Residents and visitors on the Northeast should gear up for the first significant winter storm of the season this weekend.

The National Weather Service predicts that major cities in the Northeast should prepare for a fast-moving coastal storm that will bring a messy mix of rain, snow and sleet along Interstate 95. Some areas may receive up to 7 inches of snow or more, say weather experts.

"It's kind of the first one, so it's a good thing it's happening this weekend," said National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Simpson in Massachusetts on Friday, according to the Associated Press. "If this happened during a weekday, it could be really slow and messy."

The storm system is expected to move into the Philadelphia region Friday night, dumping anywhere from 1 to 4 inches by Saturday morning, said Valerie Meola, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in New Jersey. As a result, Meola warned that commuters should be aware of dangerous road conditions, "especially during the morning," she said, reports the Associated Press. "There will be a lot of that accumulation then, and then rain will come and wash it all away."

The storm system will then head up the Eastern seaboard, creating "the potential for significant snow and ice," before moving out to sea off the New England coast by Sunday.

Meanwhile, meteorologist Peter Wichrowski predicts that New York City will get hit with a wintry mix of snow, rain and possibly sheet along the coastal areas, starting in the early morning hours of Saturday. Altogether, about 2 to 5 inches of snow will accumulate in western parts of the city, while eastern Long Island may only get 1 to 2 inches before rain washes it away.

Following the weekend storm, Accu­Weather meteorologist Brian Edwards predicts that a stronger snow storm system will sweep through the Big Apple, bringing at least 3 inches Monday morning, reports The New York Post.

The weekend storm could also drop 6 inches of heavy, wet snow in parts of northern and eastern Connecticut, and about 3 to 5 inches around Hartford.

However, coastal regions in Maine and New Hampshire are expected to only get a light dusting, while Baltimore and Washington are predicted to just get rain.