UNPACK '26 SUMMER TRAVEL TRENDS: DOMESTIC DEMAND RISES AS TRAVELLERS TAKE A MORE MEASURED APPROACH

Travel's go-to data-based trend report releases a first-ever summer edition — Unpack '26 Summer: The Trends in Travel

Today, Expedia Group released Unpack '26 Summer: The Trends in Travel, the latest edition of its industry-leading report, revealing how travel behaviour is shaping summer travel decisions.

Demand for domestic travel is dominating summer vacation planning. Social conversation about domestic vacations has increased by 77% year-over-year globally, and 53% of Canadian travellers are planning a domestic trip this summer.* From major sporting events and concerts to reading escapes and screen-inspired travel, Unpack '26 Summer builds on insights from the flagship Unpack '26: The Trends in Travel™ report to highlight where travellers are headed this summer. Each trend is backed by first-party data from Expedia®, Hotels.com®, and Vrbo® as well as insights from travellers and social listening.

"This summer, travel isn't slowing down — it's being reshaped," said Melanie Fish, Vice President, Global Public Relations, Expedia Group. "As major global events and rising costs influence decisions, travellers are either staying closer to home or seeking out destinations where they can get more for their money."

Expedia — Destinations of the Summer

Domestic travel is shaping up to be the season's unexpected but understandable travel trend. Rather than far-flung destinations, more travellers are gravitating towards nearby escapes, from beach towns to mountain trails only a short drive or quick flight away. ​Searches for Jasper, Alberta have gone up 55% this summer, and interest in local hotspots like Niagara-on-the-lake and Blue Mountains in Ontario have spiked by 25%.

Explore the Destinations of the Summer here.

Hotels.com — Hotel Hop Summer

Hotel Hopping — booking multiple hotels on a single trip — is gaining momentum as travellers look to experience more of the destination and make the most of the stays, with demand increasing during the summer season.

This summer, key motivations for hotel hopping include:

• Event Hopping — Hotel hoppers are planning their summer hotel stays around events to see their favourite musical artist or cheer on their favourite sports teams. Pairing a hotel near the concert venue or stadium with a second stay in a different part of the city means travellers can experience more of the destination in one trip.
  • Cheer on the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in Toronto (June–August): Stay at the Toronto Marriott City Centre Hotel - which is actually built into the stadium - to be right in the middle of the action for a home game, then hop to 124 on Queen Hotel & Spa in Niagara-on-the-Lake for a sophisticated stay featuring world-class spa treatments and serene gardens.
  • Experience the Calgary Stampede (July 3–12): Stay at Hyatt Regency Calgary to be a 10 minute taxi ride away from the Stampede Grounds and the parade route, then hop to the Fairmont Banff Springs for a majestic "Castle in the Rockies" experience just a short drive away.
  • Vibe at Ottawa Bluesfest (July 9–19): Stay at Delta Hotels by Marriott Ottawa City Centre to be within walking distance of the festival at LeBreton Flats, then hop to the Lofts du Village in Chelsea, Quebec, for a serene stay near the entrance of Gatineau Park and Nordik Spa-Nature.
• Road Tripping — Road trips are back in a big way as travellers pair open-road adventures with hotel hopping. Online buzz around road tripping along iconic routes this summer has increased, especially the iconic Sea-to-Sky route, followed by the Cabot Trail.
  • Sea-to-Sky: Start at the Sutton Place Hotel in Vancouver, stop midway at Executive Suites Hotel & Resort for mountain adventures, and finish with alpine luxury at Westin Resort & Spa in Whistler, B.C.
  • Cabot Trail: Kick off Nova Scotia's iconic loop at Silver Dart Lodge in Baddeck, then hop to Castle Rock Country Inn in Ingonish for coastal Atlantic views before returning to Baddeck to complete the circuit.
• Bleisure Hopping — There's no better time to add a leisure stay onto a business trip than summer. Bleisure travel is trending online with over 165K mentions, and the hottest destinations dominating social conversations for bleisure hotel hopping include*:
  • Helsinki (+71%): Stay at the Solo Sokos Hotel near Stockmann, then hop to Espoo to stay at Noli Otaniemi and explore Nuuksio National Park.
  • London (+47%): Stay at The Ned near Borough Market, then hop to Brighton to stay at the Sea Spray to enjoy the coast.
  • Oslo (+46%): Stay at the Karl Johan Hotel just steps from Norwegian Parliament and then hop to the Sundvolden Hotel near King's View to enjoy golf and the spa on property.
  • Paris (+24%): Stay at Le Cinq Codet near Rue Cler, then hop to the French countryside and stay at Château de Courcelles near Reims.
  • Other trending summer bleisure destinations: Cape Cod (+97%), Lake Michigan (+88%), Seoul (+36%), Chicago (+35%), Sao Paulo (+28%), and Boston (+23%).

Check out Hotel Hop Summer combinations here.

Vrbo — Beach Readaways

Books are becoming must-pack items for summer travel as more travellers build vacations around reading, relaxation, and quality time with loved ones. Social buzz for "Beach Readaways" is up 213% year-over-year while, as first mentioned in the Unpack '26 report, mentions of reading-related terms in Vrbo guest reviews have surged 285% year-over-year.

With searches for some of the most in-demand beach destinations also up by over 30% compared to last summer, travellers are packing their beach reads and continuing to make books the main character of their summer vacation rental stays.

Find more Beach Readaways inspiration here.

Kick Off or Take Off?

With the world gearing up for the major soccer moment in North America this summer, traveller behaviour is diverging. Sports fans are booking last-minute trips to host cities to be a part of the excitement, while others are heading elsewhere to take advantage of lighter crowds and lower prices in popular destinations across Europe, Asia, and South America.

As soccer anticipation builds, interest is surging across North American host cities in June and July. Kansas City, U.S.; Philadelphia, U.S. and Monterrey, Mexico, are topping the list of destinations for fans eager to catch a match in person.

While match-day crowds are concentrating in North America, deal-seekers are taking off in the opposite direction. Average daily rates for hotels in some popular European, Asian, and South American vacation spots are down nearly 25% this summer even as interest has climbed over 35% year-over-year on average, making these destinations a compelling alternative for travellers looking to escape the games and take value-driven trips.

Read more about Kicking Off or Taking Off this summer here.

The 2026 Set-Jetting Summer Forecast

From streaming hits to blockbuster films, Set-Jetting — travel inspired by TV shows and movies — continues to shape summer demand. Expedia first spotted the Set-Jetting trend in 2022 and predicted a surge in interest in 2026 for destinations like Yorkshire, U.K., inspired by Wuthering Heights; Samoa (Polynesia) and Hawaii inspired by the soon-to-be-released Moana (Live Action); and Peloponnese, Greece, inspired by the upcoming The Odyssey as part of the Unpack '26 forecast.

Several destinations, both expected contenders and surprise breakouts, have since emerged as Set-Jetting standouts this year:

• Yorkshire, U.K. — Search interest spiked by 60% in the first six weeks after the release of the Emily Brontë adaptation, and searches for this summer are up 35% year-over-year.
• Muskoka, Canada — Interest climbed by 110% after the debut of Heated Rivalry, alongside strong interest in other featured cities including Boston (+85%), Montreal (+65%), and Toronto (+55%).
• Rome — As Emily in Paris expanded its storyline in season 5, so did interest from fans of the show, with searches for the city increasing by 35% in the two months after the season dropped.

With an influx of movies and shows planned for summer releases, the 2026 Summer Set-Jetting Forecast highlights a fresh slate of screen-inspired destinations poised to transform on-screen scenes into warm-weather travel plans, from the historic sites of Williamsburg, Virginia, to the dramatic peaks of Italy's Dolomites.

Read more about Set-Jetting here.

*Notes to Editor:

Online mentions of domestic destinations based on global social media mentions about summer domestic vacations between February 1-April 29, 2026 vs. February 1-April 29, 2025.

Third-party research was conducted by market research partner OnePoll in accordance with the Market Research Society's Code of Conduct. The Study was conducted online among 11,000 adult respondents across nine countries who travel and have stayed in a hotel.

Expedia — Destinations of the Summer

Destinations of the Summer list based on increases in accommodation searches on Expedia for travel between May 23-August 31, 2025 vs. May 22-August 31, 2026.

Hotels.com — Hotel Hop Summer

Hotel Hop Summer data supported by increase in attach (hotel + hotel) demand on Hotels.com globally in 2024 and 2025 for summer vs. other seasons.

Online mentions based on news, broadcast, and social media mentions of classic road trips and bleisure travel from March 16, 2025 to March 8, 2026, vs. March 17, 2024 to March 7, 2025.

Vrbo – Beach Readaways

Beach Readaways data based on searches on Vrbo from June 1, 2025 to March 9, 2026, for travel from May 22, 2026 to August 31, 2026, vs. June 1, 2024 to March 9, 2025, for travel from May 23, 2025 to August 31, 2025.

Reviews data based on global mentions in post stay reviews collected on Vrbo from May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024, vs. May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025.

Online mentions based on news, broadcast, and social mentions between September 15, 2025-March 16, 2026, vs. September 15, 2024 to March 16, 2025.

Kick Off or Take Off:

Kick-Off Destinations based on increases in accommodation searches on Expedia and Hotels.com for travel between June 10-July 20, 2026 vs. June 10-July 20, 2025.

Take-Off Destinations data based on Average Daily Rates and accommodation searches on Expedia and Hotels.com from August 4, 2025 to February 1, 2026, for stays between May 22-September 30, 2026.

​2026 Summer Set-Jetting Forecast

Set-Jetting data based on increases in accommodation searches on Expedia and Hotels.com for travel between May 22-August 31, 2026 vs. May 23-August 31, 2025, during specific periods following the release of a film or TV series.

Heated Rivalry data based on accommodation searches made on Expedia.co.uk from January 12 to February 1, 2026, for travel between January 12-December 31, 2026 vs. the same period in 2025.

About Unpack '26 Summer

Q: What is Unpack '26 Summer?

A: Unpack ‘26 Summer highlights summer travel trends and is a seasonal update on the Unpack '26: The Trends in Travel™ report released in October 2025. The Unpack ‘26 Summer report draws on first-party data from Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo and social listening, and builds on first-party and traveller insight data from Unpack '26 to forecast traveller behaviour this summer.

Q: What makes Unpack '26 Summer a credible source for travel trends?

A: The report combines real-time platform data from millions of users and builds on third-party research conducted by OnePoll, following the Market Research Society's Code of Conduct, first shared in the Unpack '26 report. Findings are backed by behavioral insights, booking patterns, and cultural signals, making it a trusted resource for media, industry leaders, and travellers alike.

Q: What are the key travel trends identified in Unpack '26 Summer?

A: The report spotlights several major trends shaping summer travel in 2026:

• Kick Off or Take Off: Diverging travel behaviour during this summer's international soccer tournament in North America
• Destinations of the Summer: Trending summer hotspots
• Hotel Hop: Multi-hotel itineraries motivated by road trips, bleisure travel, and event travel
• Beach Readaways: Literary-themed beach retreats
• Set-Jetting: Screen-inspired travel

Q: Where can I access the full Unpack '26 Summer report and assets?

A: Visit www.expedia.com/newsroom for the full Unpack '26 Summer report, downloadable assets, and brand-specific insights from Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) is the global travel marketplace with one purpose: to help travellers explore the world, one journey at a time. Expedia Group™ connects travellers, partners, and advertisers through its trusted brands, leading technology, and rich first-party data, delivering predictive, personalized experiences that shape the future of travel.

Expedia Group's ecosystem includes three flagship consumer brands — Expedia®, Hotels.com®, and Vrbo® — one of the largest B2B travel businesses, and a premier advertising network. Guided by an experienced and passionate global team, Expedia Group helps millions of travellers in more than 70 countries explore the world with confidence and ease.

© 2026 Expedia, Inc., an Expedia Group company. All rights reserved. Expedia Group and the Expedia Group logo are trademarks of Expedia, Inc. CST: 2029030-50.

For more information, visit www.expediagroup.com.

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