The best and worst July Fourth travel times

A record number of Americans are expected to travel this Fourth of July week, according to AAA.

Why it matters: If you're one of them, expect traffic however you plan to get to your destination.

The big picture: There are some do's and don'ts to avoid headaches during the holiday travel frenzy, when nearly 71 million people are expected to hit the roads or skies between last weekend and through Sunday, according to AAA.

Zoom in: Just over 2 million of those Fourth of July week travelers are Virginians, a 5% increase over last year and an 8.5% increase over 2019, WYDaily reports .

• That includes around 1.9 million Virginians traveling by the car and around 150,000 by air.

For car travelers, the best day for minimal traffic is Monday, so put on your out of office now while no one is looking and hit the road.

Here are the next best and worst times for driving, per INRIX and AAA:

Tuesday, 7/2:

• Best: after 7pm.
• Worst: 2-6pm.

Wednesday, 7/3:

• Best: before noon.
• Worst: 2-7pm.

Thursday, 7/4:

• Best: before noon.
• Worst: 2-7pm.

Friday, 7/5:

• Best: before 10am.
• Worst: 11am-4pm.

Saturday, 7/6:

• Best: before 10am.
• Worst: 10:30am-2:30pm.

Sunday, 7/7:

• Best: before 11am.
• Worst: 2-8pm.

Monday, 7/8:

• Best: after 7pm.
• Worst: 1-5pm.