From micro-retirement, slow travel and off-peak trips to wellness, active and stargazing experiences, Explore Worldwide shares the destinations and shifts shaping how travellers want to experience the world in 2026.
The Explore Worldwide Travel Trends Report 2026 draws on real-time data, traveller insights and expert analysis to reveal what’s next for meaningful travel, identifying eight travel trends and three top destinations to watch next year.
Explore Worldwide ANZ Regional Director Ben Ittensohn said: “Today’s travellers are no longer chasing bucket lists, they’re seeking stories, connection and purpose. They want to journey further, stay longer and engage more deeply with local cultures.”
The small-group adventure company found travellers aren’t content to wait for retirement for the ‘big trip’ with 39 per cent considering taking extended time off work for a mid-career break, aka micro-retirement.
At the same time, family holidays are also taking off, whether that’s one last big trip before teens leave home or vacays with adult kids.
The report reveals that travellers increasingly seek rail travel, under-the-radar destinations and off-peak seasons to slow down, avoid crowds and price hikes and experience more meaningful connections with local communities.
Active trips, such as cycling and walking holidays, are also rising in popularity, along with astrotourism interest in next year’s solar eclipse with Explore’s 2026 and 2027 eclipse tours in Iceland and North Africa almost sold out.
Explore’s emerging destinations to know
When it comes to new destinations to have on your radar for 2026 and beyond, Explore’s booking data tips Algeria, Costa Rica and Italy – but experiencing different areas of the popular hotspot in a different way through walking tours.
Ittsensohn added: “We’re seeing destinations like Colombia’s Coffee Triangle, northern Laos and inland Croatia are attracting interest with Laos up 160 per cent year-on-year, Mongolia 60 per cent, Nicaragua 32 per cent and Zimbabwe 29 per cent.”
“These are all examples of places that offer authentic, responsible travel experiences and form part of a wider movement away from the well-trodden path, towards journeys that feel more personal and connected.”
Read the full report here.
