Published November 2nd, 2026
Words and photos by Claudia Laroye

Subscribe to the Modern Traveller Newsletter to get terrific travel articles like this one straight to your inbox!

This year has been one turbulent roller coaster – weather, war and worry have been unfortunate markers impacting travel around the world. But gazing into my Modern Traveller crystal ball, I see cautious optimism afoot. If you read my 2026 key travel trends piece,, you’ll see that I was on the nose about this year’s travel trends, like sporting events, wellness and the continuing strength of 50+ solo women travellers.

Jump into my time machine and travel into the future with these prescient predictions for six key travel trends in 2027.

Amazing analogue

Nature immersion wins over digital addiction even if only for a short holiday.

To paraphrase Timothy Leary on his 1960s counterculture cri de coeur to ‘turn on, tune in and drop out,’ travellers are turning off, tuning in and dropping into new remote destinations - putting presence before posts. We want to smell the flowers and hear the pine needles crackle underneath our feet, without having to tell the world about it. 64% of travellers feel closer to nature and more present going off-grid, and Skyscanner reports a 173% increase in digital detox searches. As someone who ditches digital on an annual off-grid holiday in beautiful British Columbia, I couldn’t be more delighted by this conscious uncoupling from technology, however brief it might be.

The analogue trend is noted by Hilton’s survey, too, in the rise of the skillcation – trips that expand abilities and deliver long-term dividends for travellers, like learning the ukulele or mastering a new language. 42% of modern travellers say that travel helped them discover new interests or passions, while 20% say that education or skills-acquisition helped them grow and evolve. Intrepid’s 2027 Not Hot list highlights emerging destinations in keeping with off-grid travel, including Whitehorse, Yukon, and Carretera Austral, Chile.

Bye bye buffet

Plans for bellying up to the dessert buffet may suffer in 2027.

Has the all-inclusive buffet served its last course? Accordingly to Booking.com, as medications like Ozempic reshape appetites, sobriety culture grows, and ‘macro-conscious’ eating becomes the norm, Canadian travellers are portion-controlling their vacations too. 56% say at least one health, body or lifestyle change has influenced their choice of vacation destination or activities in recent years.

Travellers aren’t keen to fork over dough for the doughnuts they won’t consume, the open bar they’re skipping or the buffet they’re avoiding. In 2027, less is more as 71% of Canadian travellers want a package that lets them remove elements they do not expect to use. Furthermore, 47% would let their diet influence the accommodation or destination, showing that the destination now needs to fit the lifestyle. It appears that moving forward, the most appealing travel package isn’t the one that includes the most.

More short and sweet

Event travel will continue to be big in 2027, FIFA or no FIFA.

Hilton’s Trend report highlights how the micro-travel mindset will be top of mind next year. Rather than giving up travel due to budget constraints, people are choosing trips that slot easily into packed schedules – proving that in the age of limited bandwidth, ease and immediacy matter more than ever. As work, family life and other commitments shape people's schedules and priorities, many travellers are opting for shorter, more frequent escapes that are easier to plan, execute and easier to fit into everyday life.

Among solo travelers who expect to travel more, 40% intend to add a mix of both short and longer getaways. More than 51% of travellers say they like to plan trips around a single experience - a concert, coveted restaurant reservation, sporting event or a challenging hike. For them, a short getaway is an opportunity to focus on what matters most.

Social exclusivity

Family is part of my travel planning but increasingly less so for many.

Welcome to the era of the brutally curated travel companion list. According to Booking.com’s 2027 Travel Predictions survey, Canadian travellers are increasingly choosy about who they want to travel with, or without. In 2027, budget is becoming the most ruthless filter on the guest list as costs rise, taking a bigger bite of disposal income.

Nearly half of Canadian travellers (41%) have reconsidered who to invite on a trip because of differences in spending. Kids might not make the cut either, with 65% of parents keen to travel child-free so they can spend more on themselves. I love travelling with my adult kids but agree that you can’t do it comfortably without having that all-important money chat well before you leave.

Super (or not) El Niño

Hit ye a nor'easter our group had to pivot. Weather woes may alter travel plans in 2027.

The potential capacity of the Super El Niño predicted to disrupt weather patterns and tourism around the world should be on every travellers mind next year. The summer of 2026 in Europe saw devastating wildfires and withering heat domes, and this year’s rainfalls have created catastrophic floods, disrupting tourism activities in Peru and Machu Picchu in particular. Next year may be even more unsettling on the weather front.

We can’t ignore the connections between tourism and climate going forward, and our methodology for dealing with the challenges needs to involve more than just taking out gold-plated travel insurance. Travellers can manage risk by creating (and budgeting for) a Plan B, making flexible bookings, and registering with the government in case worst case scenarios come to pass. Recognizing that local communities will suffer more than your temporary inconvenience, aim to decenter yourself and focus on how you can support local with your tourism dollars.

Travel trustworthiness

Exactly zero AI is used on Modern Traveller.

While artificial intelligence (AI) and digital innovations have expanded travel-planning tools, Hilton’s data show that human expertise remains invaluable. Can I get an amen?

When it comes to travel decisions, family members remain travellers' most trusted source of advice (87%), while 70% of travellers trust hotel staff as a travel planning resource in-country. On the AI front, just 22% trust AI to create a tailored itinerary aligned with their interests; 20% trust it to recommend restaurants or bars, and only 18% trust AI to uncover lesser-known local experiences.

Attitudes also vary by generation, with millennials the most likely to embrace LLM recommendations leading all age groups in trusting AI to create itineraries (26%), suggest restaurants (23%) and provide travel inspiration (23%). Boomers consistently place greater trust in human expertise, relying on travel agents and hotel staff across a range of travel decisions.

Meanwhile, despite being the first generation raised with high digital literacy skills, Gen Z travellers are twice as likely as Millennials to turn to their parents for trusted travel recommendations, highlighting the enduring value of family advice across generations. I love this for us, fellow Gen X parents.

Safe and happy travels in 2027!

6 Key Travel Trends in 2027