The summer vacation vibes are alive and kicking, but if you’re anything like us, you’re likely already dreaming about your next bucket list escape. With the irresistible charm of untouched beaches and uncharted adventures around the world, it's hard picking where to go next. Fortunately, Booking.com has just released its predictions for the top ten trending destinations to visit in 2024, and one Australian city made the cut.
This global study, based on 27,000 travellers across 33 different countries, looked at the top 1,000 most booked destinations on the site between August 2022 and July 2023. Booking.com crunched the numbers and sorted the list by year-over-year increase to determine the top ten trendiest spots, ensuring there was geographic distribution.
Step aside Sydney and Melbourne. Tropical Cairns was the only Australian city to be named in the top ten. Happily wedged between two UNESCO World Heritage icons (the Great Barrier Reef and Wet Tropics rainforest), this laid-back town is no shrinking violet when it comes to showing visitors a good time. Cairns serves up thrill-seeking outdoor adventures on both land and sea, along with plenty of refreshing waterfront bars to cool off at night.
We’d suggest putting in those annual leave requests and planning a trip before it gets too busy, with the recommended times to visit the reef and rainforests in winter when the weather is mild and dry.
Booking.com’s research predicted Japan’s most famous spring town Beppu as the number one trendiest destination for 2024, followed by the lesser-known historic cities of Vlorë in Albania and Mérida in Mexico.
While only one Australian city made the list, Booking.com predicted our neighbours in Rotorua, New Zealand and Pangalao, Philippines as the eighth and ninth hottest destinations to visit in 2024. You can see the full list here:
- Beppu, Japan
- Vlorë, Albania
- Mérida, Mexico
- Portland, US
- Valkenburg, Netherlands
- Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Chemnitz, Germany
- Rotorua, New Zealand
- Panglao, Philippines
- Cairns, Australia