ORLANDO, Fla. — Officials at Orlando International Airport on Thursday reminded travelers that this is not 2020 and that they therefore “will not be alone.”

Officials referred to comparatively empty airports last Independence Day weekend when the COVID-19 pandemic was about four months old.

Amid a drop in coronavirus cases, an increase in vaccinations and an easing of safety measures nationwide, airport officials predict this July 4 weekend will look much like a typical one, with “near or slightly above pre-pandemic passenger levels.”

Orlando International, Florida’s busiest airport, expects passenger volume Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday to far exceed that of last year. The airport urges travelers to arrive two hours before domestic flights and three hours before international flights.

Officials see the biggest travel day on Saturday, when it expects 134,414 travelers compared with 34,469 last year.

For a 13-day travel period that began last Friday and ends Wednesday, Orlando International expects 1.5 million travelers, about three times as many as the 504,245 who traveled during the same period last year.

Asked for his observations of airport traffic on Thursday, airport spokesman Rod Johnson said “it’s pretty much in line with our prediction” of 119,246 passengers, compared with 41,777 last year. Officials expect similar volume on Friday.

The Transportation Security Administration said many U.S. airports are seeing traveler volume at pre-pandemic levels, especially in the mornings, and that some are exceeding 2019 volume.

The federal mask mandate remains in effect on planes and other forms of public transportation and in transportation hubs including airports, TSA said.