While gas costs still remain uncomfortably high, a steady decrease in pump prices in Colorado Springs may offer some relief as travelers set out for the last long weekend before the autumn cool-down begins.

As of Friday, the average price of a gallon of regular fuel in Colorado Springs was $3.858, about 15 cents cheaper than two weeks ago and about 7 cents cheaper than last week, according to AAA Colorado.

At an average of $3.855 per gallon, El Paso County is one of the top 10 cheapest counties for gas in Colorado, AAA data shows. But Colorado’s average gas price sits at $3.943 as of Friday, about 13 cents higher than the national average.

“During the summer months, the demand for crude oil within the U.S. and globally is typically high,” AAA spokesperson Skyler McKinley recently told The Gazette. “That is because people are going on more road trips this time of year, but also folks are hopping onto airplanes in numbers we haven’t seen since the pandemic.”

While Labor Day weekend is a traditional last-hurrah holiday, it’s not of the same caliber as Fourth of July or Memorial Day as children head back to school and most summer vacations are behind them, McKinley said.

Even so, Labor Day travel is up both nationally and locally from last year’s holiday, as people show to be relatively undeterred by recent high gas prices, McKinley said. 

“I think relatedly and most interestingly in our data is that this has historically been a road trip holiday, and yet we’re seeing surging demand for international travel,” McKinley told The Denver Gazette.

McKinley said AAA is seeing a 44% increase in international bookings over the Labor Day holiday and an 82% increase in hotel bookings over last year, as well as a hike in domestic and international cruising.

GasBuddy, a fuel savings platform, on Thursday released its annual Labor Day travel forecast, predicting the average price of gas in the U.S. on Labor Day weekend will continue to fall to $3.75 per gallon, virtually identical to what motorists experienced for Labor Day weekend last year.

At the Colorado Springs Airport, over 28,000 passengers are expected to pass through over the weekend, with the busiest days of boarding and deplaning falling on Friday and Monday, according to airport senior communications specialist Dana Shield.

That’s up 3,200 total travelers — a 13% increase – from 2022, she said.

Saturday is expected to be the “lightest travel day” with just over 3,000 enplanements, or roughly 6,000 passengers passing through, she said.

Those flying out of Denver can also expect a somewhat busier end-of-season holiday than last year.

Between Thursday and Sept. 5, more than 410,000 passengers are forecasted to travel through TSA checkpoints. Airport officials estimate the busiest days during the upcoming Labor Day holiday will also be Friday and Monday, which are expected to see more than 78,000 passengers move through security screening, a 6.2% increase from the same period in 2022, said officials in a news release.

Locals and out-of-towners hoping to stay and play in Colorado Springs over the weekend should remember that reservations are required to drive a personal vehicle up Pikes Peak or take The Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway to the summit.

Hundreds of timed-entry reservations for the highway are available during the Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday afternoon time slots, according to the City of Colorado Springs website.

Saturday morning slots are full, but Sunday and Monday still have many available as of Friday morning.

Visitors will have a two-hour window to enter the highway after the start of their reservation. This $2 fee is tacked on top of one-day usage fees related to the highway, which start at $15 per adult (or $50 per vehicle with up to five passengers). A discounted $5 fee is available for those using the North Slope Recreation Area.

Also as of Friday morning, most time slots for the cog railway are full Saturday and Sunday, but some early-morning and late-evening openings exist. Monday afternoon slots remain open, according to the website.

The Denver Gazette’s Scott Weiser contributed to this report.