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New Chase Travel data reveals the fastest-growing Labor Day destinations

Labor Day travel Is booming: 10 destinations travelers are booking now

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Casa Loma, Toronto Scott Heaney / Shutterstock

With Labor Day fast approaching, travelers are heading out on their final “horrah” of the summer trips. New Chase Travel booking data just dropped, revealing several noteworthy travel trends for this Labor Day. First, data suggests demand for Labor Day travel remains very strong, with Chase Travel bookings up 17% year over year. Despite higher travel prices, consumers still want to travel and find ways to make trips work. For Labor Day timing specifically, average air ticket price (when booked through Chase Travel) is now up over $1,000, marking an 8% increase from this time last year.

Emerging destinations

As demand remains high, data also suggests certain emerging destinations are continuing to gain traction. Of course, top-booked destinations like New York City still dominate the charts, but trending destinations like Lisbon (up 29%), Dublin (up 28%) and Edinburgh (up 24%) are rising in interest. International travel destinations make up half of the top ten fastest-growing Labor Day hotel markets, showing that today’s travelers still want to travel overseas for new experiences. As airlines continue to add international routes to emerging destinations, these markets will continue to grow in popularity amongst travelers.

Skillcations

The “skillcation” travel trend has been going around for quite some time now and shows no signs of slowing down. Today’s travelers want a new experience — from concerts to unique activities. In the concept of skillcation, the activity of interest drives the destination, such as an entire trip planned around learning a new skill, like kite surfing.

Top 10 Growing Labor Day Hotel Destinations

According to Chase Travel Booking Data, the top 10 growing Labor Day hotel destinations for 2026 include: 

  1. Toronto, Canada (+40%) 
  2. Nashville, Tennessee (+39%) 
  3. Venice, Italy (+35%) 
  4. Lisbon, Portugal (+29%) 
  5. Seattle, Washington (+28%) 
  6. Dublin, Ireland (+28%) 
  7. Athens, Greece (+26%) 
  8. Banff, Canada (+25%) 
  9. Edinburgh, Scotland (+24%) 
  10. Montreal, Canada (+24%) 

Top 10 Hotel Destinations for Labor Day Weekend 2026

  1. New York  
  2. Las Vegas 
  3. Chicago  
  4. London  
  5. Tokyo  
  6. Paris  
  7. San Diego  
  8. Seattle  
  9. Boston  
  10. Portland  
Emily Caldwell
Emily Caldwell
Contributor
Emily is a Features Writer at The Manual, where she specializes in food, beverage, and travel content. She focuses on weaving… Read Full Bio
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