Why this guide: about 880 people a month search Google for “best places to travel in 2026” (US, DataForSEO Labs, September 2026). This is the answer we would give a client, written to be booked from.
The short answer
- The eventsFIFA World Cup (11 June–19 July) in 16 cities across the US, Canada and Mexico; Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics (6–22 February); the Venice Biennale (May–November); the 250th anniversary of the US (4 July)
- Having a momentAlUla and the Red Sea (Saudi Arabia), Albania's Riviera, Greenland (new Nuuk and Ilulissat airports), Japan beyond Tokyo (Kanazawa, Setouchi, Kyushu), Rwanda and Uganda, Bhutan's trail, Portugal's Alentejo, Mexico's Oaxaca coast
- Quiet while the world is busyThe Mediterranean in June–July (Greece, Croatia, Turkey) while North America watches football; the Rockies and Alaska; Scandinavia; the safari season in Kenya and Tanzania
The World Cup and the Olympics
The 2026 FIFA World Cup runs 11 June–19 July in Toronto and Vancouver, Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey, and eleven US cities (New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Miami, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, Philadelphia, Kansas City); the final is at MetLife Stadium on 19 July. Host-city hotels will double for match weeks — book a year ahead if you are going, and avoid those cities on those dates if you are not. Toronto's BMO Field hosts six matches; Pearson and the downtown hotels are the pressure point. The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics (6–22 February) put the Dolomites and Milan at Olympic prices; the ski season around them (Cortina, Livigno, Bormio, Val di Fiemme) is superb outside the Games window. The US turns 250 on 4 July, with Philadelphia, Boston and Washington at the centre of a year of events.
Openings and anniversaries
Venice marks 1,600 years since its traditional founding (421) with a year of exhibitions alongside the Architecture Biennale (May–November); the day-tripper fee and the cruise-ship limits make shoulder-season visits calmer than they have been in decades. Universal's Epic Universe in Orlando is in its first full year after the May 2025 opening — book timed entry with the ticket. Paris's Notre-Dame is fully reopened; the Grand Egyptian Museum at Giza is finally open; Lisbon's new airport is not yet, but the city's TAP stopover programme is. The Dubai Loop and the Sphere's Abu Dhabi twin are in progress; the Trans-Bhutan Trail is fully walkable.
Destinations having a moment
Saudi Arabia's AlUla (the Nabataean tombs at Hegra, the Banyan Tree and Habitas camps) and the Red Sea's new resort islands (St. Regis, Six Senses) with direct flights and a simplified e-visa. Albania's Riviera (Ksamil, Dhërmi, Himarë) as the cheap Mediterranean with Corfu across the strait. Greenland, with Nuuk's new international airport open and Ilulissat's following, for icebergs and the UNESCO icefjord. Japan beyond the Golden Route — Kanazawa, the Setouchi islands and Naoshima's art, Kyushu's onsen towns — as Tokyo and Kyoto strain. Rwanda and Uganda for the gorillas as permits and lodges expand. Portugal's Alentejo for the wine and the empty coast; Oaxaca's coast (Puerto Escondido, Mazunte) for the surf-and-mezcal Mexico; Vietnam's Phu Quoc and Ninh Binh; Colombia's Medellín and the coffee axis.
Where to be while everyone else is at the football
The Mediterranean in June–July is expensive every year, but the North American crowd will be thinner in 2026 — Greece, Croatia, Turkey's coast and Sardinia are the beneficiaries. The Canadian Rockies (Banff, Jasper), Alaska and Newfoundland are at their best and outside the host cities. Scandinavia's midnight sun; the Kenya–Tanzania safari season from June; Bali and Peru's dry season. And the trick play: the host cities themselves in the weeks before and after the tournament, when the new infrastructure is done and the rates have not yet risen or have already fallen.
Booking it
For World Cup and Olympic dates, book hotels and flights the moment the schedule is confirmed and use the engine's Toronto, Vancouver, New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Mexico City and Milan pages with flexible rates. For the moment destinations, AlUla, Albania (via Corfu or Tirana), Nuuk, Kanazawa, Kigali, Évora and Puerto Escondido are all on the engine; Vacation Packages bundle the flight; the chauffeur booker covers the host-city airports where the taxi lines will be biblical. See our month-by-month best places guides for the seasonal detail.
Three things to get right
- World Cup host cities: book a year ahead or avoid 11 June–19 July.
- Milan-Cortina in February is Olympic-priced; the same slopes in January or March are not.
- AlUla, Albania and Greenland are the 2026 'before everyone else' picks.
