- Wellness culture continues to impact in 2026, with three trends leaning into this overarching movement. Time loses all meaning, with almost 1 in 5 UK travellers ignoring the clock entirely on holiday, choosing to eat, sleep and explore whenever they choose. Meanwhile body-positivity goes global, with 31% of UK adults reporting that body-positive experiences are more socially acceptable now than a decade ago.¹
- The evolution of loyalty from upgrades to experiences is another hot topic, with 74% of British Airways Holidays customers advising they shop more often with brands when they are a member of their loyalty programme, an increase of 7% in the last 12 months.²
- Cognitive-health holidays, immersive theme-park attractions and nostalgic shopping also appear as rising themes.
- British Airways Holidays reveals its customers most searched for destinations for 2026 travel, plus those destinations seeing a spike of interest, including Bermuda, Crete, St Kitts and Turks and Caicos.
British Airways Holidays, one of the UK’s leading and most trusted tour operators, has unveiled its 2026 Travel Trends Report, in collaboration with world leading travel trend forecasting agency, Globetrender. As well as spotlighting the most popular destinations that British Airways Holidays customers are searching for, the report examines the biggest emerging trends that will help shape travel behaviour over the coming year.
2026 Rising Stars²
Eight destinations that are rising in popularity based on holiday package searches on ba.com during 2025 for 2026 travel.
- Bermuda +38%
- St Kitts +31%
- Turks and Caicos +22%
- Grenada +20%
- Crete +18%
- Costa Rica +15%
- Nashville +13%
- Antigua +8%
Top 10 in 2025 for 2026 travel²
Most searched for British Airways Holidays travel destinations of 2025 for travel in 2026.
1. New York
2. Orlando
3. Dubai
4. Maldives
5. Barbados
6. Las Vegas
7. Cancun
8. St Lucia
9. Dominican Republic
10. Antigua
Some of the report’s key findings for 2026 include:
Chronocations
Chronocations taps into our growing desire to live in sync with our biological chronotypes rather than the rigid rhythms of modern life. As the 110th anniversary of daylight-saving time sparks national debate in 2026, travellers are using holidays to reset their internal clocks – eating, sleeping and exploring whenever feels right. With 19% of UK travellers already ignoring the clock entirely, Chronocations marks a subtle rebellion against routine, as caffeine-fuelled morning raves and starlit excursions reshape how we experience time.¹
Uninhibited Holidays
British Airways Holidays is shining a light on the cultural shift towards embracing one’s authentic self, with body-positivity and self-acceptance when travelling on the rise. Survey data shows that around one in eight UK adults feel more confident in what they wear on holiday abroad, than they do at home and nearly one in ten say they feel just as comfortable wherever they are.¹ From sauna culture to Japan’s onsens and Turkey’s hammams, British travellers are rejecting social media’s ‘AI-perfect bodies’ and advocating for body acceptance, to fully disconnect when abroad.
Stream Parks
Stream Parks represent the next evolution of theme park travel, as streaming giants and gaming platforms turn their digital worlds into fully immersive, tech-powered destinations. With 38% of UK travellers eager to step inside their favourite show or video game, parks such as Netflix House in the US, iQIYI’s mixed-reality worlds in China and new Minecraft attractions in the UK and US are blurring the line between screen and reality.¹
The Valueverse
Though the cost of living remains high, UK consumers appear unwilling to compromise on enjoying a holiday in 2026. Loyalty schemes are powering a new era of smart luxury to enable this, with points not only reserved for flight and seat upgrades, but for experiences too. Everyday spending flows seamlessly into The Valueverse, turning points into personal luxuries, lowering travel expenses and making dream holidays more attainable.
Neurosurfing
26% of UK adults advise sleep deprivation affects their mental balance, more so than social media and digital content (16%), poor physical health or lack of exercise (14%), emails or communication (9%) or generative AI platforms (3%).¹ But as those who’ve tried digital detoxes or fly-and-flop holidays know, doing less doesn’t always produce the calm “alpha” brainwaves real rest requires. In 2026, an increasing interest in cognitive health is expected, as UK travellers place a greater emphasis on high-impact relaxation achieved by activities including breathwork, meditation and ecstatic dance, designed to enable a shift through the brainwave states.
Vintage Junkets
Amid a sea of global blandness, travellers are searching for relics from the pre-algorithmic age – going out of their way to find retro experiences and pre-loved treasures, with 47% agreeing that vintage or retro experiences offer a more authentic connection to the destinations they are visiting.¹ Through Vintage Junkets, travellers are discovering destinations through their past, making this trend an ode to serendipity and surprise.
Andrew Flintham, Managing Director of British Airways Holidays, said: “I always look forward to what our annual Travel Trends Report will reveal. It’s clear the prevailing interest in wellness culture is continuing to impact the way we holiday, with many of our trends leaning into this overarching movement. With 82% of British Airways Holidays customers thinking loyalty programmes are a great way for brands and businesses to reward their customers, I wasn’t too surprised to learn of The Valueverse, and the ever-increasing demand for new ways to collect and spend points. We’re excited to make these trends a reality for our customers.”
Jenny Southan, editor, founder and CEO of Globetrender and author of the report, said: “In a world shaped by economic pressure, digital saturation and rising social fragmentation, holidays are becoming spaces of transformation – opportunities for people to test new identities, restore mental balance and discover forms of joy that everyday routines suppress. This shift marks a profound redefinition of what a holiday is for: not just escape, but expansion. The findings in this report show a British traveller who is more experimental, more introspective and more values-driven than ever before. Whether it’s embracing body-positive liberation through Uninhibited Holidays, stepping inside screen-born worlds via Stream Parks, rethinking loyalty through The Valueverse, syncing holidays with biological rhythms in Chronocations or exploring the frontiers of cognitive wellbeing through Neurosurfing, what unites these trends is a desire to feel more alive when we travel.”
