Travellers crowded into airports and stations today as the Easter exodus began in earnest, with an estimated 2.3 million people heading abroad over the holiday period, the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) said.
Heathrow was experiencing its busiest day of the holiday period, with 214,700 passengers passing through the west London airport. It will handle a further 201,000 passengers tomorrow.
Those remaining at home will have to contend with busy roads, a series of rail shutdowns, but reasonable - and warmer - weather.
The Highways Agency has lifted roadworks at 27 major sites over the Easter period but many roadworks still remain in place. Among roadworks that drivers will still have to endure are those on the M1 in Hertfordshire and on the M60 in Greater Manchester.
The AA said that 18 million motorists are set to take to the roads over Easter and warned that congestion was most likely today on the M25, on the M1 northbound, the M4 westbound, the M6 through the West Midlands and southbound area of Bristol.
The AA also said that roads to attractions such as Alton Towers in Staffordshire, Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Thorpe Park in Surrey would be busy over the bank holiday weekend.
The RAC said that traffic was likely to build up from 1pm today, with the M1 northbound through Hertfordshire one of the most congested routes.
Many rail services will be disrupted by engineering work over Easter, and this includes parts of lines being closed.
There will be no services running into or out of King's Cross station in London from Easter Saturday, until noon on Easter Monday, with trains starting and ending at Finsbury Park station in north London.
ABTA said the recent cold weather had fuelled demand for warmer destinations, Spain and its islands being the most popular. Other popular destinations for travelling Britons this Easter included the Portuguese Algarve, Tunisia, Egypt, Florida, the Caribbean, Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Rome and Venice.
ABTA president Martin Wellings said: "Although Easter is always a busy time of year for the travel industry, there seems to be a real pent-up demand this year that we've been able to fulfil. It promises to be a very busy weekend."
After the unseasonably cold weather of recent days, forecasters predicted a reasonably warm and mainly dry Easter.
PA WeatherCentre spokesman Paul Knightley said: "It's not a bad weekend and although it will not be sunbathing weather, it will be all right for outdoor activities."
He said that while southern England would be generally cloudy with a chance of a little rain tomorrow, the rest of the UK should have sunshine and showers.
The highest temperatures of the holiday period are likely to come in southern England on Easter Saturday with the thermometer possibly reaching 17C (63F).
Scotland could get showers on Easter Sunday but the rest of the UK should have sunny spells.
Easter Monday is set to be cooler and breezier with showers possible in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and northern England.
VisitBritain said that 23% of British adults are planning a trip over the Easter period - 2% more than at Easter 2005.
Domestic tour operators report that their best sellers are the Lake District, the Cotswolds and seaside resorts with Blackpool, Brighton and Torquay leading the way.
