It’s rarely about new ‘for the sake of new’ here at Adventure.com—there’s always a story beneath the novelty that intrigues or moves us, or makes us want to know more. Be it an emerging hiking destination or a much-loved museum getting a new lease of life, ‘new’ can mean so many things. Find out what our team and writers are most excited about opening in 2026.
At a time when overtourism is never far from the news (in travel, anyway) and we hear 80 percent of holidaymakers want to visit (or end up visiting) the same 10 percent of destinations, we know we have a responsibility to spotlight and recommend places that want and need tourism, contribute to a local community and/or to nature, and promote a better way of travel beyond ticking a list.
From beloved hiking trails getting deserved TLC and under-visited regions receiving much-needed investment to exciting exhibits debuting at world-class museums and the return of defunct sailing and sleeper train routes, we’re looking forward to sharing our slightly alternative 2026 list with you. Hope it provides inspiration and information in equal measure.
Happy travels, armchair or actual.
Samantha Falewée is a writer and editor covering conscientious travel in support of wildlife conservation and Indigenous cultures. Read her stories on Adventure.com here.
In 2026, it’s heartening to see projects on the horizon in Canada that stand for open-minded learning, connecting with strangers, and respect for the natural world. I’m talking about Indigenous-owned ventures—from rainforest safaris to fine dining—as well as hotels.
If you’re curious about where to stay, Wahous Wilderness Lodge in British Columbia’s Quait Bay will open in June 2026, a sustainably-powered retreat that invites guests to learn about Ahousaht culture and spy local wildlife: Herons, eagles, black bears, and if you’re lucky, possibly even sea wolves.
Just outside the city of Saskatoon in Saskatchewan in central Canada is Dakota Dunes Thermal Spa, is owned and developed by Whitecap First Nation. Next year, it will be home to Canada’s first Indigenous-inspired thermal spa when it opens in November 2026, created in partnership with Whitecap Dakota Nation. There are scores more of newly launching adventures to try: If you’re traveling to Canada, don’t go without checking out Indigenous-owned and led businesses, and Nations magazine always has interesting stories too.
Tayla Gentle is managing editor of Adventure.com and an award-winning freelance writer, video producer and host. She specializes in storytelling that sits at the intersection of culture and responsible adventure. Read her stories on Adventure.com here.
Gabon, in central Africa, sees very few travelers. But it’s an exceptionally underrated gorilla trekking destination, home to a rainforest known as the earth’s ‘second lung’, and is somewhat frequently described as ‘Africa’s last Eden’. I’m sold.
Throw in the Loango Savannah Camp, a brand new lodge set to open in 2026 at the northern end of the Iguela Lagoon, and I’m booking tickets. The Iguela Lagoon forms part of the Loango National Park, a 600-square mile (1,550 square-kilometer) haven of biodiverse rainforest, mangroves, wetlands and sandy beaches. Forest elephants, surfing hippos AND humpback whales? Well done, Gabon.
Megan Eaves is a travel writer, advocate for sustainable travel and dark skies, and the author of ‘Nightfaring: In Search of the Disappearing Darkness’ (2026). For many years, Megan was the North and Central Asia Editor at Lonely Planet, and her work has been published in many publications including the BBC, National Geographic, AFAR and The Times. Read her first story on Adventure.com here.
For me, Beijing is one of the world’s underrated cities, and a difficult one to get under the skin. Yet once you do, you find lively energy in its hutong alleys, full of galleries and local bars, its historic sites from every era of Chinese history, and its hole-in-the-wall restaurants from all corners of China.
In 2026, I’m looking forward to the opening of the long-awaited northern branch of the Palace Museum. Sometimes called the Forbidden City, Beijing’s top historic attraction is the imposing, red-walled former residence of the emperor, since 1925 housing the Palace Museum’s collection. This new branch will be putting some 30,000 of its currently archived collections of Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasty artefacts on display for the first time, from lacquerware and jade to ceramics and silks, and will be located in a state-of-the-art facility in the Haidian district, which sits on the central north-south axis along which the original Forbidden City was built.
Nicola is Adventure.com’s photo editor and co-founder of travel content studio, Nimble & Free. She also works as a photographer in Sydney, Australia, when she’s not on the move. Read her stories on Adventure.com here.
The Kawarau Trail in New Zealand’s Central Otago region is due to open in 2026 (scheduled for end of March, but date to be confirmed in January), linking Queenstown to Central Otago. At 20 miles (32 kilometers) long, it will offer walkers and cycling enthusiasts a trail with dramatic mountain scenery, rivers, canyons and the Kawarau gorge. For history buffs, early Māori once crossed these ancient routes, and the area is also rich in gold mining history.
And with the trail passing through vineyard territory of Gibbston Valley and Bannockburn, there are plenty of opportunities to grab a glass of wine and a bite to eat en route. As someone who has limited experience in long-distance bike rides, this trail feels achievable and a good one to tack onto other activities in and around Queenstown.
Joe Baur is a US travel and food writer based in Berlin with bylines in several international outlets, such as BBC Travel, Food52 and Serious Eats. When he’s not writing, he’s most likely cooking, eating, or hopping on the train for an escape to the many trails that crisscross his backyard outside of Berlin and beyond. Read his story on Adventure.com here.
Walking in the footsteps of mythical gods feels like a dream only a video game or film could conjure, but it’s becoming a reality in Greece. Next year, the Peloponnese is launching a 1,060-mile (1,700-kilometer) trail network across the peninsula that links the Isthmus of Corinth with the Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae and Cape Maleas.
The 12 trails are already constructed and expected to launch officially in April, once signage is complete. I’m looking forward to getting an early sampling of the trails in March, touching on the tales of Hercules, Hermes, and Pan—just in time for Christopher Nolan’s cinematic summer remake of Homer’s The Odyssey.
Kassondra Cloos is a travel journalist from Rhode Island, and Adventure.com’s news and gear writer. Her work focuses on slow travel, urban outdoor spaces and human-powered adventure. She has written about kayaking across Scotland, dog sledding in Sweden and road tripping around Mexico. Read her stories on Adventure.com here.
The world’s biggest cities often get flack for being self-absorbed, but after living in London for five years, I’ve found surprisingly little news to be about life here. Perhaps that’s why I was captivated by the London Museum before it closed in 2022.
I had never seen such a painstaking exploration into how layers of society compound and mesh over millennia. It changed the way I engage with every city I’ve visited since. The museum will reopen in late 2026 in the Smithfield Market, where Londoners have bought meat for 800 years. I’m excited to visit the collections again—especially those dating back to Roman times—and even more intrigued by the mysterious, hidden vaults discovered by construction workers during the renovation process.
Monisha Rajesh is a British journalist whose writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Guardian and the Financial Times. She is the author of ‘Around India in 80 trains’ and ‘Around the World in 80 Trains’ . Her latest books, ‘Moonlight Express: Around the World by Night Train’ and ‘The Untold Railway Stories’ are out now. Read her story on Adventure.com here.
A passionate champion of the return of sleeper trains, I’m thrilled that European Sleeper is running a new service from Paris to Berlin beginning on March 26, 2026.
Operating three times a week, the departures are likely to be from Paris Gare du Nord, and will head north via Brussels towards Berlin Hauptbahnhof. Austria’s state operator recently axed this route, much to the dismay of its riders, who took to the platforms in their pyjamas to protest the cuts, so it’s likely to be filled with a spirited group of passengers when the route resumes next year.
Alexandra Pereira is a writer and editor published by Vice, Suitcase, The Paris Review, Fodor’s and Service95. She writes about water, solo travel, folklore and people, and also makes theatre at Blood Sport Co. She lives between London and Copenhagen. Read her stories on Adventure.com here.
Rowdy decks. Austere cabins. Souvenir shops. Tumultuous waves. Slow dawns pouring in rose skies and new air, sleepy ports coming into view. I love ferries. You get a real sense of place, time and its people as so many locals use them to get from A to B, often covering great distances to get to very normal plans.
In Scandinavia, I loved Denmark’s Ærøfærgerne to Danish paradise island Aero, Finland’s Silja Line with a Moomin-filled shop, the eerie Aland Islands. The rowdy disco on the Oslo-Copenhagen DFDS, Hurtigruten’s Norwegian Coastal Express. Further afield, I dreamt of taking the Queen Beetle from Fukuoka to Busan but it stopped… such are ferry routes’ plague: Funding, demand, accessibility and relevance in an increasingly fast moving and aviation centric world.
The UK has sea routes scrapped all the time, but 2026 has some exciting reprises and arrivals: The expected resumption of the low-emission Newcastle-Bergen route by Bergen Cruise Lines. After almost 20 years’ slumber following a 140-year voyaging history, its new iteration will carry 2,380 passengers on the 19-hour crossing.
On the Cornish coast, new freight vessel Menawethan is replacing an older boat on an existing route, with accommodation for 12 passengers and increased departures improving the lifeline link between Penzance and the Isles of Scilly. 2026 also anticipates the maiden voyage of the dual-fuel vessel MV Glen Rosa, between the Scottish mainland and Arran.
London-born-and-bred with a Ugandan-Indian heritage, Meera Dattani is Adventure.com’s executive editor and an award-winning freelance travel journalist. Read her stories on Adventure.com here.
Growing up, I’d hear my parents and family talk about life in Kampala, pre-1972 exile; these stories would often feature Murchison Falls, the go-to weekend getaway for the more affluent Ugandan-Asian population, and the British colonialists in the protectorate. In recent decades, the (incredible) work in primate tourism has drawn most travelers to western Uganda, in particular the national parks of Bwindi and Kibale for gorilla and chimp trekking. But Murchison Falls National Park in northwestern Uganda, the country’s oldest and largest conservation area, is on the up, despite fighting threats from oil drilling and industrial development.
New openings for 2026 in the region include Wild Places’ new solar-powered Kulu Ora, a 10-room tented lodge on a bluff above the Nile in the specially designated Heart of Murchison Low Impact Zone, while in neighboring Budongo Forest, Great Lakes Safaris (Ugandan-owned) will be opening new luxury tented accommodation at Pabidi Lodge, in March/April 2026. Uganda Wildlife Authority has also recently received eight rhinos from South Africa into its Ziwa Rhino and Wildlife Ranch (an hour or so south of Murchison, on the road from Kampala) and there are plans to relocate around 22 rhino from Ziwa into a new reserve in Ajai, northwest of Murchison Falls. Murchison’s mid-century heyday is certainly more likely now than ever before
Rebecca Crowe is a freelance travel writer specializing in adventure and budget travel, based in Liverpool, UK. She can often be found halfway up a climbing wall, searching for tacos, or procrastinating by looking for flight deals. Rebecca has been featured in National Geographic, Lonely Planet, The Independent, Time Out Travel and many others. Read her story on Adventure.com here.
While Alfred Wainwright’s Coast to Coast Walk has been in existence since 1973, the trail’s condition and navigation leave something to be desired. This picturesque 192-mile (309-kilometer) route in northern England runs between St. Bees and Robin Hood’s Bay, passing through the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, and North York Moors. However, in spring 2026, it’s set to become a National Trail. That means better signs, increased upkeep, OS Map inclusion for the first time, and interactive maps for navigation and planning, making it more accessible and safer.
So, if you’re up for an ample 12-16-day challenge—and you’re not put off by a hefty hill climb or the ever-present drizzle that settles across these beautiful National Parks—check out this route in the coming months.
****
Adventure.com strives to be a low-emissions travel publication. We are powered by, but editorially independent of, Intrepid Travel, the world’s largest travel B Corp, who help ensure Adventure.com maintains high standards of sustainability in our work and activities. You can visit our sustainability page or read our Contributor Impact Guidelines for more information.
Hailing from all across the globe, Adventure.com's team of editors is at the forefront of what's happening (and what's not-so-happening) in the world of travel and adventure.
