Travel Marketing in 2026: 8 Shifts We’re Seeing Now
December 11, 2025
This year feels different. Shifts are happening. In how travelers plan, in what builds trust, and in what communities actually need from their marketing strategy.
The best marketing in 2026 will not shout. It will not beg for clicks. It will appear in feeds with confidence, share something meaningful, and leave a more impactful impression than what can be measured by click-through rate.
These stories will sound like a local giving you directions to their favorite coffee spot. Feel like a text from a friend who just got back from a weekend getaway.
People want something that feels honest. Human. Real. Worth their time.
So here are eight predictions we’re already seeing on the ground—pulled from our work with communities across the country, and delivered straight from the minds of people who do this work every day.
In a changing world, there’s one prediction we know for sure: the best marketing in 2026 won’t look like marketing at all.
If you’re planning for 2026 with purpose, you’re in the right place.
Here’s where we’re placing our bets.
Micro Moments are Winning over mega campaigns
Consumers likely won’t remember each particular phase of your integrated media plan, but they’ll remember how you made them feel, which can happen during small moments.
A thoughtful Instagram reply. A 48-hour itinerary that made planning feel fun. A single line in an email that reminded them of their last road trip. A reactive reel planned to respond to cultural trends. They’re intentional touchpoints. And they’re often the reason someone says yes to a visit.
Visit Idaho nailed this with their 3,100 Miles of Whitewater docuseries. They invited travelers into the state with stories that were personal and uniquely Idaho. The premiere documentary was segmented for different social moments, and all those little moments added up. And they drove real results.
Moments like this are a great reminder: you don’t need a megaphone to be memorable. Say the right thing at the right moment, and even a whisper will resonate.
TL;DR:
Small, intentional moments drive big impact. The brands that focus on 1:1 connections—like a well-timed DM or a clever reel—will earn trust (and bookings) long before the full campaign has time to play out.
AI is the Assistant, Not the Experience
The traveler journey is changing,and AI is now in the driver’s seat. Agentic AI (think: smart personal assistants) isn’t just helping people research where to go. It’s making the decision, booking the trip, and filtering out anything that doesn’t feel useful or trustworthy.
This means travelers are outsourcing the early planning phases. The algorithm is the new travel agent, and your first impression might happen without a human in the loop.
What gets surfaced? Content that’s helpful, human, and clearly structured. What gets skipped? Anything vague, cluttered, or overly polished.
In 2026, travel plans are shaped by thousands of micro-decisions made by people and the bots they trust to guide them.
TL;DR:
AI agents will make make decisions, book trips, and filter out content that doesn’t feel useful or trustworthy. Your marketing must be optimized for both users and AI agents.
Search is Turning into Answers
AI Overviews. Answer engines. Zero-click search experiences. Search is being redefined before our very eyes.
We’re officially in the age of answer engines, and that means your content strategy needs a structural reboot. Organic traffic is down across the board, and content that isn’t built for both humans and machines simply won’t perform.
This isn’t about cramming in keywords. It’s about creating content that’s:
- Scannable
- Citable
- Built with TL;DRs, FAQs, and structured summaries
Want to rank in 2026? Write like a human. Outline for a robot. Because if your content isn’t ready for AI distribution, it’s already being left behind.
TL;DR:
You’re not just writing for humans anymore—you’re writing for AI, too. Build content that answers real questions and ranks in a world of zero-click results and answer engines.
Quick Escapes are the new Dream Trip
Planning fatigue is real. In 2026, we’re expecting to see people booking for less distance and more meaning. Weekend road trips. Extending a business trip a couple of extra days for some leisure time. Soft Adventures. Micro-itineraries built around personal wellness, or quick moments of joy.
Travelers are craving ease, intention, and a little headspace. That means:
- Shorter planning windows
- Drive markets
- Event-based getaways
- Wellness-driven micro-itineraries
Communities that deliver that winning combo of ease and personal value will win the weekend traveler, and create more ways to spread out demand.
TL;DR:
Quick escapes are in. Communities that make it easy to unplug—without overplanning—will win over weekenders, roadtrippers, and reset-seekers.
While you’re here, check out the 2026 Insights Article from our friends at Karsh Hagan. Their perspective? Bold, clear, and full of the kind of provocations that will push your strategy in the right direction.
The Year of Sports (and the Rise of Overflow Cities)
With the FIFA World Cup coming to the U.S. in 2026, and other major events like the upcoming Super Bowl in Santa Clara and WrestleMania in Las Vegas, sports are shaping up to be a massive driver of tourism—not just for host cities, but for every air and rail-connected stop nearby.
Sports today are a form of cultural currency. 44% of sports fans travel internationally for events, rising to 56% among 16-34 year olds. And with 3.5 billion people expected to tune in to the World Cup, it’s not just about game day—it’s about the overall lift of having the global spotlight on your neck of the woods.
Overflow cities and regions need to prepare now: get your story straight, make your content easy to find, and give visitors a reason to stay longer than game day.
TL;DR:
With the FIFA World Cup on U.S. soil in 2026, sports are shaping up to be one of the most influential cultural drivers of the year. And for communities, they represent something much bigger: a shot at reaching travelers who move with passion and pride.
Email is the Comeback Kid
Ad costs climb, attribution challenges persist, SEO is no longer a reliable driver of clicks, and visibility inside paid channels gets murkier. Email, we turn our lonely eyes to you. Look to leverage the channel as a stable, high-value channel in your mix.
Why? It’s segmented, personal, direct. And most importantly? It’s a channel you own.
In 2026, we predict the inbox will have a main character moment. With smarter segmentation, automated nurture journeys, and a bit of personality, email is doing what social media can’t always do: creating real, one-on-one moments with travelers that feel like conversations.
If your community’s not using email to build relationships in the coming year, you’re missing one of the few platforms where you can still own the connection.Look at what Visit Idaho accomplished. In a multi-layered email campaign, they told a story, delivered it at the right time, and drove massive results. From sky-high open rates to off-the-charts clicks, this campaign reminded us why email is the channel that still delivers when done right.
TL;DR:
If you’re not using email to create meaningful, ownable moments with your audience, you’re missing one of the few channels you can still control. As ad costs climb and visibility inside paid channels gets murkier, email has quietly returned as a stable, high-ROI channel in your mix.
Beyond Walled Gardens: Smarter Media Strategy
Most paid media strategies today are stuck behind a wall. A “garden wall,” to be specific—one built by Meta, and Google. Powerful platforms? Absolutely. But they come with limits. Rules you didn’t set. Targeting you can’t control. Reporting that doesn’t tell the whole story. And the more you rely on them, the harder it is to build a strategy that’s truly your own.
In 2026, the question our team keeps asking themselves is: what’s actually working outside of those platforms?
Expect bigger conversations around more intuitive, programmatic mixed media modeling. Between the open web, and frameworks like Unified ID 2.0 Performance, paid media is getting a much needed level up.
In 2026, the media strategies that win will be the ones who aren’t afraid to leap over the garden wall.
TL;DR:
In 2026, the focus in paid media will shift beyond the “table stakes” platforms of Meta and Google. More communities will start looking outside these algorithms to find better, alternative answers and ask the all-important-question: what is truly generating results beyond the standard platforms?
Crisis Communications Is Not a “Nice-to-Have”
From climate events, to social unrest, to global events, 2026 is going to test your team’s readiness.
Whether it’s a snowstorm or a social media post that went viral overnight, your ability to respond quickly and clearly could make or break visitor trust.
Crisis comms planning shouldn’t be reactive anymore. It needs to be built into your day-to-day marketing infrastructure: proactive messaging plans, community-wide protocols, templated response assets, and a cross-functional team that knows how to move.
TL;DR:
Communities that prepare will protect their reputation when it matters most. From climate events to political shifts and global-scale-events, 2026 is the year you need to be proactive.
In Conclusion
The year ahead isn’t about who has the biggest budget or puts out the most content.. It’s about who can connect deeper, move faster, and earn real trust in a world that doesn’t hand it out easily.
If you take anything from these trends, take this:
People don’t see you as a ‘brand.’ They’re not looking for something to buy; they’re looking for something to buy into.. A reason to believe. A reason to feel something.
We’ve got more trends and tips to share — on media, email, data, and what our team sees coming next. In the meantime, we’ll leave you with this:
Don’t chase attention.
Build a community worthy of it.
faqs
How should I use these trends in my 2026 planning?
Start by identifying which trends map to your current goals, and where your gaps are. These aren’t meant to be a checklist. They’re signposts. Use them to challenge your team’s assumptions and sharpen your strategy.
How do we apply these trends without chasing every shiny object?
It’s not about being everywhere—it’s about being strategic. Trends like Agentic AI or crisis comms planning aren’t “nice to have” anymore—they’re foundational. Prioritize moves that future-proof your efforts and deepen traveler trust.
What if we’re not a host city for big events like the World Cup or the Super Bowl?
You don’t have to be center stage to benefit. Overflow cities with strong storytelling, solid transit access, and ready-to-go itineraries will absolutely win travelers. The key is preparing now.
Where can I go deeper on these ideas?
Explore our work, and keep an eye on our blog for the latest on trends, insights, and creative revelations. For more perspective, check out the 2026 Insights Article from our friends at Karsh Hagan. Read it here →
