Priceline Reveals 2027 "Where to Next?" Travel Trends Report as Americans Find New Ways to Make Every Trip Count

From personal goals and food discoveries to experiences worth splurging on, travelers are building trips around what matters most to them.

NORWALK, Conn., Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Priceline announced the release of its 2027 Where to Next? Travel Trends Report, revealing eight travel trends, changing behaviors, and destinations that will define the year ahead, based on original consumer research and Priceline's proprietary travel data.

The 2027 traveler isn't dialing back. They're TripMaxxing: finding ways to make their budgets go further, then putting those savings toward the experiences they care about most. Seventy percent of Americans choose a destination based on how far their money will stretch, while 65% have used savings from a great deal to go big on travel upgrades.

They're also getting more specific about what makes a trip worth taking: following their feeds to the table with Phone to Table, sharing more of themselves with AI through Personality Mapping and looking for hotels that fit their changing routines with GLP VIP. They'll turn a personal travel goal into the itinerary with Checkmark Chasing, seek out the personal touches of High-Touch Hospitality, test-drive a new hometown through Vacation Vetting or plan around one mission with Party On: having a great time, the whole time.

"The clearest signal from this year's research is that travelers are being more deliberate about what they want a trip to deliver," said Lesley Klein, SVP, Strategy and Brand Marketing at Priceline. "They're using technology to make travel more personal, while seeking experiences and human connections that feel genuinely relevant to them. They're not just choosing where to go; they're designing what the trip means to them."

Priceline's 2027 Travel Trends

• TripMaxxing: Travelers are finding strategic ways to save on one part of a trip so they can spend more on another. Nearly two-thirds of Americans (62%) cut back on one aspect of a trip so they can upgrade another, including 18% who do so often or all the time. Forty-two percent would even take an eight-hour layover if it meant staying at a high-end hotel. Grocery store breakfast for a five-star dinner later? Absolutely. Splitting a room to upgrade the rental car? Worth it.
  
  
  
  
• GLP VIP: With 85% of GLP-1 users reporting that the medication changes how they vacation, GLP-1-friendly amenities are becoming a new travel must-have. Nearly three-quarters (74%) say a GLP-1-aware hotel would sway their choice, and 28% would pay more for it, putting amenities like in-room medication refrigeration, protein-forward menus and strength-focused fitness options on the travel wish list.
  
  
  
  
• Checkmark Chasing: Checkmark-chasers won't just want to see the world, they'll want to complete it. Most Americans (80%) are interested in pursuing some type of checklist travel goal, whether that means visiting all 50 states, every NFL stadium, or every continent. Nearly one in three (32%) say completing a travel checklist would feel more satisfying than a once-in-a-lifetime dream vacation. For these travelers, checking the next box gives them a reason to start planning the next trip.
  
  
  
  
• High-Touch Hospitality: Technology has made more parts of travel seamless and self-service, but travelers are putting a premium on the human interactions that make a stay memorable. More than one-third of Americans (37%) have returned to a hotel because of a memorable interaction with a staff member, while 66% say exceptional attention makes a stay memorable and just as many would pay extra for it. That could be a waiter who remembers a coffee order or a hotel run club that turns strangers into friends.
  
  
  
  
• Vacation Vetting: Some travelers will use a vacation to answer a bigger question: could I actually live here? Two-thirds of Americans (66%) have wondered whether their destination would be a better place to live than their hometown. And 21% of Americans have already moved somewhere they first visited as tourists, with 46% making the move within a year. For Gen Zers and Millennials, getting a feel for everyday life can mean shopping at a local grocery store (45%), visiting a coffee shop on a weekday morning (28%) or even browsing real estate listings mid-trip (24%).
  
  
  
  
• Phone to Table: In 2027, trip planning won't start with where to go, but with what's on the menu. 80% of Gen Zers and Millennials would consider booking a trip for a food experience. They'll build entire trips around a dish or snack flooding their For You Page. Think flying to Tokyo for the fried cream sandwich taking over your feed. Virality is only part of the draw, with 33% of Americans saying a food is worth seeking out if it is a local or culturally distinctive specialty. From an internet-famous bite to a dish rooted in generations of local tradition, food can become the reason for the trip.
  
  
  
  
• Personality Mapping: Personality types, value systems, love languages and even dream journal excerpts are among the details travelers are willing to share with AI for a more tailored trip. Forty-five percent of Americans would share details like these in pursuit of the most tailored "me" trip imaginable, rising to 61% of Gen Zers and 62% of Millennials. They're using AI to turn those highly personal inputs into travel recommendations that feel made for them.
  
  
  
  
• Party On: After years of collective cultural stress, travelers are ready to let loose, planning around one mission: having a great time, the whole time. Three-quarters of Americans (75%) are directing their budgets toward daytime activities like festivals and pool parties over nightlife. When traveling in groups, 68% party together and 35% make a point to celebrate or party multiple times throughout the trip.

Priceline's Top 10 Places to Travel in 2027

Based on year-over-year growth in searches, Priceline identified a list of trending destinations for 2027.

• Domestic: Birmingham, Alabama; Block Island, Rhode Island; Beacon, New York; Snoqualmie, Washington; and Bayfield, Wisconsin.
  
  
  
  
• International: Fes, Morocco; Innsbruck, Austria; Miches, Dominican Republic; Adelaide, Australia; and Da Nang, Vietnam.

"Travel is becoming more than an escape from everyday life. It's becoming a way to explore what people want next," said Christina Bennett, Priceline Consumer Travel Trends Expert. "The destination is still the starting point, but the reason for going is becoming just as important as the place itself. That shift is changing how people plan, what they prioritize and what they consider worth the trip."

Priceline's complete 2027 Where to Next? Travel Trends Report can be viewed here.

Methodology: 

The Priceline 2027 Where to Next? Travel Trends Report was developed in partnership with Current Forward. The primary survey was conducted online by Wakefield Research among 3,000 nationally representative U.S. adults ages 18+ between August 11 and 22, 2026. A supplementary survey on viral foods was conducted by Zappi among 2,000 nationally representative U.S. adults ages 18+ between September 18 and 20, 2026. The report also draws on Priceline's proprietary search and pricing data for searches made between May 2025 and May 2026, for any travel dates.

About Priceline

Priceline, part of Booking Holdings Inc. [NASDAQ: BKNG], has been helping travelers get better deals for more than 25 years. Using proprietary technology to analyze billions of data points, Priceline unlocks savings across hotels, flights, rental cars, cruises, vacation packages, and more. With inventory from trusted travel brands in more than 110 countries, 24/7 customer service, Priceline VIP, and Penny, its AI-powered travel assistant, Priceline helps travelers save smarter and book with confidence. No one deals more deals than Priceline.

SOURCE Priceline