What Are Travel Industry's Expectations for 2026?

We’re feeling 2026 — and we’re talking about emotions more than things.

I want travel to get weirder and more personal — for me and for you. Let’s trade the slick and seamless for something off-kilter and non algorithmic. It’s the year to do something totally out of character, maybe even irrational, for the thrill of it. (For starters, I’m heading to Medellín to see Bad Bunny.) I want to hear stories about people traveling to track down a family heirloom or, better yet, a long-lost relative. Build a trip around a small obscure regional tradition (like the Kastav region of Croatia’s rumpus-like Habuje Zvončari), schlep to a macabre oddity (mummy-filled Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo), devise a walking-only holiday (on Japan’s Pilgrim Trails). The more deliberate, specific, and creative, the better. - Jeralyn

I want to continue the trend I’ve adopted of late: spend more time in gorgeous, humbling nature. Preferably mountains. Optionally near water. Hopefully Norway. Possibly South Africa. Definitely Goa. Ideally without an agenda — other than being fully present and totally happy. - Pavia

I am inspired by the year of the horse, hopeful for new adventures that take me out of my comfort zone and into nature, venturing high in the mountain peaks and deep under the sea. I want to write and share stories of beautiful communities around the world who value personal connection over technology and showcase how the best adventures leave room for the delight and magic of surprise. - California

It turns out we’re not the only ones, because when we asked our friends and colleagues in the industry what they were most excited about personally (and not professionally) for travel in 2026, we heard less about new hotels and more about big hopes and great expectations. (And a lot of skepticism about AI.)

I really hope to see more projects around the globe that help tourists give back to the communities they visit, promoting slow tourism that’s more focused on authenticity, which is the real luxury. - Claudio Meli, General Manager, The Place Firenze

I’m excited for the first great post-AI travel rebellion. The most interesting trips will be the ones that resist optimization: places with bad Wi-Fi, no QR codes, no dynamic pricing, and zero interest in predicting what you want next. Travel is about surprise. AI hates surprise. That tension is going to produce some beautiful experiences. That is what I want to be part of myself. - Rafat Ali, CEO and founder, Skift

I am looking forward to visiting Colombia for the first time and hopefully Peru too. And I love the winter ski season, so I can’t wait for my mini-break to Jackson Hole! Looking at the travel industry more generally, I am excited about the further blend of hospitality and technology, and how we are going to have more tools and data at our fingertips to be able to create the most memorable moments for travelers — anticipating and exceeding expectations, surprising, delighting, and connecting in the most imaginative of ways. - Catherine Powell, CEO, Ama Waterways

After King Tut came to The Met when I was ten — and I shuffled in line all morning alongside my mother to get in — I became obsessed with Egyptian history. I devoured all the Time-Life books on ancient civilizations and, at times, felt wishfully guided by Seshat, the goddess of writing and libraries. This year, I am finally going to Egypt, with the travel platform Egypt Beyond. The plan: two days in Cairo, staying at the Art Deco landmark Immobilia Apartments and spending a full day at the new Grand Egyptian Museum; then on to Luxor for the Eden-like calm of Al Moudira; followed by a few nights gliding down the Nile and temple-hopping on a dahabeya; and finally, resting up in the seaside artists’ haven of El Gouna, at the pastel-hued Maison Bleue. Still somewhat in thrall to Seshat, I now have less than two months to get through The Alexandria Quartet and Amitav Ghosh’s In An Antique Land. I’d better get cracking. - Alex Postman, Deputy editor, YOLO Journal

What I’m most intrigued about is how hospitality, travel, and tourism will both embrace and be the antidote to AI. I’m excited about the new ways we’ll be able to inspire and, more, help travelers dream, plan, book, and ultimately book experiences, travel, and hospitality — more content, more relevant, more intuitive. And I’m looking forward to our ever-increasing role as a welcome escape from the screens and algorithms. We as humans will increasingly seek out — and put a premium on —the human connection of live, in-person concerts, dining, wellness, and stay experiences. - Mark Weinstein, Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Luxury Brands, Hilton

I’m most looking forward to engaging with experiences that allow tourism to reclaim its power to connect us more meaningfully with places and with one another. Right now there often seems to be a mantra of “growth at any cost,” which is ironic for an industry that supposedly champions sustainability. As an editor, my goal is to platform brands and destinations that prioritize inclusivity, community, and responsibility; helping ensure that travel becomes a genuine force for understanding and belonging. What inspires me is witnessing travel evolve into something that is not just about where you go but about who you become along the way. - Uwern Jong, Experientialist-in-Chief, OutThere magazine

In my dreams it’s like Brigadoon. We will step into another world and fully disappear into it.

This is shaping up to be an incredible year for experience-led travel, with events like the Winter Olympics in Italy and the World Cup inspiring trips built around bringing people together for shared moments. We are seeing more travelers plan entire trips around live cultural and sporting events, and personally, I am most excited to catch games in my home city of Seattle, while also traveling to experience a U.S. match on the road. - Sarah Moore, Head of Capital One Travel

I’m excited to see how hotels will continue to expand their self-service wellness amenities for guests. We’ve watched hotels lean into the idea that rest and recovery goes hand in hand with spa and fitness, so hotels like Passalaqua, Six Senses Ibiza, the new Faena New York, and Naples Beach Club are creating exceptional wellness complexes that welcome all guests — not just those with a treatment booked — to spa, sauna, cold plunge, and more. This has become the expectation, not the exception, and I’m here for it. - Henley Vazquez, Co-Founder, Fora

Exploring new places always inspires me and gets my creative juices flowing! My schedule is usually jam-packed — including business travel — but whenever I manage to sneak in an escape that’s just for me, it is a total reset. So my mission for the new year is simple: Explore more, recharge, and have some fun! - Ayesha Nurdjaja, Executive Chef and Partner, Shuka and Shukette

I am so looking forward to going back to Mustique next year. It’s an almost mythical place, part Brigadoon, part Studio 54, part English Country Mansion. There’s nowhere quite like it in the world, and I love unpeeling the layers; it’s somewhere that’s different every time you go, like a travel Rubik’s cube. But gold. - Mark Ellwood, Editor at Large, Robb Report

I cannot wait for art season, aka those fabulous months of full immersion contemporary art kicking off in the spring with the Venice Biennale (and now we can add Salone, Milan’s design week) and launch a deluge of collateral events that trickle down and across Europe from May through August. I’ve got my eye on Deste Foundations’ Slaughterhouse on the island of Hydra, which always lines up an amazing, site-specific exhibition during the biennale year. - Erica Firpo, Fathom Rome editor

I want to witness travel evolve into something that is not just about where you go but about who you become along the way.

I’m most looking forward to travel becoming less about bucket lists and more about reasons to be somewhere: places where travelers are investing in restoration, culture, and community. This will include a trip to Morocco’s tranquil, less-crowded capital Rabat, named by UNESCO as the 2026 World Book Capital in recognition of the vital role of books in advancing education as well as transmitting knowledge, including of the arts in all their diversity. - Lucy Clifton, CEO, Spotlight Communications

I am looking forward to hearing all of the hilarious ways that ChatGPT and other AIs will screw up travelers’ vacations in all sorts of inane and creative ways ... and this is why you will always want a great travel advisor. Of course, by typing this, I will now be punished by AI in other countless ways. - Paul Tumpowsky, Chief Revenue Officer, Fora

My wish would be that Paris remains the city of love and to spend as much time as possible here, exploring and uncovering new hidden gems. Every day, I have the privilege of welcoming guests from all over the world, drawn to more than just a destination: an emotion, a promise, a way of life. Paris is all of this. A city that inspires encounters, celebrates stories, and turns every stay into a cherished memory. My wish would be that Paris continue to embody the warmth, elegance, and generosity that make hearts beat faster and inspire people to return, time and time again. - Francois Delahaye, COO, Dorchester Collection and General Manager, Hôtel Plaza Athénée

There are two trips I am really looking forward to. The first is my happy place: Kenya. Amazing conservation work is happening in Kenya right now with the KRRE (Kenya Rhino Range Expansion) and dropping fences in Tsavo. There are eight million humans on the planet. We have got to find a way to live in greater harmony with nature, and what’s happening in Kenya is a beacon of light. The other trip that keeps me awake like a kid waiting for Santa on Christmas Eve is Bhutan. My husband and I are going in early spring. In my dreams it’s like Brigadoon. We will step into another world and fully disappear into it. - Stephanie March, actor and philanthropist

I’m most excited about the continued evolution of how we deepen our connection with people as they travel. The past few years have shown us the power of technology to bring the world closer, and I’m looking forward to seeing how innovation can continue to bring even richer, more memorable experiences to the forefront – all while keeping that essential human touch front and center. - Heather Balsley, Global Chief Commercial & Marketing Officer, IHG Hotels & Resorts

I am so excited to go back to West Wales, St. Davids, and the Pembrokeshire Coast. I completely fell in love last year and now want to spend a week there every year (who knows if that will actually happen). It’s remote and wild — but with great coffee (key!). Walking amid blackberries and wildflowers, meeting locals who speak this beautiful, impossible-to-read language, and loving that so many of them have dogs in pubs. I dream of Whitesands Bay when I’m back in London, crammed onto the Piccadilly line. - Annie Fitzsimmons, Editor and author, Travel AF

Travel is about surprise. AI hates surprise. That tension is going to produce some beautiful experiences.

Slamming closed the door on 2025 — don’t let it hit your ass on the way out! — but 2026 could be a banger if Romegas and Casa Bonavita actually open in Malta and I finally tick that little European nation off my list! Either way, the mandatory family trip to Georgia (the country, not the state) is on my mind for June. We are on the hunt for architectural marvels both ancient and modern set in under-touristed destinations, and this Caucasus nation delivers. - Heidi Mitchell, WSJ Contributor and travel writer

I’m already counting the days until this summer’s Grand Masked Ball at the Palace of Versailles. (Yes, that one.) This all-night fête requires not only a full period costume but that guests also keep their masks on for the entire night — that means well into the morning. - Kerri Allen, Fathom contributing editor

I am most excited about visiting Mongolia a country that has been on my bucket list for several years. I’ll be visiting in August and staying at Three Camel Lodge and hoping to experience the Perseid meteor showers and immerse myself in the mysteries and traditions of the famous Nomadic lifestyle. Yurts, camels, and dunes: Here I come! - Lindsey Ueberroth, CEO, Preferred Travel Group

I’m most looking forward to the opening of Rosewood Rome. The brand’s timeless elegance, attention to every detail, and deep respect for place will make the Eternal City feel even more magical than it already is. - Chiara DiMuolo, CEO and Founder, Imago Artis

We hope your travel dreams come true. Whether or not they take you to Brigadoon.