast

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Heavy rainfall is expected to hit California and the Pacific North West during the weekend before Thanksgiving, with threats of flooding lasting into Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. That precipitation may carry into western mountain regions as snow.

“Several inches of rainfall are still possible, around 5-7 inches remain possible over 48 hours with isolated areas in terrain to see 10+ inches of rain. Northern California is under a High Risk for Excessive Rainfall and a Moderate Risk goes northward into southern Oregon,” the National Weather Service reported on Thursday.

As the storm of the West Coast moves inland, it could bring snow to the northern Rockies and Sierra Nevada, per he National Weather Service.

“The fresh snow in the mountains, along with powder that fell earlier in the month, could promote great skiing weather across the West, including in the Sierra and Rocky Mountains,” per AccuWeather.

People ski and snowboard at the grand opening of the season at Brighton Resort in Big Cottonwood Canyon on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. | Laura Seitz, Deseret News
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