By Danielle Kaye

NEW YORK – Carla Benton (a Chicago-based copy editor) was preparing for a Christmas trip when Omicron virus began to dominate news media in November.

Because of rapidly changing regulations and testing requirements for international travel, Benton quickly cancelled all plans. Instead, she chose to stay in the United States to visit her sister in Houston. Benton decided that she would cancel her international travel plans and instead stay in Chicago during the holiday season.

“I’d initially hoped to be able to play some of my trip by ear,” Benton said. “While I’m fully vaccinated and following precautions here in Chicago, I was worried about the potential for a surprise positive test and quarantine abroad.”

While the Transportation Security Administration has checked more than 2,000,000 persons daily over the past 4 days, that is only 15% of pre-pandemic levels. TSA indicated that they expect to screen 30,000,000 individuals between Monday, Jan. 3, even though U.S.COVID-19 cases are on the rise and Omicron is spreading.

In recent weeks, airlines have reported an increase in cancellations. Yet, many Americans plan to travel across the country to enjoy the holidays with loved ones and to board planes.

Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE:) stated last week Omicron has slowed international travel bookings due to new restrictions in many countries.

CNBC was informed by Ed Bastian (chief executive officer), that Omicron “is not going to affect our holiday bookings.”

United Airlines has flown its busiest schedule since the outbreak of the pandemic. The airline is currently flying more than 4000 flights daily during the holidays. To meet holiday travel demand, the airline added 200 domestic flights per day.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE) stated on Monday that holiday demand is encouraging them.

American Airlines (NASDAQ) Robert Isom, the new Chief Executive Officer of American Airlines, told Reuters that the airline’s domestic operations were strong, but that the travel restrictions have dampened some demand on international markets.

According to a Reuters tally, COVID case numbers rose 9% nationally, but have increased 57% since December 1, according to Reuters.

Some are worried about the future travel industry because of an increase in U.S. COVID-19 case numbers.

According to Trivago, Omicron concerns and travel restrictions are leading to a surge in cancellations of global hotels.

Investors pushed down airline and travel stock prices Monday as more cases were filed. United Airlines fell 3.3%. Royal Caribbean (NYSE:) Group fell 3.4% after 48 passengers on the Symphony of the Seas cruise vessel tested positive for COVID-19.

Carnival (NYSE:) Corp stated Monday that Omicron was already making cruise-line bookings in the near term.

According to Ipsos, more than 50% of Americans did not cancel holiday plans in December. This was despite Omicron’s spread throughout the United States.

After the drastic drop in holiday travel volumes in 2020, American Automobile Association expects that 2017 will see holiday travel return to normal.

Ellen Edmonds (public relations manager, AAA) stated that “our forecast focuses only on domestic travel. We don’t expect international travel to be affected in the same way.”

To prepare for an increase in holiday travellers, the major U.S. Airports have maintained their COVID-19 safety protocols such as mandatory masking and additional cleaning.

Alex Renteria, spokesperson for Denver International Airport said that the airport expects an increase in traffic over the holidays due to the high number of passengers since Thanksgiving.

Greg Chin (communications director) said that passenger traffic at Miami International Airport increased by nearly 9% during the first six months of December compared with the same time in 2019. The average daily departure flight from Florida’s airport has increased by nearly 12 percent compared to December 2019.