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SAN DIEGO — Airport officials expect record-breaking crowds ahead of the Fourth of July as some airlines have already dropped their rebooking fees.

Families are already rushing to the airport to get to their holiday destinations.

A young traveler walks with a pink suitcase on Wednesday, June 29, 2022, outside of the San Diego International Airport. (KSWB)

“We didn’t even think about it. We were just thinking we want to spend Fourth of July with family in the river,” passenger Cristina Santa Maria said.

According to the American Automobile Association, 426,000 passengers are expected to travel by air. So far, the San Diego International Airport has seen 275 cancelations in June, which they expect to continue into the weekend.

“We just kind of made those plans. We did not plan ahead. I hope we make our flight today,” Santa Maria said.

To get ahead of some of the travel headaches, Delta Airlines is dropping its rebooking fees for trips between July 1 and the 4th to give customers a bit of a break.

Travelers also should be aware of construction on the massive Terminal 1 overhaul happening at the airport. The $3.4 billion effort to replace the airport’s 1960s-era terminal brought some changes this year with the June 15 closure of the Terminal 1 parking lot.

The pedestrian bridge, which provided a path for travelers to the parking lot and the airport’s ground transportation island in front of Terminal 1, also closed in mid-June.

Officials from the airport are encouraging people to plan ahead — including booking parking ahead of time, when applicable — and to expect some delays.

“There’s a lot of construction and detours and things happening so you need to plan ahead and make sure you know how you’re going to get to the airport,” airport spokeswoman Sabrina LoPiccolo said.

Scripps Health says its number of COVID-19 patients recently has doubled. Officials from the health system advise San Diegans to celebrate the holiday as safely as possible.

“There’s just so much traffic out there right now. It’s actually really cool to see everybody traveling and getting to see their families this season,” passenger Cynthia Hermosillo said.

It will also be busy on the roads this weekend. CHP says it will have extra officers for their Maximum Enforcement Period from Friday until Monday.