Travel advisors are often the ones with the first sense of inside knowledge about traveler behaviors and the new travel trends that end up dominating social media feeds and bookings.
So what are travel advisors seeing this year? What trends, destinations and travel styles are travelers going to engage in during 2026—and beyond?
The Familiar Sights
The Colosseum, Rome, Italy (Photo Credit: Janeen Christoff)
TRAVELSAVERS’ and NEST’s trending destinations survey, in which its advisors identified the top destinations they expect to dominate in 2026, identified some major destinations continuing to dominate the travel scene, especially in ever-popular Europe.
These include Italy, Portugal and Greece in Europe, as well as Riviera Maya and Alaska closer to home.
“Italy to no surprise is one of the clear-cut top destinations for 2026,” explained Cole Kirkpatrick, VTA, Classic Travel Connection. “The Jubilee year is behind us and you sense that with the number of people looking to visit Italy. Germany has also been very popular amongst some of my recent requests; especially experiences by land, I received a handful of small, southern German town vacation requests in the past few weeks.
“Scotland has also been one of the leading unique destination requests I have seen as of late,” said Kirkpatrick. “Other staples like Paris, southern France, Greece, London, and Portugal still seem to have a number of traveler’s attention too based on my recent requests.”
Michele Lindsay, VTA, ACC, Luxury Cruise Expert and Owner of Blue Pointe Travel, agrees with Kirkpatrick: “European travel is still as popular as ever, but the summer trend continues to the UK and Northern Europe (think Scandinavia, Scotland, Wales), and many of my clients are headed to the Med and Adriatic in the spring and fall.”
So while people might still be visiting the same places they have in years’ past, the seasons they’re traveling in aren’t as clear-cut as they used to be, with more travelers visiting popular destinations during historic off-seasons.
Exploring Beyond the Familiar
Toji Temple in Kyoto, Japan during sakura season. (Photo Credit: Adobe Stock/coward_lion)
Yet some people, especially the well-traveled who’ve likely already visited popular destinations, or who just want to explore further afield for both their wallets and more immersive travel experiences, are thinking about places like Eastern Europe, Japan, destinations across Africa and beyond.
Most advisors noted that Japan was popping up on their clients’ radars. Tammy Levent, President of Elite Travel Management, noted that it was often the same clients who book Japan as the ones who book Italy and Greece, too.
“They are the hottest destinations and the clients that have done the typical Greece and Italy are the same ones asking for Japan,” Levent said. “They want unique, further destinations, culture and [are] going for more enriching itineraries. “
TRAVELSAVERS suggests Eastern Europe will be a more affordable alternative to Western European hotspots, offering less crowds and more authentic experiences.
“As we get further away from 2020 and 2021 when travel was so limited, I think people immediately went to what was easy because they just wanted to go somewhere,” said J.R. Longstaff, Travel & Event Advisor, Travelmation. “Now, there’s a desire to try new things and expand horizons to see the world. Also, as the digital age continues to expand, the world gets smaller because we can see it in the palm of our hands, and we get better images of places we never knew existed.
“There’s a drive for many clients to see those destinations for themselves. As people with families grow, they want their kids to have unique experiences as well and become real citizens of the world, rather than living through what they see on their devices.”
Cruising of All Kinds
Zodiac Cruising in Recess Cove, Antarctica with Aurora Expeditions. (Photo Credit: David Jaffe)
Lastly, it seems advisors all agree that cruising has never been more popular.
Yet while cruising continues to grow with the onset of new cruise ships and experience styles, travelers are changing their preferred methods, with some advisors noting that clients are less interested in mega-ships this year, and favor mid- to small-ship experiences.
“There’s always a desire for my travelers, whether in the luxury sector or otherwise, to find emerging locations that aren’t completely on everyone’s radar yet. They also seek experiences that are unique and very nonhomogeneous,” explains J.R. Longstaff. “For instance, in the cruise ship space, we’ve had all these new mega-ships start sailing in the past 3 to 4 years, and now I think there’s a shift back to a more moderate size ship that still has plenty to do, isn’t as large and hopefully provides a more intimate experience. “
“Travelers are ready to explore far and wide in 2026! I have clients setting sail for Antarctica, the Galapagos, river cruising in Egypt, as well as clients exploring more exotic destinations such as India, Nepal, Vietnam, and Cambodia,” explained Michele Lindsay.
“And the growth of river cruising is not to be ignored,” she highlighted. “Clients from Gen X down to Gen Z are now understanding the ease of travel provided by a river cruise…I’m especially excited for Uniworld’s new ships coming in 2026 and 2027 as they embody the concept of the floating boutique hotel.”
No longer simply the preferred travel method of a well-to-do retiree, river cruising is growing across generations as an easy method of seeing multiple places, countries or cultures without having to plan multi-stops, transfers and hotel stays.
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