Trend 1 2026

Platform Pivot

Legacy platforms are losing ground to channels that prioritise active community engagement. Reddit has evolved from a niche forum into a primary data source for Large Language Models, while the use of Strava taps into the growing fitness trend. As digital discovery moves toward these discussion- and activity-based hubs, this shift presents an opportunity for destinations to become active contributors to conversations, shaping the very narratives that define their identity.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

6.55

"This approach is embedded within a 360º content ecosystem across social media, blog, web and news formats, ensuring narrative consistency and semantic depth."

Antonio Sánchez, Visit Benidorm

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Platform Pivot – V2B

Trend 01

Future. Destination. Trends 2026

Exploring The Platform Pivot

Social media platforms and the algorithms that govern them continue to evolve rapidly. Features change, reach fluctuates, new platforms emerge and established ones shift their priorities, often with little warning and less transparency. For DMOs, this constant movement demands a genuine strategic rethink about where and how they engage with audiences.

Key Themes

01

Community Co-Creation

Campaign success is shifting from impressions to active participation. Destinations showing up in niche, interest-driven spaces invite genuine involvement and engagement.

02

AI, Reddit & the Search Revolution

Community conversations actively feed the AI search tools travellers use to plan trips. Trustworthy editorial content is increasingly rewarded by AI discovery systems.

03

Platform as Brand Decision

Platform selection is a brand management exercise. DMOs must audit not just campaign performance but the values and terms of the platforms they invest in.

Key Statistics

Facebook

45%

Decreasing

36%

No Change

18%

Increasing

0%

N/A

TikTok

9%

Decreasing

27%

No Change

55%

Increasing

9%

N/A

Instagram

9%

Decreasing

45%

No Change

45%

Increasing

0%

N/A

X

45%

Decreasing

9%

No Change

9%

Increasing

36%

N/A

YouTube

0%

Decreasing

36%

No Change

55%

Increasing

9%

N/A

0%

Decreasing

9%

No Change

36%

Increasing

55%

N/A

Key Considerations for DMOs

Assess each platform as two distinct propositions: where to contribute meaningfully to conversations and where to amplify through paid distribution.

Regulatory moves to moderate AI-generated content will influence content performance long-term meaning agile strategy adjustment is essential.

Reconcile the tension between investing in emerging platforms and relying on legacy measurement frameworks to justify budgets.

Over-reliance on any single platform is a strategic vulnerability. Treat platform strategy as a living portfolio informed by community behaviour and aligned with brand values.

Trend 8 2025

Star Power

Celebrity partnerships generate enormous media exposure. However, finding the right match requires building synergies between a destination's unique identity with a celebrity's iconic status or personal brand. This enables richer storytelling that has a distinctive personality. Yet, while leveraging celebrity influence often remains crucial to destination marketing, does it still lend a credibility that empowering visuals alone cannot match?

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

6

"Is this a disruptive trend? In itself, no, but in the way brands need to address it: yes - more diverse platforms, the speed of trends fading, etc. - all require different approaches to succeed nowadays."

Catharina Riess, Wien Tourismus

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Trend 7 2025

Reach Redefined

Google's integration of Instagram content into its search index means that visually-rich content is now directly contributing to a destination's organic search presence. This makes Instagram optimisation a critical new facet of SEO. Brands must now skillfully balance the creation of engaging content tailored for their loyal follower base with an expanded focus on optimising content for discoverability by entirely new audiences via search.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

6.3

"It is a strong trend at the moment, but depending on future technological developments, it might change rapidly."

Eleni Skarveli, GNTO

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Trend 6 2025

Spatial Discovery

Ongoing advancements, from tech giants Google, Meta, Snap and Apple, will redefine top-of-funnel discovery and build immediate connections with destinations through highly immersive and informative visitor touchpoints. In transporting visitors to a 3D digital environment, top-of-funnel inspiration will be ignited through interactive virtual destination previews. The integration of gamification also presents a potent avenue for destinations to foster deeper engagement and memorable interactions, particularly when targeting younger demographics.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

6

"I think it will be something that gradually impacts storytelling and content, but it will not happen overnight. The barriers are still too high and expensive, both on the sender and consumer side."

Nils Persson, Visit Sweden

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Trend 5 2025

Campaign Equilibrium

As brand loyalty erodes, destinations are moving beyond rigid, large-scale periodic campaigns. There's a growing recognition that the balance must shift towards nimble marketing strategies that prioritise "always-on" activations. By reacting to changing visitor behaviours, destinations can deliver genuinely authentic and resonant content, optimising every touchpoint for maximum engagement and impact throughout the entire year, rather than relying on episodic bursts of activity.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

5.4

"Audience behaviours shift as quickly as the ways people discover and share travel inspiration. This means we can no longer afford to wait for major campaign moments to engage."

Rhoda Davids, Cape Town Tourism

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Trend 4 2025

Voice Vision

The future of AI search will engage multiple senses through natural language processing advancements. Voice and visual search capabilities are growing rapidly across platforms, enabling users to search via speech and images instead of typing. This provides better accessibility and more intuitive, context-rich results. Organisations adopting these human-centric search methods will gain competitive advantages and collect richer data than text-only approaches.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

7

"For over 15 years, voice has been heralded as the next dominant interface between humans and machines. Voice (alongside texting) is expected to continue leading the way in how we interact with technology."

Oliver Csendes, Hungarian Tourism Agency

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Trend 3 2025

Values Vortex

Across the world, as society becomes ever more polarised, values are increasingly becoming the elephant in the room. While neutrality is perceived as a tacit endorsement of the status quo, being outspoken risks alienating certain audiences. Facing what seems like a binary choice, the championing of progressive values through creative storytelling and brand narratives is becoming a powerful point of differentiation for destinations, affecting long-term brand reputation and driving meaningful connections.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

8.2

"People will feel compelled to act...do so when you are informed by data, not a lot of feelings. It is important to put scenarios together and put plans in place that are agile. And remember that no decision is the enemy of opportunity."

Gloria Loree, Destination Canada

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Trend 2 2025

Delegated Discovery

As AI agents evolve from simple assistants to autonomous decision-makers, they're revolutionising how travellers research, plan, and book their experiences. This fundamental shift, accelerated by developments like AI Overviews and more recently OpenAI's Operator challenges destinations to rethink their strategies for an era where AI intermediaries increasingly shape the visitor cycles.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Trend

7.3

"We need to be able to adapt our strategies as this develops, for example we may in the near future see less 'visits' and more 'agents' visiting sites and this has implications for how our sites and content are designed and optimised."

Orla O'Keefe, Fáilte Ireland

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Trend 1 2025

Triplexity

Social, economic and environmental disruption defined the start of 2025, forcing brands to reset their strategies. Platform changes and ethical concerns are reshaping content priorities, while Europe’s slowdown and climate milestones demand sharper targeting. Destinations that adapt quickly can turn instability into strategic advantage.

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CMO Verdict

Impact Score

Fad

4

"2025's challenges, from social media upheaval to Europe's economic headwinds, create challenges but also opportunities for agile destinations willing to innovate, adapt targeting strategies and truly embrace sustainability."

Nick Hall, DTTT

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Future. Destination.
Trends. 2026

Meet the Trends Panel

Trend Timeline

Platform Pivot

Reach Redefined

Campaign Equilibrium

Values Vortex

Triplexity

Star Power

Spatial Discovery

Voice Vision

Delegated Discovery

Latest Trends

Platform Pivot

Exploring The Platform Pivot

Community Co-Creation

AI, Reddit & the Search Revolution

Platform as Brand Decision

Star Power

Reach Redefined

Spatial Discovery

Campaign Equilibrium

Voice Vision

Values Vortex

Delegated Discovery

Triplexity