AMSTERDAM, ND–Booking.com’s Travel Predictions for 2027 forecast that Canadian travellers will take things beyond the traditional itinerary. Between lower appetites and higher sobriety culture, couples using long hikes to have difficult conversations, paranormal encounters, and more, travel will be going off-script.
This year, as Booking.com marks 30 years of industry innovation with a mission to make it easier for everyone to experience the world, proprietary consumer research combined with input from travel and technology expert employees identified the behaviours and motivations shaping travel for the year ahead.
The All-Exclusive
As medications reshape appetites and sobriety grows, travellers are portion-controlling their vacations. 56 percent say a health or lifestyle change has influenced their destination or activities, and 71 percent want packages that let them remove elements they won’t use.
Trailside Therapy
The new romantic getaway may involve tough talks. 39 percent of Canadian couples would take a trip to resolve conflict, and 67 percent say a vacation activity helps them have difficult conversations, with hiking together (33 percent) among the most effective.
Plot Twist Trip
69 percent of Canadian travellers want a vacation that’s completely out of character, and 29 percent want to surprise friends and family. Meanwhile, 24 percent have skipped posting about a trip because it felt too ordinary.
Social Currency
Budget is now the most ruthless filter on the guest list. 41 percent have reconsidered who to invite over spending differences, 27 percent have removed people from a group entirely, and 65 percent of parents want to travel child-free.
Vibe Check(In)
72 percent would choose a destination based primarily on how they want to feel, and 66 percent would use a search tool that recommends destinations by mood. 76 percent of Gen Z would share wearable and phone data to personalize a trip, versus 28 percent of boomers.
Sweat Synergy
51 percent of Canadians who have travelled alone say a shared physical challenge led to a lasting friendship, and 44 percent would join a community of like-minded athletes while travelling.
Trip to the Beyond
59 percent are interested in experiences that confront the paranormal. 40 percent would seek to speak to someone on the “other side,” and 41 percent are curious about experiences exploring death and the afterlife.
PTO: Powered by AI
55 percent say the last day of vacation is less enjoyable because they’re thinking about work. 51 percent are interested in AI covering their work, and 33 percent would let it manage emails and admin.
Hotel in the Sky
88 percent would take a long-haul journey if they’d arrive rested. Top wishes: sleep-supportive menus or caffeine guidance (33 percent), jet-lag-reducing lighting (26 percent) and skincare kits (17 percent). 31 percent would choose a “no-children, quiet zone.”
Paul Hennessy, Chief Marketing Officer at Booking.com, says: “Travel is becoming less about following a formula and more about expressing who you are. Travellers are challenging the conventions of how, why and with whom we travel, and technology is giving them more freedom to do it with confidence. At Booking.com, we’re actively building for the future of travel by combining AI with deeper personalization to tailor every step of the journey to individual intent and emotion, making it easier for everyone to experience the world – on their own terms.”
Part of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: BKNG), Booking.com’s mission is to make it easier for everyone to experience the world. By investing in the technology that helps take the friction out of travel, Booking.com’s marketplace seamlessly connects millions of travellers with memorable experiences every day.
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