Priceline has just unveiled its 2026 Where to Next? Travel Trends Report, a data-driven forecast that identifies seven defining behaviors, trends, and destination dynamics expected to shape the year ahead. Based on proprietary search and booking data combined with survey insights, the report argues that 2026 will be the year of “more”—more spontaneity, more indulgence, more surprise—even as purposeful travel continues to evolve. Priceline 2026 Travel Trends Report

If 2025 was about intentionality (slow trips, deep connections, and curated escapes), 2026 adds a fresh layer: impulse, nostalgia, adrenaline, and a desire to lean into the moment.

What Priceline Found

• Longer itineraries, more budget flexibility: Travelers now anticipate spending an average of 15 days on leisure travel next year, up from shorter bursts previously.
• Bigger budgets: On average, respondents plan to raise their travel spending by about US $350.
• Destinations both new and familiar: Interest is rising not only in under-the-radar regional spots but also in journeys that revisit emotional, formative places.
• The report frames new trends—Little Treat Travel, Midwest Quests, DéjàView, Expedition Beach, Dead Zoning, Tailgate Tourism, and Kidfluence—as windows into how people want to travel in 2026.

Priceline frames these trends as a manifestation of how travelers are rewriting the playbook: striking a balance between impulse and intention, novelty and comfort, freedom and structure.

Deeper Dive: What Each Trend Means

Here’s a more granular look at the seven trends and how they might play out in real-world behavior:

Little Treat Travel

Tiny indulgences, global reach.
An espresso in Lisbon, a surprise spa day in Bali, a sudden weekend retreat to a lake town — travelers are converting small pleasures into travel triggers. Priceline’s data shows 65% of travelers, especially younger ones, admit they’ve booked a trip purely as a “boost” or treat.

Midwest Quests

The U.S. Heartland courts explorers.
From Michigan’s shores to Nebraska’s trails, the Midwest is gaining traction. 63% of respondents said their interest in Midwest travel has grown. It combines affordability, authenticity, and a refreshing break from over-touristed coasts.

DéjàView

Nostalgia becomes the guiding star.
Revisiting the places that shaped you. With 73% of travelers drawn to trips that reconnect with their past and 82% of younger travelers eager to return to childhood favorites, destinations tied to personal history will see resurgence.

Expedition Beach

Beach + thrill = new beach vacations.
Gone are the days of lounging exclusively. Instead, beaches will serve as bases for jungle treks, kite surfing, cliff diving, and more. 74% of travelers now say they want coasts that offer excitement, not just serenity.

Tailgate Tourism

Game day, but make it a travel moment.
College towns will morph into destination hubs. ~70% of Gen Z and millennials say they’d travel to feel the energy of a homecoming weekend. Beyond the gridiron: local food scenes, music, and community events will turn tailgate weekends into full-blown getaways.

Kidfluence

When the littlest voices steer the trip.
Family vacations will be less about the adults’ agenda and more about co-creation with kids. An overwhelming 87% of parents say their children now help choose destinations. Expect more theme park mashups, immersive experiences, and hotel features tailored for imaginative minds.

Dead Zoning

Unplug — really unplug.
After years of blurred lines between work and vacation, many travelers are embracing strict digital detoxes. 59% report they’re setting firmer boundaries with work and seeking destinations where escapism is literal. No Slack, no Zoom, no inbox.

The Narrative Throughline: Impulse Meets Intention

Lesley Klein, Priceline’s SVP of Strategy and Brand Marketing, captures the shift:

“Travel in 2026 is a blend of impulse and intention … travelers who are increasingly steering their own journeys — from Gen Z revisiting nostalgic destinations to parents letting Gen Alpha lead the way.”

Christina Bennett, Priceline’s Consumer Trends Expert, adds that the emotional side is just as important as the exploratory:

“People aren’t waiting for the perfect time to go — they’re creating it.”

Taken together, the trends point to curiosity, self-expression, and a willingness to pivot mid-journey. The future of travel, according to Priceline, is less about planning every moment and more about creating space for surprise.

Context: How This Stacks Up in Travel-Tech & Industry Trends

To really understand Priceline’s insights, it helps to see them through the lens of the broader travel and tech landscape. Here are a few angles to consider:

• Converging with peer forecasts: Other major reports (e.g. Expedia’s Unpack ’26 trends) emphasize immersive experiences like “Fan Voyage” (sports + travel) and “Hotel Hop” (multi-hotel stays). Priceline’s themes of Tailgate Tourism and Little Treat echo this convergence toward layered, experience-first travel.
• AI & tech-driven planning: Priceline doesn’t heavily foreground AI, but 2026’s travel planning landscape will increasingly depend on generative tools. Trafalgar’s trend briefs already highlight that ~40% of travelers use some form of AI in planning, though trust remains a barrier. In that sense, Priceline’s more qualitative trend framing complements more tech-centric forecasts.
• Sustainability, overtourism, and market tension: Globally, destinations are pushing back on overtourism and introducing “smart tourism” practices (visitor caps, regenerative tourism, climate taxes). The WTTC and WEF stress that growth must align with sustainability goals. Priceline’s trends don’t directly speak to these constraints, so there is a tension: how do we enable indulgence without exacerbating environmental and socio-cultural strain?
• Macro headwinds: Economic pressures, visa policies, rising travel taxes, and regional instability all remain a risk layer. For instance, U.S. inbound visits are forecasted to dip in 2025 and then recover modestly in 2026. The optimism in Priceline’s report must be tempered by real-world constraints.
• Remote work travel continuity: The flexibility unlocked by remote/hybrid work has already rewired travel behavior (e.g. mid-week “workations,” extended stays). A longitudinal survey showed that non-home remote work contributes meaningfully to new travel patterns. Priceline’s “Dead Zoning” taps into part of that desire — to escape work entirely — but the greater shift is the integration of work, place, and travel in fluid ways.

Conclusion: What Priceline’s Report Really Tells Us (and What to Watch)

Priceline’s 2026 “Where to Next?” report is refreshingly human. It doesn’t just throw up a list of destinations; it teases out mindset shifts — how travelers want to feel, decide, and surprise themselves. In doing so, it positions Priceline not just as a booking platform, but as a cultural curator of travel sentiment.

But to treat this as gospel would be naïve. The report’s strength lies in framing emergent aspirations. Its weakness is that it doesn’t deeply engage with friction points: sustainability limits, infrastructure stress, economic volatility, and the growing expectation that travel tech deliver personalized, trustworthy guidance (vs. generic suggestions).

In a competitive field—where Skyscanner, Expedia, Airbnb, and niche experience platforms vie for authority—Priceline’s differentiator may be this narrative sophistication. Others already lean hard into the tech layer (AI recommendations, real-time dynamic itineraries, and community-driven insights). Priceline’s path forward, to retain authority, will likely combine that human storytelling with sharper tech-driven personalization and sustainability alignment.

For Alertify readers (in the travel-tech and connectivity sphere), the real signal here is that travelers are raising their emotional bar, not just their bucket list. Tools, platforms, and content that help people lean into spontaneity—while managing friction and trust—will win relevance in 2026. Priceline 2026 Travel Trends Report