If there’s one thing travellers have mastered by now, it’s adapting. After years of flight chaos, inflation, and enough “revenge travel” to make airport lounges look like refugee camps, 2026 promises something far more refined and somewhat personal.
Enter Skyscanner’s Travel Trends 2026 Report, a global forecast of how, why and where people will travel next year. Drawing on the data of millions of travellers, plus insights from partners including Reddit, Malin+Goetz, AllTrails and Penguin Books, the world’s most-searched travel platform has identified seven new movements redefining how we pack our bags and our priorities.
Skyscanner’s chief executive, Bryan Batista, summed it up neatly:
“Skyscanner’s 2026 Travel Trends report shows how travel is about to get more personal than ever. Whether it’s building a trip around a must-stay ‘destination hotel’, getting lost in a new favourite book, incorporating a beauty routine into their itinerary or bringing the whole family along, travel will become more curated, grounded and unique.”
Let’s unpack the suitcase of 2026 and peek at what’s inside.
1. Glowmads – Beauty Meets Boarding Pass
You’ve heard of nomads. Now meet Glowmads, the jetsetters whose moisturiser costs more than their duty-free champagne.
According to Skyscanner, 33% of global travellers are eager to experience local beauty culture, while one in five say social media now influences their travel decisions. Seoul’s K-beauty empire remains the epicentre, but this is no longer about a destination; it’s a ritual.
In 2026, travellers’ skincare routine isn’t something they leave at home; it’s what leads them to the boarding gate. From inflight sheet masks and hotel facial bars to pilgrimages to cult cosmetic stores, Glowmads are turning hydration into an itinerary.
So, if you spot someone misting themselves with thermal water at 35,000 feet, don’t be alarmed. They’re just embracing the high-altitude glow.
2. Shelf Discovery – The Supermarket Safari
Gone are the days when food tourism meant Michelin stars and linen napkins. “Eat like a local” now means diving headfirst into the snack aisle.
Thirty-five per cent of travellers say they plan to visit local grocery stores on their next trip, not for essentials but for edible anthropology.
Think Tokyo vending machines, Icelandic geothermal bread, and Thai mango chips that redefine “souvenir.” Culinary discovery, it turns out, isn’t found at five-star restaurants but five-aisle supermarkets. It’s affordable, authentic and deliciously unpretentious.
Consider it gastronomy for the practical-minded, a humble yet delightful twist on culinary tourism.
3. Altitude Shift – The Rise of the Summer Snow Escape
If your idea of the mountains is limited to après-ski and mulled wine, 2026 will surprise you.
Skyscanner’s data shows a 103% year-on-year rise in searches for “rooms with a mountain view,” and 76% of travellers consider a summer or autumn alpine escape.
From the Dolomites to the Canadian Rockies, the world’s peaks call not for snow but stillness. Travellers trade surfboards for hiking boots and pool loungers for panoramic terraces.
The air’s thinner, but the serenity’s thicker.
4. Bookbound – Where Literature Takes Flight
Perhaps the most poetic trend, “Bookbound” holidays have emerged as the thinking traveller’s antidote to digital fatigue.
Over half (57%) of global travellers say they’ve booked or would consider a trip inspired by literature. The destinations? Think Haworth for the Brontës, Paris for Hemingway, or a quiet Greek island for a reading retreat.
Even Skyscanner’s search data shows a 70% global rise in users filtering hotels by “library.”
Whether chasing the world’s most beautiful bookshops or simply reading by the pool, this trip restores the mind, not just the tan. In 2026, well-read is the new well-travelled.
5. Catching Flights and Feelings – Love in Transit
It seems Cupid has joined the cabin crew.
More than half of travellers (55%) have either travelled or plan to travel overseas to meet new people, whether friends, flings or potential partners.
Skyscanner notes an 83% surge in searches using its “solo” filter, hinting that the modern traveller is swapping swipes for serendipity.
As dating apps begin to feel as crowded as airport terminals, many are opting to take their search for connection into the real world. From Lisbon rooftop bars to Bangkok cooking classes, love or at least a good conversation — may be just one boarding pass away.
6. Family Miles – Reclaiming Time Together
In an age of individualism, families are circling the wagons again.
Thirty-one per cent of global travellers plan to travel with family in 2026, many opting for multi-generational trips — from grandparents to toddlers, everyone’s included.
With budgets tight and young adults still living at home, group getaways make both emotional and financial sense. Instead of bucket lists, families build memory lists of affordable adventures that strengthen bonds while stretching dollars.
If you’re lucky, share costs, shared laughter and perhaps shared sunscreen.
7. Destination Check-In – When the Hotel Is the Holiday
Once upon a time, hotels were where you stayed. In 2026, they’re why you go.
Nearly one-third (29%) of travellers now choose destinations based on the property itself, the architecture, the vibe, or the Instagram-worthy pool.
From Moroccan riads to Japanese capsule hotels, the rise of the “destination hotel” is turning accommodation into an attraction.
As younger travellers chase “dupes” of luxury experiences closer to home, this trend proves one thing: you no longer have to travel far to travel well. Sometimes, the journey ends at the check-in desk.
The Future: Curated, Clever and Completely Connected
Behind these seven trends lies a broader truth: travel is no longer about collecting passport stamps. It’s about collecting meaning.
Skyscanner’s research found that 84% of travellers plan to go abroad as much or more in 2026 than they did in 2025. They’ll do it deliberately, stretching budgets for experiences worth every cent.
Artificial Intelligence is evolving not to replace human wanderlust, but to refine it. Skyscanner predicts the rise of “agentic AI”, where multiple systems collaborate to anticipate traveller needs from personalised itineraries to real-time problem-solving on the road.
Meanwhile, social media and more innovative search tools are shaping the next wave of inspiration. Platforms like Reddit, Instagram, and TikTok aren’t just showing destinations; they’re helping travellers find experiences that match their values and occasionally, their skincare routines.
As Batista notes, this isn’t a tech takeover. It’s a “whole new operating system for travel.”
A Final Word from the Aisle Seat
If 2025 was the year of getting back out there, 2026 looks set to be the year of returning to ourselves.
From Glowmads with mist sprays to Bookbound dreamers with dog-eared novels, travel is turning inward, thoughtful, sensory, and delightfully self-aware.
The next incredible journey might not be measured in miles, but in moments between the pages, at the peaks, or perhaps somewhere in a supermarket in Reykjavik.
To explore the whole Skyscanner Travel Trends 2026 Report:
By Christine Nguyen – (c) 2025
Read time: 7 minutes
About the Writer
Christine’s journey is one of quiet courage and unmistakable grace. Arriving in Australia as a young refugee from Vietnam, she built a new life in Sydney brick by brick, armed with little more than hope, family, and a fierce curiosity about the wider world. She studied Tourism at TAFE and found her calling in inbound travel, working with one of Sydney’s leading Destination Management Companies—where she delighted in showing visitors the real Australia, the one beyond postcards and clichés.
Years later, when the call of the sea and a gentler pace of life grew stronger, Christine and her family made their own great escape. She turned her creative hand to designing travel brochures and writing blogs, discovering that storytelling was as natural to her as breathing. Today, she brings that same warmth and worldly insight to Global Travel Media, telling stories that remind us why we travel in the first place.
