Motorists will have to endure the worst ever May bank holiday traffic jams, according to the RAC.
The motoring organisation said traffic would peak on Friday afternoon, with motorists planning to drive 1.8 billion more miles in total than they did during the last year's May Day weekend.
The RAC said there will be three times more traffic on Sunday and Monday as on a typical Friday and singled out the M25 as a potential congestion hotspot.
The AA predicted it will attend 51,000 breakdowns over the weekend.
A combination of the warmest April on record and the desire to get the long, hot summer underway early are believed to be behind the exodus.
According to the Met Office, there will be sunshine on Saturday but the weather will become colder and wetter on either Sunday or Monday.
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