✈️lonely planet best in travel 2026 - the ones worth booking first

Lonely Planet put out 25 for 2026, not ranked against each other. these are the twelve I'd book flights around first, in the order they list them.

Peru

Jaffna, Sri Lanka

no direct flights from the US, you're connecting through Colombo either way. check the date, dry season runs Jan-Sep

Cádiz (Spain)

closest airport is Jerez, not Sevilla. shorter transfer and half the crowds

Botswana

Cartagena, Colombia

some years they check the yellow fever card on arrival, bring it anyway

Quetzaltenango (Xela), Guatemala

Sardinia, Italy

direct flights from EU hubs are a summer-only thing, off season you're routing through Rome

Utrecht (Netherlands)

20 min train from Schiphol. skip the Amsterdam hotel entirely and save yourself the money

Barbados

Jeju-do, South Korea

domestic hop from Seoul. gate-checked a roller bag once here and regretted it the whole trip

Tunisia

Solomon Islands

one flight a week from Brisbane on the good route, plan the whole trip around it or you're stuck

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