Travel trends 2027 are pointing towards a quieter way of taking a holiday, with travellers expected to spend longer in fewer places, leave more space in their itineraries and look for experiences that feel meaningful rather than simply impressive.
The prediction comes from UK travel and tourism marketing company Lemongrass, which has published its annual travel trend report looking ahead to 2027. Its central idea is what it calls the “anti-optimised” holiday, a style of travel built around doing less rather than trying to fit as much as possible into every day.
For years, travel planning has often been shaped by the idea that a successful trip should include as many sights, activities and destinations as possible. Lemongrass believes that attitude is beginning to change. Instead of moving quickly from one attraction to another, travellers may increasingly choose fewer destinations, simpler plans and longer stays, with more time left open for rest or spontaneous decisions.
Mirjam Peternek McCartney, CEO and founder of Lemongrass Marketing, said the change reflects a wider shift in the way people think about travel. She said the industry has spent years focusing on optimisation, personalisation, efficiency and adding more experiences, while travellers are now asking a more basic question about how they want a trip to make them feel.
She described the change not as a rejection of technology or luxury, but as a recalibration of travel priorities. According to the report, travellers are looking for holidays that can help them feel calmer, understand a destination more deeply, connect with other people or simply enjoy time without feeling pressure to make every moment count.
That could also change the meaning of luxury. A packed itinerary filled with exclusive experiences may have less appeal to some travellers than having nothing that needs to be done. The freedom to sit, walk, explore or change plans without watching the clock could become part of the holiday itself.
The same thinking is appearing in the wellness sector. Lemongrass says wellness travel is moving beyond spa treatments, health checks and biohacking. Hotels and destinations are increasingly considering the wider environment in which people rest, including lighting, sound, access to nature, food, movement and opportunities for social connection.
The focus, in other words, is shifting from adding more treatments to creating surroundings that naturally encourage people to slow down and recover. A successful wellness stay may be less about how many activities a guest completes and more about how they feel when they leave.
Another change identified by the report is the move from the traditional bucket list towards what Lemongrass calls a “depth list”. Travellers now have access to enormous amounts of information before they leave home, much of it available through search engines, social media and increasingly sophisticated artificial intelligence tools.
That ease of access can tell a traveller where to go, what to see and what other visitors have recommended. But it cannot always provide the context that makes a place meaningful. As a result, the report expects greater interest in expert-led tours, cultural trails, literature, history, architecture, workshops and conversations with local people.
The appeal is therefore shifting from simply finding somewhere that feels undiscovered to understanding a destination properly. A traveller may still want to see the famous landmark, but the experience can become richer when it is connected to the history, people and culture behind it.
Artificial intelligence is also creating a new question for travellers: not only where to find information, but whether that information can be trusted.
As AI-generated travel advice, synthetic images and paid recommendations become more common online, first-hand knowledge may become more valuable. Lemongrass expects travellers to place greater importance on tour operators, guides and travel professionals who have actually visited the places they recommend.
That does not mean travellers are expected to abandon technology. Instead, the report suggests that technology will increasingly be judged alongside human experience. An itinerary produced within seconds may be useful, but a local guide who understands the character of a neighbourhood, the history of a site or the realities of travelling there can provide something an automated system cannot easily reproduce.
The report also identifies changing attitudes towards men’s wellbeing as a developing travel market. It predicts growing demand for trips that combine fitness, nature, mindfulness and outdoor activities with opportunities for friendship, emotional wellbeing and personal connection. The emphasis is not simply on physical performance, but on experiences that help people build resilience and spend meaningful time with others.
Climate change is another factor expected to influence how people choose destinations. Travellers may increasingly consider not only whether a place offers relief from extreme heat, but whether it has the infrastructure, local knowledge and tourism businesses needed to respond when conditions change.
This concern connects with another trend highlighted by the report: citizen science. Rather than simply observing wildlife and natural environments, some travellers are becoming interested in taking part in activities such as wildlife monitoring, water sampling and recording species. The idea is to turn a visit into a more active relationship with the environment.
There is also growing interest in travel that leaves something useful behind. Lemongrass points to what it calls the “giving journey”, in which travellers contribute to locally led conservation or community projects. The challenge, however, is ensuring that these experiences are genuinely useful and locally driven rather than repeating the problems associated with traditional voluntourism.
Sustainability is also being presented in a different way. The report describes a future of journeys “without sacrifice or sermon”, where lower-impact travel is attractive because it offers a good experience rather than because travellers are made to feel guilty about their choices.
Rail travel is one example. Trains can offer scenery, comfort and a more relaxed way of reaching a destination while also providing a lower-impact alternative to some forms of transport. The argument is that sustainable travel becomes easier to embrace when it also feels enjoyable.
Lemongrass also expects interest in what it calls “earned travel”, a response to the convenience that now surrounds modern tourism. Flights, accommodation and activities can be booked within minutes, routes can be mapped instantly and much of the uncertainty once associated with travel has disappeared.
For some travellers, that convenience may be precisely what makes a trip less memorable. Remote landscapes, independent journeys and experiences that require some effort can offer a greater sense of achievement. In this approach to travel, the journey itself becomes part of the experience rather than simply a way of reaching the destination.
At the other end of the spectrum is what the report calls the “joy economy”. Against a backdrop of digital overload and wider uncertainty, travellers may increasingly choose experiences because they are fun, surprising or emotionally rewarding. Travel becomes a way to restore a sense of play and connection rather than simply another item on a personal achievement list.
That desire for atmosphere also appears in the report’s “mystic outlands” trend. Folklore, dark skies, ancient forests and landscapes associated with stories and legends could attract travellers looking for experiences that feel removed from ordinary life.
The question of who tells those stories is also becoming more important. Lemongrass expects greater interest in female guides, historians, artists, chefs and community leaders who can offer perspectives that have not always been given equal space in destination storytelling.
Perhaps the most accessible prediction in the report is “near is the new far”. Travellers do not necessarily need to cross continents to feel that they have escaped their normal routines. Short-haul journeys, rail trips, staycations and off-season breaks can provide a change of environment with less time, expense and logistical pressure.
The idea fits closely with the wider move towards slower travel. A nearby destination can become more rewarding when a traveller gives it enough time, rather than treating distance as the main measure of how far away a holiday feels.
Taken together, Lemongrass’s predictions suggest that travel in 2027 may be shaped less by the pursuit of maximum experiences and more by the quality of the experience itself. The emerging traveller is not necessarily looking for fewer experiences because they have lost interest in the world. Instead, the appeal may lie in having enough time to notice where they are, understand it and enjoy it without constantly moving on to the next item on the itinerary.
If that shift continues, the holiday of the future may not be the one with the longest checklist. It may be the one that leaves enough room for the traveller to put the checklist away.
