The new year is coming at us fast: 2026, here we come! At this time of year the reports and articles about travel trends are rife, and I like to look through them all and see what might be happening in tourism and whether or not I like it (by which I mean, of course, does it fit with a thoughtful travel ethos?).

In this episode, I take you through some of the key trends identified by numerous players in the travel industry and also figure out which destinations are being predicted most often as being 2026 hotspots. I also chat with some experts, starting with Brett Mitchell, Managing Director of Intrepid Travel for Australia and New Zealand, who describes key trends Intrepid has identified and discusses their annual "Not Hot" list. I then chat with Melanie Fish, Vice President of Global PR for the Expedia Group, who explains how their "Unpack 26" study has included a new feature this year which I particularly like.

Links:

• Intrepid Travel's Not Hot List 2026 - https://www.intrepidtravel.com/au/newsroom/releases/2026-not-hot-list 
• Unpack 26 from Expedia - https://www.expedia.co.uk/unpack26/
• Hilton 2026 trends report - https://stories.hilton.com/2026-trends
• Booking.com 2026 trends report https://news.booking.com/the-era-of-you-bookingcom-predicts-the-top-trends-defining-travel-in-2026-with-individuality-taking-center-stage/
• Skyscanner 2026 travel trends - https://www.skyscanner.com.au/travel-trends
• Priceline 2026 travel trends - https://www.priceline.com/partner/pcln-promotions-2026-travel-trends-report-pr
• Explore Worldwide 2026 travel trends - https://www.exploreworldwide.com.au/travel-trends-2026
• Trafalgar 2026 travel trends - https://www.trafalgar.com/real-word/2026-travel-trends/
• Lonely Planet Best in Travel 2026 - https://www.lonelyplanet.com/best-in-travel 
• Contiki top 2026 travel destinations - https://www.contiki.com/six-two/article/top-travel-destinations-in-2026/
• Virtuoso best destinations 2026 - https://www.virtuoso.com/travel/articles/the-best-travel-destinations-2026
• Forbes 26 best trips for 2026 - https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2025/08/21/the-26-best-trips-for-2026-according-to-travel-experts/
• Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers
• Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin
• Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com 
• Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/371