Approximately 36.1 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home during this Memorial Day holiday weekend, according to AAA Travel, a 1.5 percent increase from the 35.5 million people who journeyed in 2013.

Researchers at the not-for-profit auto organization also predict 8 in 10 travelers will be driving to their destinations through the holiday period from May 22 to Monday, May 26.

AAA's annual Memorial Day forecast is 2.6 percent higher than the 10-year historical average and the second-highest travel volume since 2000.

"As we enter into the summer travel season with warmer temperatures and tulips in bloom, thoughts of historic cold are still fresh in the minds of Americans in many parts of the country," Marshall L. Doney, AAA's chief operating officer, said in a news release. "The winter blues appear to have given Americans the travel bug and a case of cruise cabin fever as travel for the holiday is expected to hit a new post-recession high."

Eighty-eight percent of this year's travelers (31.8 million) will ride in automobiles, an increase from 31.4 million last year, while holiday air travel is anticipated to rise from 2.4 percent to 2.6 million leisure travelers.

The largest increase in travelers this holiday weekend, up 6.5 percent from 2013 for a total 1.7 million travelers, will be seen in alternate modes of transportation including cruises, trains and buses.

In addition to seasonal rising temperatures, improvements in several key economic factors are driving the expectation for more holiday travelers this year, indicated the AAA assessment.

"As the economy continues to improve at a slow and steady pace consumer spending, disposable income, consumer confidence and the employment outlook are trending up which is welcomed news for the travel industry," said Doney, who suggested the past winter was a hindrance to economic growth at the beginning of the year, although economic factors generally influenced by weather, like car and home sales, have showed signs of bouncing back.

AAA said it expects most drivers will pay lower gas prices this weekend, a result of rising oil supplies.

So, as long as no unforeseen national emergency or system failure occurs, which could push prices up again, Memorial Day weekend gas prices will likely be relatively similar or even slightly less than last year's national average of $3.63 per gallon during the same period.