'Stir Crazy' Travelers Set To Hit Road For Memorial Day Weekend

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Trolley tour riders disembark in downtown Savannah on Thursday, May 27, 2021. The city is expected to be full of tourists for Memorial Day weekend.

Credit: Emily Jones / GPB

About one million Georgians are expected to hit the road this Memorial Day weekend, according to auto club AAA. Including air, train and other forms of transit, some 1.16 million are planning to travel.

The numbers come despite high gas prices and in stark contrast to this time last year, when pandemic shutdowns were in effect in many places.

“People were not traveling, you know, by car, plane, train or cruise at that point last year,” said Montrae Waiters of AAA.

In Savannah, the halt to travel because of COVID-19 cratered the city's usual tourism numbers. 

Over Memorial Day weekend 2020, hotel occupancy in Chatham County was projected to peak at 55% on Saturday, May 23, 2020, according to the Tourism Leadership Council. For the rest of the weekend, occupancy remained below half.

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Savannah-area hotels are expected to be nearly full for Memorial Day weekend.

Credit: Tourism Leadership Council

This year, Savannah-area hotels are expecting to be 99% full Friday and Saturday, and 92% full on Sunday. Those figures don’t include travelers who come for the day or locals who spend money at restaurants and other attractions. Both groups are expected to drive tourism spending even higher this weekend.

TLC President and CEO Michael Owens said that’s great news, though he’s not sure it will last.

“This is, we think, a lot of pent-up demand of folks who’ve gone cabin fever and stir crazy and just want to get out,” he said.

After last year’s uncertainty and upheaval due to COVID-19, Owens said tourism business owners are more nervous about the future.

He pointed to the recent spike in gas prices and panic over shortages due to the Colonial Pipeline hack, which he said led to a spate of last-minute cancellations. Business owners are more wary that unexpected changes could disrupt their business at any time.

That spike in gas prices has now leveled out, and prices in Georgia are averaging several cents below last week. As of Thursday, the average price was $2.92 compared to $2.95 a week ago.

But gas prices usually tick up heading into Memorial Day, and likely will this weekend.

That’s normal for a summer of travel, and Owens said he’s optimistic that even if the current boom levels out, tourists will continue to come as more and more people get vaccinated.

He also credits the Savannah community with helping keep many businesses afloat when tourism dried up last year, by ordering takeout and shopping online.

“Our community really dug in and took care of our local business owners,” Owens said. “It was really terrific work by our community that is the reason we’re in a better place than many, many other communities.”