Crafting a list of the best places to go in the world, in any given year, is a reminder of travel’s most beautiful paradox: that our planet can feel both intimately small and incredibly vast at the same time. Brimming with more wonders than you can fit into one lifetime—yet increasingly connected—the places to travel to in the world are endless. Which is exactly what makes curating this list not only a great joy but also a challenge.
Our Best Places to Go in 2026 are underpinned with that very sense of magnitude. There are places that already feel familiar and yet are being imbued with fresh life, like Hong Kong, which has an exciting new cultural center of gravity, and the 16th-century lake city of Udaipur, where a flurry of luxury-hotel openings is ushering in a new era. There are also under-the-radar gems that are stepping into the spotlight, like Canada’s Prince Edward County, where a wave of indie wineries, new restaurants, and boutique hotels is redefining the coastal escape, and Fès, Marrakech’s understated sibling, which is set to shine with the historic reopening of its medina following a remarkable 15-year restoration.
Candidly, even after 12 years of pinning down the destinations we’re most excited about for this annual list, we’re just as wide-eyed as you when we stumble onto something totally unexpected. In Bolivia, great expanses of shimmering salt pans have long been a draw, but zoom out on the region of Potosí and you’ll find a geological bonanza of lagoons, hot springs, and snowcapped volcanoes. And if Rwanda’s primates have captured your imagination, what about Gabon, where new eco-lodges are opening up access to untouched forests that are home to western lowland gorillas and sweeping savannas? But perhaps few places on earth evoke life’s vastness quite like Uluru, the massive sandstone monolith that rises from the heart of the Australian Outback. As the region marks the 40th anniversary of a historic hand-back program, a new chapter of purpose-driven tourism is evolving. In 2026, visitors, guided by Aṉangu storytellers, can journey along a 33-mile trail, then spend the night in luxurious glamping camps, where the desert sky unfurls like an ancient manuscript—perfect for reflecting on our place in the ever-unfolding story of the universe.
This list is for travelers and dreamers alike. Use it—along with the companion lists for six continents—to jump-start your travel plans or simply indulge your sense of wonder. In the year ahead, our global team of editors will be exploring many of these places, and we can’t wait to share the stories we discover on the ground and, perhaps, even cross paths with some of you along the way. —Arati Menon
