Trip styles are changing

Three new labels are spreading through travel media this week as publishers and brands pitch 2026 trips around stories, hands-on activities and local food. (euronews.com) Euronews Travel published a guide on April 10 naming “lore chasing,” “sight-doing” and “snackpacking” as major travel trends for 2026, and tied the terms to a new American Express Travel report. (euronews.com) American Express released that 2026 Global Travel Trends Report on April 8 and said it surveyed travelers in the United States, Australia, Canada, India, Japan, Mexico and the United Kingdom. The company said 80 percent of global respondents plan to take the same number of international trips or more in 2026 than in 2025. (americanexpress.com) The report frames the shift as a move away from passive sightseeing and toward itineraries built around memory-making, local culture and local flavors. American Express said 64 percent of Millennials and Generation Z respondents would take a job with fewer benefits if it gave them more flexibility to travel. (americanexpress.com) “Sight-doing” is the easiest of the three to decode: American Express described it as destination-specific workshops and classes, from tortilla-making in Mexico City to fragrance workshops in Paris. The company said 79 percent of Millennials and Generation Z respondents are likely to seek out local activities tied to the place they are visiting in 2026. (americanexpress.com) Euronews gave the same trend a broader cultural gloss, pointing to tile painting in Portugal, wood carving in Switzerland, calligraphy in China and batik in Indonesia. In its write-up, 80 percent of respondents said place-based activities deepen appreciation for local culture, and 76 percent said the skill lasts longer than a physical souvenir. (euronews.com) “Lore chasing” borrows internet language about doing things “for the plot” and turns it into a travel pitch for spontaneity, unusual stays and story-worthy detours. American Express said younger travelers are prioritizing unexpected accommodations, once-in-a-lifetime experiences and room in the itinerary for chance encounters. (americanexpress.com) Euronews said 82 percent of Millennial and Generation Z respondents would do something out of the ordinary on a trip if it makes a good story, and 86 percent said chance encounters with locals or new people leave a lasting impression. Those numbers help explain why the language of travel marketing now sounds closer to social media than to old package-holiday brochures. (euronews.com) “Snackpacking” is the food-first version of the same shift: trips organized around regional snacks, street food, markets and small local businesses rather than formal restaurant reservations alone. American Express said travelers, especially Millennials and Generation Z, are zeroing in on flavors that define a destination. (americanexpress.com) The caveat is that these labels come from a company report and a publisher’s packaging of that report, not from an industry standard body or government tourism data. What is real, and measurable, is the survey behind the branding: younger travelers told American Express they are spending around flexibility, experiences and food, and travel companies are now naming those habits fast. (americanexpress.com)