Thanksgiving marks the busiest travel period in the United States, according to the American Automobile Association—meaning the weather can make or break our plans for where we’ll sit down to turkey dinner. Will we be braving snowstorms to make it safely to Grandma’s? Will rain pound the windshield or delay our flight? Or maybe sunny skies will make for ideal travel conditions, letting us focus instead on perfecting our new green bean recipe.
Thankfully, the time-honored Old Farmer’s Almanac is here to help, offering region-specific forecasts as reported by Newsweek.
On Thanksgiving week, we can expect a mixed bag of rain, snow and sunshine all across the U.S., depending on where you live, of course.
In the northeast, we’ll see a lot of sunshine. Hooray! Northern New England may have to deal with some snow flurries, and the rest of the region will feel colder than average, but that’s fine. Thanksgiving parades will be manageable with hats and mittens!
In the Atlantic corridor, the weather will be clear with no precipitation (gosh, we hesitate to write that, tempting the gods, but you’ll make sure you have your snow scraper in your car anyway, right?)
In the Appalachians, the same: clear weather without snow or rain, but the northern areas may be colder than you expect, while southern areas are expected to feel warm.
In the southeast, mild weather reigns. Get everyone on board for a long walk through the trees that have given up their leaves, the remotely beautiful “stick season.”
In Florida, there will be plenty of sunshine and no rain. Check out beaches and gardens while readying yourself for the feast. According to AccuWeather, Orlando will see temperatures of high 70s and low 80s throughout the Thanksgiving week (although… this site does predict rain two days after the holiday).
In the lower lakes region of the Great Lakes, expect warm weather. Sweet!
In the Ohio Valley, you might see some light showers, but nothing that should affect travel.
In the deep south, it will be warmer than usual with clear skies.
In the upper midwest… well, here, things take a turn. You might experience snow flurries that affect driving visibility. Sorry!
In the heartland, it will be unusually warm with late-week rain possible.
In Texas-Oklahoma, the northern parts stay dry and warm, while southern areas might catch some rain. Nothing too dramatic, though.
In the High Plains, it will be chilly but clear.
In the Intermountain region, a mix of rain and snow will interrupt travelers and maybe cause delays in mountain passes.
In the desert southwest, it will be warm with some rain showers possibly affecting your route to the feast.
In the Pacific Northwest, it’s gonna be rainy. And chilly. Make sure you’re comfortable driving on slick roads.
In the Pacific Southwest, you’ll see rain here too throughout the week. Oh well! Raincoats are cuter now and not just yellow.
In Alaska, as you’d expect, it will be cold and snowy. Pay attention to your local weather outlets to get the scoop on road conditions.
And on the other end of the scale, balmy Hawai’i will be cooler than usual with some isolated rain.
Hopefully, your weather mirrors what you want out of the holiday: there’s nothing wrong with rain and snow if it fits the vibe of coming together around the dinner table to light some candles and enjoy perfectly cooked turkey.