The Farmers' Almanac has flagged rain or snow across nearly half the country during Thanksgiving week, with Pacific Northwest roads and Midwest routes facing the roughest stretch.
Holiday travelers heading out between Monday, November 23, and Thanksgiving Day on November 26 should plan for wet and wintry pockets, the long-running almanac says. Rain or snow showers may hit about 23 states, covering nearly half the United States.
The Daily Mail laid out the regional map after the almanac’s Monday statement. Last year’s Thanksgiving period saw more than 81 million people on the move. A coast-to-coast winter storm that same holiday week triggered ground stops from New York to California and left thousands of air travelers stuck.
This year’s short-range picture looks calmer than that mess. Still, routine late-November weather can slow a packed travel week fast.
Rain in the Pacific Northwest is expected to create poor driving conditions in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Farther east, colder air and snow showers may brush the Midwest and Great Lakes, including Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
A mix of rain and snow could snarl parts of the Southwest. The Plains and Rockies may see typical late-November snow, light accumulations, and colder air that delays road trips.
The Northeast and New England draw a better hand. Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, D.C., are pegged for cool and mainly fair weather, with only a chance of flurries farther north and at higher elevations.
The Southeast looks mild and pleasant across Alabama, the Carolinas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
The Farmers' Almanac put the overall tone this way:
"At this point, Thanksgiving 2026 looks more typical than turbulent. Much of the East appears cool and largely dry, the Southeast looks mild and pleasant,"
It added that the Plains and Rockies may deal with light snow and colder air, and that the Pacific Northwest should prepare for rainy late-fall conditions, “a forecast many holiday travelers will gladly take.”
Thanksgiving remains the single busiest holiday for travel, ahead of Memorial Day and July 4, the American Automobile Association says. Even ordinary cold rain or slush can stack delays when millions share the same highways and airports.
The almanac warned that small shifts still matter:
"A slight change in temperature or storm direction could turn a cold rain into an icy mix - or transform a slushy snowfall into a significant winter storm,"
Its broader point was blunt: “Thanksgiving is one of the busiest travel weeks of the year, so even routine late-November weather can create delays.”
AAA has urged travelers to start research early, ideally back in September, compare prices, and lock plans before options shrink. “Travelers don't need to book the first itinerary they find, but this is a good time to start researching options, comparing prices and making decisions before choices become more limited,” the group said.
The same almanac’s August winter outlook pointed to heavier rain across the southern half of the country and coastal storms or snow in the Northeast, with El Niño in the mix. The heaviest totals were flagged for the Southeast and Gulf states, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, with higher-than-normal rain possible through March 2027.
Once the calendar flips to December, the winter pattern is not expected to stay as traveler-friendly as the Thanksgiving window. The almanac’s practical close was simple:
"Keep the snow shovel, rain boots and ice scraper close at hand. This winter, you may need all three."
Farmers' Almanac forecasts trace to a formula created by founding editor David Young and have run since 1818. The publication says its calls prove accurate 80 to 85 percent of the time. Those figures are the almanac’s own claim, not an outside audit.
For families driving through rain in the Northwest or flurries near the Great Lakes, the useful takeaway is preparation, not panic. Check the route, leave margin in the schedule, and treat “typical” November weather as something that still earns respect on crowded roads.
Good sense beats wishful thinking when millions share the same holiday highways, pack the scraper, watch the sky, and get there in one piece.
