Skip to main content

Summer travel: Airbnb reveals the most popular hot spots

Will you travel to any one of these popular destinations this summer?

North Carolina beach sunrise

If you’re itching for a summer vacation and want to know where the hot spots are, both internationally and domestic, travel site Airbnb has you covered. For summer travel this year, it is expecting over 300 million guest arrivals on its website, an indication that people are ready to get out of their own houses and into someone else’s. “Since the beginning of Airbnb, there have been 1.4 billion all-time guest arrivals,” said Airbnb in a recent report. “With more guests traveling last year than ever before,” this year is likely to outpace even the first post-pandemic year.

“We ended last year with 900,000 more listings than we had at the beginning, excluding China,” Airbnb continued. “Guests are opting for a more affordable stay, which is no surprise amid a rising cost-of-living crisis.” If you want to know just where people are searching to see how it may drive summer prices, the company listed the most trending summer destinations, so you can get an idea of where you may want to go (or avoid if you don’t like crowds).

Trending summer domestic destinations

Since we know summer airfare is skyrocketing for traveling internationally, staying domestic may just be the way to go for your wallet and your sanity. It’s always spectacular to travel to faraway lands, but this country offers so many stunning places to visit.

Topping the list and coming in third, respectively, are Louisville and Lexington, Kentucky. Known for the hospitality, people, food, and fun, it just makes sense. Other obvious locations when it comes to fun in the sun, beaches, and summer sports and activities are Panama City, Florida, Surf City, New Jersey, and North Topsail Beach, North Carolina, all with guaranteed good weather.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Trending summer international destinations

If you’re itching to travel abroad, one place that’s sure not to surprise anyone is Mykonos, Greece, the site’s top trending location. It just makes sense with the weather, food, stunning sunsets, and rich history. If you’re looking for an Italian getaway, there are three places in the country that seem to be on everyone’s list — the Amalfi Coast, Florence, and Sorrento.

With that much wine, good food, and views, it’s hard to argue. If you want to go far, far away, Bangkok, Thailand, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil also made the cut. While airfare and travel costs may be higher than staying domestic, any of these locations would be ones you’ll likely talk about forever.

Whether you need a quick weekend retreat or a multi-week vacation, these summer destinations offer a unique travel experience that you’ll look back on and cherish. Sometimes, it’s nice to stay at a home that offers amenities like a kitchen, privacy, pet-friendly accommodations, and a place you can gather with friends and family to relax. Happy summer, indeed.

Editors' Recommendations

Julie Scagell
I am a freelance writer based in Minneapolis, MN. My passions include my dogs, talking about my dogs, and taking pictures of…
Report: This is how much you should expect airfare to cost for your summer travel
You may want to travel domestically this summer
airplane in blue sky

Thinking about booking a weekend getaway or a week's long, unplugged, get-me-out-of-here-right-this-minute trip, the first thing on your mind is probably, "How much is this going to set me back?" It can often be a deal breaker on how long you can go, where you are traveling, and if you can afford to go at all.

While the airlines have certainly changed their flight prices post-COVID, the cost of airfare for this summer may surprise you. Travel booking site Hopper came out with a report that breaks down how much flyers can expect to pay based on location, and it also includes some good intel on hotels and car rentals as well. The bottom line: It's going to cost you to unwind. Cheap airfare will be hard to come by.
How much will a trip cost this summer?
According to their report, average round-trip air ticket prices to Europe increased over last year to the tune of $1,167 versus $850 last year. If Asia is on your bucket list, the news is equally dismal. The average round-trip ticket is coming in at $1,817, compared to only $917 during the summer of 2020. Even going to Canada will cost you more, 2% higher than last year and up 11% over 2019.

Read more
J.D. Power survey shows the airlines people like the most (and least)
If you're curious to see how other people rank the best airlines, J.D. Power did the survey for you
A plane taking off of the runway.

Do you fly with the same carrier every time? Do you ping back and forth between two different ones, depending on things like the ticket price or ones that don't have hidden fees? Was there one airline you had a horrible experience with and have never booked with again? J.D. Power did a survey about all of that and more, and we have the results for the best airlines to fly with. Have a peek if you're curious to see where your pick landed.
What it took to be a fan favorite
How do you make it to be one of the top airlines to fly with? It surveyed people from March 2022 to March 2023, so the data is pretty recent. And it only asked about main North American airlines, so you might not see all of your low-budget or other airlines in the rankings.
What the airline needed to be good at

The state of the plane itself
Baggage fees
Ease of boarding
Those fun fees and other costs
The flight attendants
The in-flight experience
The reservation process

Read more
One-bag travel: 7 must-know tips to pack everything you need in a carry on
Travel tips for packing light so you can avoid airport stress
About to board a flight.

These days, searching for travel tips to help mitigate travel chaos is the norm (even more so than usual) thanks to a combination of factors that arose largely as a result of COVID. I experienced it firsthand in August when I arrived at the notoriously overwhelmed Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, where I found thousands of lost bags stacked all over the place. Then, while flying from there to Istanbul, my own backpack joined the league of lost luggage, though I was able to track it down.

I had a premonition (from the stacks of lost bags, perhaps?) that I should have trimmed my backpack down a bit better, thereby allowing myself to travel carry-on only, but I decided that I couldn’t live without a bunch of stuff that I definitely didn’t need. I’ve traveled for a decade solid, so I definitely should have known better. With that in mind, here are a few travel tips that will help with packing light and packing right so that you can achieve one-bag travel and limit the odds of your stuff going missing on your flight.

Read more