Terminals at Newark Liberty International Airport were busy Sunday as flyers got an early start to the Thanksgiving holiday travel rush.

According to AAA, this year will see the most Thanksgiving air travelers since 2005. It expects 4.7 million people to take to the friendly skies -- that’s close to 7% more than last year.

“All of our kids come from different places. We have one in Austin. One lives in Dallas. And we’re in Phoenix. So we decided to meet here in New York,” said Rob Napoli, traveler. “We’re excited.”

Many travelers at Newark Liberty International Airport decided to travel early in order to beat the crowds and enjoy some quality time in the area.

For Meredith Sarracino and her family from Dallas, it was a return home.

“We used to live here and two of our oldest were born here,” Sarracino said. “We’re going to go back to our old neighborhood, go see The Rockettes, the tree, and other Christmas stuff.”

She, her husband, and three daughters decided to travel early and take advantage of the days off the kids have from school. While they said that their flight was packed, things ran smoothly.

“Everyone seemed to be moving fast. The holiday travel has been pretty easy," Sarracino added.

Tuesday and Wednesday are the busiest and most expensive travel days. Overall, AAA projects more than 50 million travelers will head out 50 or more miles away from home. That's an increase of 2.3% compared to 2022.