About 43.6 million Americans will travel this Thanksgiving—only slightly higher than last year by .7 percent, according to a new forecast by AAA and IHS Global Insight. Just under 90 percent of trips will be by car, which is also in line with 2011’s statistics.

Gas prices, of course, remain a factor for travelers, though are not expected to have a major impact on car travel because of its convenience and lower cost compared to flying. The national average per gallon of regular unleaded gas is currently about $3.71, which is $0.28 higher than last year at this time and $0.92 higher than 2010.

In the last decade, turkey-time travel hit an all-time high of 58.6 million in 2005. Over the past few years, Thanksgiving travel has been going up. In fact, this year’s forecast shows a 15 percent increase since 2008 and the fourth consecutive year of travel volume growth since 37.8 million people hit the road that year.

In the South Atlantic region, which includes Virginia, travel is expected to be on par with the national numbers, with a .5 percent increase in travel versus 2011. A total of 13 percent of South Atlantic folks are expected to travel, which is slightly less than the 13.8 nationwide projection. In the South Atlantic, travelers will log an average 529 miles in search of their turkey dinners, 59 miles less than the average American.

AAA bases its estimates on round-trip travel of 50 miles or more away from home from Wednesday, November 21, to Sunday, November 25, 2012.