Travelers choosing off-season
- Reporting shows more travelers are deliberately choosing off‑season trips and avoiding overtouristed destinations in 2026. - The shift includes changes in timing and trip style as families and solo travelers seek less crowded experiences. - This trend pairs with destination pricing measures and broader sustainability-minded travel conversations (euronews.com).
More travelers in 2026 are deliberately moving their trips out of peak season and away from the most crowded destinations. (euronews.com) Booking.com said 43% of travelers plan to avoid overcrowded tourist destinations this year, up 11 percentage points from 2025. The company’s 2026 sustainability survey covered 32,500 travelers across 35 markets and found 42% planning off-season trips. (booking.com) That shift is uneven by age. Booking.com said 63% of Boomers planned to travel outside peak season, compared with 48% of Gen X, 41% of Millennials and 36% of Gen Z. (booking.com) European travel data is pointing the same way. The European Travel Commission said 73% of Europeans planned trips between October 2025 and March 2026, and described the period as one in which off-season demand was rising. (etc-corporate.org) Researchers at Mabrian and Data Appeal said overseas visitors to Europe are increasingly avoiding July and especially August, and are choosing shoulder periods instead. Their February findings also showed stronger demand for northern and nature-focused regions such as Vestland, Galicia and Normandy. (euronews.com) The change is not only about crowds. Booking.com said 74% of travelers now consider extreme weather risk when choosing where and when to travel, and 25% planned to pick cooler destinations. (booking.com) Travel companies are starting to package that behavior as a market trend. Expedia’s “Unpack ’26” report, based on 24,000 travelers and its own booking data, said it was promoting destinations that had not “gone viral” and launched a “Smart Travel Health Check” tied to managing overcrowding. (expedia.com) Governments and cities are also making peak-time visits cost more. Venice extended its daytripper fee to 60 days in 2026, up from 54 in 2025, and charges €5 or €10 depending on how far ahead visitors book. (euronews.com) Edinburgh is set to start a 5% overnight visitor levy on July 24, 2026, while Barcelona’s visitor fee is now among Europe’s highest, according to Euronews’ February roundup of new tourist taxes. (euronews.com) The result is a different kind of travel calendar: fewer August city breaks, more spring and autumn trips, and more interest in places that can spread visitors beyond the usual hotspots. (euronews.com)
