Christmas Travel Outlook: Travel Headaches Across The West

Christmas is here, and we have the scoop on the travel forecast, whether you’re doing some last minute driving to grandma’s house, jetting out to a tropical island, or having a lovely “staycation.” 

Christmas Day (today):

For the West, the weather will continue to be a broken record… rain and mountain snow even on Christmas. There will be no end in sight for rainfall across Oregon, California, Nevada, and Arizona, making last-minute travel quite difficult.

Like Christmas Eve, the north-south corridors will be rain-swept, while the east-west corridors will feature high-elevation snowfall across the Cascades and Sierra Nevada. Adding to the fun will be the eastward expansion of the rain and snow, impacting travel across Utah and western Colorado with mountain snow. We at WeatherBug are eternal optimists, and the good news is the Interstate 25 corridor across Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico should remain dry for most of the day. This will also limit the number of delays and cancellations out of Denver.

The Northern Tier will start to feel winter’s wrath again in the travel department today. Light snow occasionally mixed with freezing rain can be expected from North Dakota into northern Minnesota. Wintry weather should steer clear of Minneapolis for most, if not all, of the day. Likewise, travel from Ohio to New England could be impacted by a passing disturbance. Mountain areas of New York, Pennsylvania, and New England could see passing snow showers, while periods of rain will plonk windshields along Interstates 80 and 90.

Any last-minute travelers across the rest of the country will enjoy quiet weather for the most part, with few travel hazards. Like Christmas Eve, unseasonably warm temperatures can be expected from the central and southern Plains to the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast, where 60s and 70s will be common under generally sunny conditions. Likewise, you might not be able to blame Mother Nature for airport delays across the East, although there will be some trickle-down impacts from the West.

Stay tuned to see the forecast through Christmas Day. We wish everyone Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!