The official winter holiday season travel period begins Saturday, with the Automobile Club of Southern California projecting that 9.9 million SoCal residents will take end-of-the-year trips.

The projected travel number is 3.5% higher than last year, and 6.8% higher than the pre-pandemic 2019 holiday season.

"This is the time of year when lifelong memories are made with loved ones, and travel plays a big role in that," Jena Miller, the Auto Club's vice president for travel products and services, said in a statement.

"This year, with Christmas Day falling on a Wednesday, we will see many families not only take road trips but also fly to international destinations and set sail for warm destinations in the Caribbean."

Nationwide, 119.3 million people are expected to travel for the holiday, narrowly surpassing the record set in 2019, according to the Auto Club.

The vast majority of travelers are expected to reach their destinations by car. Among Southern California residents, 8.7 million are expected to travel by car, with 899,000 traveling by air, and 310,000 by other means, such as bus, train or cruise ship.

The Auto Club noted that Southern California gas prices are about 40 cents per gallon less than they were a year ago. The worst traffic congestion is expected to occur on the weekends before Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

The Auto Club considers the officials travel period as Dec. 21 through Jan. 1.