Thanksgiving travel is a contact sport in the best of years. But 2025’s version comes with an extra plot twist: a government shutdown stretching past the eight-week mark and squeezing the very people who keep America’s skies moving. Tens of thousands of air traffic controllers and TSA agents are still on the job without pay and absences are mounting. The FAA has already announced a 10% reduction in air traffic across 40 major airports, a safety measure that will almost certainly translate into longer lines and slower days on the tarmac.
If the shutdown stretches into the holiday, experts warn of a ripple effect that could turn routine delays into sprawling, airport-wide meltdowns.
“Delays and cancellations beget delays and cancellations,” aviation analyst William J. McGee told NPR. And, unlike the 2018 shutdown, this one will have workers two full paychecks behind by the time you’re carving turkey. Fatigue matters—especially in roles where a “no thanks, I’ll skip work today” can grind a whole schedule to a halt.
Even if Washington reaches a last-minute agreement, the turbulence won’t vanish overnight. Controllers need time to retrain on updated procedures, airlines need time to realign their schedules and airports need breathing room to tamp down backlogs. So yes, flying will remain safe, but it may be a small exercise in patience.
But enough doomscrolling. Let’s talk timing—because when you choose to hit the road or head to the airport this year matters more than ever.
If you can swing it, Thanksgiving Day (November 27) is your golden ticket, says NerdWallet. It’s historically the quietest travel day of the entire week, with barely half the crowds of the dreaded Sunday after Thanksgiving (November 30), the single busiest flying day of the year. Morning departures on the holiday itself are prime: fewer lines, fewer delays and you can still make it in time for dinner.
Before the holiday, the sweetest spots are Saturday, November 22, and Monday, November 24. Afterward, the calmest return days are Wednesday, December 3 and Tuesday, December 2. Even Black Friday is gentler than you’d expect: airport crowds thin out while everyone else goes feral at the mall.
Drivers aren’t off the hook either. A new report from Google shows that drivers can expect brutal traffic on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, especially mid-afternoon, and again on Friday from noon to 4pm. To dodge the gridlock, leave before 11am, after 8pm or lean into the chaos and wait until Thanksgiving evening, when most of the country is blissfully couch-locked.