Megan Ellis / Android Authority
TL;DR Holidays come with traffic, but Google Maps is helping you avoid it by revealing the busiest — and least busy — times to run your errands.
You can find the best and worst days and times to shop based on your US state, giving you the inside scoop on holiday prep.
The secret is to run errands on Tuesday afternoons, as that’s when shops and post offices are often less crowded.
The holidays bring time off work and connection with friends and family, but they also come with travel, traffic, and plenty of errands. Thanksgiving is the most-traveled holiday in the US, with over 80 million people expected to hit the roads, board trains, and fly on planes this coming week. After that, December holidays lead right into the new year. To help you ace your holiday travel and preparations, Google is sharing a few tips based on Google Maps data to save you time while avoiding traffic.
Thanksgiving is first, so let’s start there. Traffic is 14% more congested than usual between 10 AM and 4 PM the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, which falls on November 27 this year. You should try to avoid traveling on that Wednesday between 1 PM and 3 PM, since that two-hour window is when roads are most crowded, according to Google Maps data. On Thanksgiving Day, Google warns that the roads and grocery stores will be busiest between 12 PM and 3 PM.
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Thanksgiving travelers tend to head home between 12 PM and 3 PM on the Saturday and Sunday following the holiday. If you want to avoid the heavy traffic, start driving outside of those hours to steer clear of the rush.
Google Maps also tracks busyness trends for businesses, like malls and shops, which can help shoppers avoid long checkout lines. Generally, retailers in the U.S. are least crowded on Tuesdays in the afternoon, while they’re most crowded on Saturdays in the afternoon. Tuesdays tend to be a better choice for errands as people usually go out and handle stops and returns on Mondays. In the map below, Google used Maps data to find the best and worst days and times to go shopping in your state.
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