Six Trends Shaping Luxury Travel Now

Indagare surveys its community annually to understand how travelers are thinking about the year ahead, from where and how they want to travel to the hotels, experiences and planning tools they value most. This August, nearly 1,000 Indagare members, subscribers, social followers and industry partners shared their perspectives on the state of travel today.

The results reveal a luxury traveler who remains eager to explore and invest in travel, while becoming increasingly discerning about how they plan, where they stay and what makes an experience worthwhile.

Below are six of the standout travel trends for 2026 into 2027 and beyond.

1. AI is Becoming a Common Travel-Planning Tool—But Human Expertise Still Matters

AI use for trip planning has accelerated quickly. Almost 39 percent of respondents use AI to help plan travel, up from just 14 percent as recorded last year. Another 24 percent are curious but haven't tried it yet, meaning that nearly two-thirds of respondents are now open to incorporating AI into their planning. Travelers are most typically using AI to research destinations and refine itineraries, not to book hotels, look for deals and compare prices.

At the same time, respondents underscored that technology needs to complement and not replace human expertise. As one traveler put it, "I don't want efficiency to trump the humanity and curiosity and spontaneity of it all."

As AI makes basic travel information increasingly accessible, trusted curation, firsthand knowledge and personalization become more—not less—valuable. The future of luxury travel planning lies in combining the convenience of technology with the judgment and personal understanding that only human relationships can provide.

2. Travelers Want Insider Knowledge They Can't Find Elsewhere

When travelers shared what they value most about Indagare, trusted, firsthand information shaped by human expertise emerged as a consistent theme. More than 65 percent of respondents value Indagare's insider guides and hotel recommendations, with particular excitement for destination guides, restaurant recommendations, hotel reviews and firsthand intel.

But increasingly, travelers want recommendations that go a layer deeper. They are looking for the small hotel they haven't heard of, the neighborhood restaurant they wouldn't find themselves and compelling reasons to return to destinations they already know. They place particular value on recommendations that have been personally vetted. As one respondent wrote, "You've tested and vetted so much of what you recommend. That holds so much weight."

For well-traveled audiences, having access to information isn't enough anymore. The real value is in the human judgment behind it—the trusted experts who can filter and provide context to an overwhelming amount of information and uncover the places and experiences travelers wouldn't otherwise discover.

3. Travel Spending Is Rising—But Trips Are Becoming More Personal

Travel appetite remains strong. 55 percent of respondents expect they'll end the year spending more on travel in 2026 than they did in 2025, while just six percent plan to spend less. Nearly three-quarters of respondents expect to take between two and five trips this year, and almost nine percent are planning to end the year with 10 or more trips.

What is changing is the types of trips travelers are prioritizing. "Friend trips" led the list of trip types respondents are interested in taking, followed by "romantic getaways" and "solo travel." Meanwhile, several more traditional categories, including family and celebration trips, declined since we last surveyed our community.

Most respondents plan travel four to nine months ahead, but last-minute travel is still a major trend. Our team continues to receive requests for spontaneous getaways, and even complex international trips come together on short notice. Many respondents also said that how far in advance they plan really depends on the destination and how complicated a trip is.

4. Boutique Hotels are the Overwhelming Favorite

When it comes to where luxury travelers want to stay, boutique hotels are the clear favorite. Roughly three in four respondents prefer smaller boutique properties (and "boutique" is nearly 30 points ahead of the next hotel category in this year's survey).

The comments help explain why. Travelers repeatedly describe wanting smaller, design-forward hotels with personality and a strong connection to their surroundings. One respondent described the ideal as, "luxury hotels, iconic, with soul, that reflect the local culture," with no more than 80 to 100 rooms. Another simply asked for, "hotels with great design and unique stories."

For travelers accustomed to luxury, individuality, character and a strong sense of place are increasingly important markers of an exceptional hotel experience.

5. Culture, Food and Art are Top Travel Interests

Travelers are looking for a deeper connection to the places they visit. Cultural heritage and history topped this year's list of travel interests, with food and wine and art history close behind—pointing to a strong appetite for depth and discovery. Respondents talk about returning to favorite destinations to explore them more fully, seeking out lesser-known neighborhoods and sites and building trips around specific interests instead of just checking a place off a list. For well-traveled audiences especially, the next great travel experience isn't always a new destination—it might be seeing a familiar one in a completely new way.

6. Best Rates and Loyalty Benefits are Shaping How Travelers Book

For luxury traveler, the best available rate, loyalty points, status and added benefits all factor into their booking decisions. 80 percent of respondents belong to a travel loyalty program—most often airline or major hotel programs, frequently combined with premium credit-card benefits.

These programs can directly influence and shape booking behaviors, specifically for hotels, and many respondents said points and status are exactly why they book through a particular channel. And when asked what drives the booking decision, a guaranteed best rate came out on top—ahead of all other factors, including loyalty points and 24-hour support.

Travelers want confidence that they're receiving the best available rate while maximizing the benefits and perks that matter most to them.

The Takeaway

The survey findings reinforce something we already know at Indagare: deep destination knowledge combined with an understanding of the individual traveler is critical. Priorities and planning tools will keep evolving, but that personalized approach is always going to be at the heart of how we work and plan travel.

Have thoughts on the future of travel? Share them with us via email or on the Indagare Member Forum—we'd love to hear from you.