These Are the Worst Times to Travel on Thanksgiving Day

If you’re not hosting this Thanksgiving, chances are you may have to do some traveling to get to your holiday plans. If those travel plans involve driving, chances are you’ll be needing to do some meticulous planning to ensure you avoid the (somewhat unavoidable) traffic. Luckily, Google Maps has provided data on some major cities throughout the West—Boulder, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle—to facilitate some of that scheduling.

Boulder, Colorado

• Wednesday, November 26th: Contrary to the typical national traffic patterns, road traffic the day before Thanksgiving will be approximately 14% lighter than on Tuesday. If you plan to leave on Wednesday, the time to avoid would be 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
• Thursday, November 27th (Thanksgiving): If you’re needing to hit the road on Thanksgiving Day, avoid anywhere from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
• Friday, November 28th (Black Friday): For those wanting to shop on Black Friday or needing to leave town after Thanksgiving Day, it’s best to shoot for before 12:00 p.m. or after dinner.
• Post-holiday: Avoid the roads from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. for your best chances at missing heavy traffic.

Denver, Colorado

• Wednesday, November 26th: Similar to Boulder, road traffic in Denver the day before Thanksgiving will also be lighter (approximately 10.5%) than on Tuesday. If you plan to leave on Wednesday, the time to avoid would be 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m..
• Thursday, November 27th (Thanksgiving): Avoid anywhere from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m..
• Friday, November 28th (Black Friday): For those wanting to shop on Black Friday or needing to leave town after Thanksgiving Day, it’s best to shoot for before 12:00 p.m. or after dinner.
• Post-holiday: Avoid the roads from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. for your best chances at missing heavy traffic.

Los Angeles, California

• Wednesday, November 26th: Traffic is approximately 6.5% higher than usual. However, before 10:00 a.m. would be the best time to leave. Traffic after 8:00 p.m. and into Thursday morning will be around 13.5% worse than usual.
• Thursday, November 27th (Thanksgiving): Avoid 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
• Friday, November 28th (Black Friday): Check out the in-person Black Friday deals any time before 2:00 p.m.
• Post-holiday: Avoid the roads from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. for your best chances at missing heavy traffic.

San Francisco, California

• Wednesday, November 26th: From 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., traffic will be approximately 8.5% heavier, heaviest from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. If you must leave on Wednesday, try for before 10:00 a.m. or after 8:00 p.m. Those leaving on Tuesday should avoid 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
• Thursday, November 27th (Thanksgiving): Avoid driving from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
• Friday, November 28th (Black Friday): Check out the in-person Black Friday deals any time before 2:00 p.m.
• Post-holiday: The heaviest traffic will be from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., so try to avoid that timeframe.

Portland, Oregon

• Wednesday, November 26th: Traffic is approximately 4.5% higher than usual. However, before 10:00 AM or after 8:00 PM would be the best times to leave if completely necessary. 
• Thursday, November 27th (Thanksgiving): Avoid driving from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM.
• Friday, November 28th (Black Friday): Check out the in-person Black Friday deals any time before 2:00 PM.
• Post-holiday: Avoid the roads from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Seattle, Washington

• Wednesday, November 26th: Traffic from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. will be approximately 5.5% heavier than usual. The busiest time will be 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. If you can leave before 11:00 a.m. or after 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, those would be the most ideal times. However, Tuesday is often a better day to leave, but still avoid 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Thursday, November 27th (Thanksgiving): Avoid driving 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Friday, November 28th (Black Friday): Check out the in-person Black Friday deals any time before 2:00 p.m.
• Post-holiday: Avoid the roads from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.