Holiday travel rush gets into full swing at Chicago airports ahead of Thanksgiving

CHICAGO - Thousands of people are heading to Chicago airports and highways to get a jump start on their travel plans for Thanksgiving.

AAA reported Wednesday that a record has been broken. The Chicago area has officially recorded the most air travelers for the Thanksgiving holiday period.

More people are flying internationally this holiday. An estimated 18,000 passengers are moving through Terminal One at O'Hare Airport on Wednesday alone for the busiest departure day. Although, airports will be busiest overall on Sunday. 

Over 1.65 million passengers will move through O'Hare and Midway airports during the travel period.

Officials said getting to the airport early eases stress, especially for those who have not flown in a while or those large travel groups or families with small children.

Whether it's on the road, the rail or in the air, all modes of travel are pretty busy. 

"Different holidays, people do different modes of transportation," said Molly Hart from AAA. "On Thanksgiving, the popular one always has been driving, whether it's because they're going with family and it's maybe an easier way to travel or just what they've always done." 

The big international destinations this holiday are Rome, London and Montego Bay.