BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- After dropping sharply last year, the number of Thanksgiving travelers is expected to partially rebound over this holiday weekend, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California’s Bakersfield branch.

The Auto Club is expecting 2.19 million Southern Californians to travel over the Thanksgiving holiday – an 8 percent increase from last year, but still 32 percent below the 3.19 million Southland residents who took Thanksgiving trips in 2007. A holiday trip is defined as one involving at least one overnight stay that is 50 miles or more away from home.

Among local travelers, 85 percent – or 1.87 million people – are expected to go by car, which is a 9 percent increase from last year but still 26 percent below the number of auto travelers in 2007. About 166,000 travelers are expected to go by air to their destinations – a 1 percent drop from 2008 and a 60 percent drop from two years ago.

Statewide, 3.52 million Thanksgiving travelers are expected – also an 8 percent increase from 2008 and a 32 percent decrease from 2007. Of the statewide travelers, three million are expected to drive, 267,000 are expected to fly and 251,000 will go by other means. Nationally, 38.4 million Americans are expected to travel this holiday – a 1.4 percent increase over last year, but still 24 percent below 2007’s 50.6 million Thanksgiving travelers.

“We’re continuing to see economic impact on travelers, particularly with the sharp drop in the number of plane trips,” said Linda Heald, the Auto Club’s Bakersfield branch manager. “A recent poll we took of local residents revealed that of those who do plan to travel over the November and December holidays, more than one-third are planning to spend less on their trips.”

The top destinations for Bakersfield travelers, according to a poll of travel agents in the Bakersfield branch, are:

Central Coast (from Santa Barbara to Monterey)

San Diego

Anaheim/Disneyland

San Francisco