Find Cheapest Gas Prices In Arlington For Thanksgiving Travel

ARLINGTON, VA — This Thanksgiving, we can be thankful for steady gas prices in Virginia.

According to AAA Mid-Atlantic, Wednesday's regular gas price average in Virginia is $2.315 — $0.014 up from last week's average of $2.301. It's also lower than the $2.589 national average and is down slightly from the state average of $2.337 from last Thanksgiving.

While Virginia's average gas price is below the national average, Arlington County has one of the highest prices in the state.

According to AAA estimates, Wednesday's average gas price in Arlington is $2.522. That puts it behind Alexandria at $2.539, which is the highest average gas price in Northern Virginia. Surprisingly, the highest prices in the state can be found not in NoVa but in Highland County ($2.599 average) on the far western side of the state.

"AAA Mid-Atlantic estimates that nearly 1.35 million Washington, D.C. metro area residents will travel 50 miles or more Thanksgiving holiday weekend, with 1.2 million traveling by car, representing 91 percent of all holiday travelers," said AAA spokesperson John Townsend. "This will mark the highest Thanksgiving travel volume since 2005. For the majority of Americans, AAA expects gas prices to be fairly similar to last year's Thanksgiving holiday."

If you're filling up the tank on the way to Thanksgiving dinner, you may want to consider which areas have the lowest prices.

Here are the best gas prices in Arlington as of Wednesday morning according to GasBuddy:

2.29 — Liberty

2717 N Pershing Dr & Washington Blvd

2.39 — Japanese Auto Service

3413 Wilson Blvd & N Kansas St

2.39 — Speedway

3299 Wilson Blvd & 10th St N

AAA predicts that 55 million people will travel 50 miles or more away from home this Thanksgiving, a 2.9 percent increase over last year.

Good gas prices may play a part in the high volume of traffic. But a strong economy is likely the main cause for the increase in travel this year.

“Millions of thankful Americans are starting the holiday season off right with a Thanksgiving getaway,” said Paula Twidale, vice president, AAA Travel, in the statement. “Strong economic fundamentals are motivating Americans to venture out this holiday in near-record numbers. Consumer spending remains strong, thanks to increasing wages, disposable income and household wealth, and travel remains one of their top priorities for the holiday season.”