2026 travel thread

[Global Wizzo]

We have one transatlantic trip this year few weeks in UAE and Asia in Sep and couple weeks in Europe for Christmas markets.

Four Viking cruises next year. 3 ocean and one Asia river. Will add in ME and Asia trips in between. May go back to Sydney for Christmas and New Years. Just see what we feel like.

Looking at Driving Norway next year and maybe NZ again.

Viking Ocean ships are as big as we will consider. Just don’t like showing up with 3-5K people and ruining a place. 900 are enough.

That said, lots of folks like the floating theme parks.

 

[ImaCheesehead]

I figure since I already have 3 big trips on the books for 2026.... Maybe others want to join in

Mid March: fly to Fiji to visit a friend posted there (state dept) then 2 weeks in New Zealand, then returning by a transpacific cruise to LA.

That sounds very familiar. My first trip of 2026 involves a February stop on Fiji, then onto New Zealand for the OAT NZ trip, then back to the US on the HAL 36-Day South Pacific Crossing to Seattle.

 

[KarenF]

We are currently on an England, Ireland, Scotland, Iceland trip and planning a Lindblad Egypt Expedition followed by a few days in Paris. We hope Egypt works out.

 

[Nerhar]

Me, my wife and our teenager granddaughter are planning a trip to Paris and Niece ( 12 days) this August. My granddaughter wanted this trip and has done most of the activities for each of the days ( AI helped as well) . Me and my wife have helped with the flights and hotels. Starting to learn simple conversational French , while my grandaughter is much better.

 

[dixonge]

We wrap up our South America cruise/adventure in Jan. 2026, and I was planning on waiting until later in the year for our next big trip, but then I made a mistake. I looked at Transatlantic cruises and found one from Ft. Lauderdale to Rome (our next planned location) in I think March or April for only $829/ea. But it's probably too soon....probably.

 

[rodi]

Fwiw... I'm monitoring the Egypt and Jordan situation. A lot can happen in the next year+. But yesterday's news has me nervous.

 

[Ronstar]

Contemplating the Rocky Mountaineer for next summer.

 

[bluelight]

We are starting off New Years 2026 on a Viking cruise to the Panama Canal round trip out of Florida. I've never rung in the New Year on a cruise ship so it should be interesting.
If my daughter's in-laws are willing to watch the kids for a week in spring 2026, I want to do another mother/daughter trip with her. I'm thinking Belgium would be nice.
In June, my husband and I have a Great Lakes cruise planned.
Oct or Nov, we will visit family in the Memphis area.
If we both manage to stay healthy, it will be a busy year for us.

 

[MRG]

We just got home from a Lindblad Expedition through Alaska and it was amazing. DW came back and booked a Galapagsos cruise with them for next year.

 

[timbervest]

Will be ending up an Antarctica / South Georgia Island trip in January. Looking at a Svarlbard trip in May. Stay tuned!

@planuntilthefisthits
Which company are you traveling with to Antarctica/South Georgia? How long?

 

[OldConch]

We just got home from a Lindblad Expedition through Alaska and it was amazing. DW came back and booked a Galapagsos cruise with them for next year.

Nice! We did a small ship Juneau/Juneau trip and a 16 passenger boat out of Baltra post-pandemic and both exceeded expectations. Hope you enjoy the Galapagos as much as we did and highly recommend spending time in Quito before/after. Read Jodi Picoult's "Wish You Were Here" on the Atlanta to Quito leg of our flights and felt like I'd already experienced Baltra when we got there. Good read.

 

[planuntilthefisthits]

@planuntilthefisthits
Which company are you traveling with to Antarctica/South Georgia? How long?

Seabourn 21-day. December 2025.

Join the fun!

 

[brett]

Feb & March snowbird trip to Malaysia/ Thailand on Cathay Pacific.

Our first since SE Asia trip since covid. Eight weeks of spontaneous travel...mostly in southern Thailand and the islands.

Probably our last snowbird trip to SE Asia! Flights are sooo long.

 

[JRodAK]

Walking the Nakasendo Trail (Japan) over 7 days in April. Tour around Namibia in August. Haven't figured out the fall/early winter yet.

Are you doing this self-guided? We're doing the Kunisaki trek this November then in March/April I'm looking at the Nakasendo or maybe go big and do the Shikoku Pilgrimage.

 

[flyingaway]

Egypt is currently at US State Dept level 3 ("reconsider travel") where 4 ("do not travel") is the highest. You're probably already aware, but in case you weren't. Among other things, I've noticed some travel medical insurance and also evac insurance (eg MedJet) specifically exclude anything on L3 or L4. That said, Egypt is AMAZING!

We were in Egypt and Jordan this April, and felt very safe. We rented a car in Jordan and drived all the ways in Jordan. Lots of checking points, but mostly checking their domestic drivers.

 

[brett]

Our very first trip to Thailand was about 14 years ago. At the time State called it level 3 just prior to our departure and was advising reconsider travel.

We were communicating with a US expat who was living in Bangkok and had been for a number of years. His impression about 'civil disobedience' was completely at variance with the State comments and with at least one CNN report. We decided to go based on advice from someone who was actually living in Thailand.

We went to Bangkok, then headed south. Over three weeks we saw one peaceful group in Bangkok with a few banners. Perhaps eight people. Two weeks last as we crossed over to Phuket we saw four or five more people doing the same-peacefully as we passed in our mini bus.

My spouse just looked at me after a few weeks in Thailand and asked what all than nonsense on the web site was about.

 

[pacergal]

Contemplating taking the kids and grandkids back to one of the Hawaiian Islands next year. They all had a blast last year.
DH and I will celebrate 10 years retired during 2026 ( wow!-DH summer, me winter--), so it will either be summer or maybe Christmas break, and a retirement milestone celebration.

DH also recently informed me that he would like to visit Sweden, where his maternal family is from. We had plans before, but cancelled. So that is somewhere on the horizon in the next few years.

 

[ABQ2015]

I put down deposits for several Road Scholar tours for 2026: Rome and Florence followed by villages of Tuscany and Umbria in March and a Danube cruise to include Budapest and Prague in October. I had to book early because I travel solo and those accommodations sell out fast. Road Scholar seems to be one of the few tour companies that explores specific regions in detail and does not involve changing hotels frequently. While I enjoyed my Rhine and Moselle river cruise this year, it was frustrating to spend so little time in port and rush through cathedrals or not have time to visit museums or dine locally.