It’s time for our latest giveaway!

This month, a random winner will receive the second edition of Atlas Obscura… One of the greatest coffee table books of all time, in our opinion.

Travel in 2026 feels different. Less checklist, less instagram opportunities, more intention.

Fewer bucket lists, more depth.

Across continents, travelers are choosing experiences that slow them down, plug them into nature, or reconnect them with something older than modern life.

Here are five of the most compelling shifts happening right now.

In Chile’s Atacama Desert, travelers step outside after dinner and look up. The sky is so clear that the Milky Way casts a faint shadow. In Puerto Rico, kayakers paddle through bioluminescent bays where each stroke lights the water electric blue. In northern Norway, hotel wake-up calls now include aurora alerts.

This is noctourism, and it is surging.

With light pollution rising globally, true darkness has become rare. Regions recognized by the International Dark Sky Association are seeing record bookings. Desert lodges in Namibia, remote areas of Iceland, and high plateau regions of the American Southwest are building entire itineraries around the night.

Sustainable travel is no longer enough for many visitors. The new goal is to leave a place better than it was found.

In the Scottish Highlands, visitors join rewilding efforts that restore native forests. Along the coast of Indonesia, divers help plant coral fragments damaged by warming seas. In Kenya, community-led conservancies invite guests to assist in tree planting and wildlife monitoring.

The key shift is participation. These are not volunteer vacations in the traditional sense. They are carefully structured programs where tourism dollars fund conservation, and guests take part in meaningful work.

In rural Japan, some guesthouses now advertise limited or no Wi-Fi as a feature. In parts of Scandinavia, forest cabins encourage guests to lock their phones away on arrival. In mountain regions of the United States, lodges promote signal-free stays as a form of therapy.

Digital detox travel has matured. It is less about strict rules and more about design. Properties are being built with long communal tables, wood-burning saunas, walking trails, and reading nooks. The absence of connectivity becomes a framework for presence.

For travelers overwhelmed by constant notifications, the appeal is obvious.

Paris still draws crowds. Rome still fills quickly. But increasingly, travelers are choosing alternatives.

In Japan, visitors are skipping Tokyo for Osaka’s food culture. In Italy, Bologna offers medieval streets and handmade pasta without the crush of Florence. In France, Lyon rivals Paris for gastronomy. In Portugal, Porto has stepped confidently out of Lisbon’s shadow.

Second-city travel offers something many destinations have lost. Breathing room.

In southern Italy, travelers kneel in the dust brushing soil from fragments of Roman pottery. In Turkey, volunteers help uncover ancient walls under the guidance of professional archaeologists. Across the Mediterranean and parts of the Middle East, supervised field schools now welcome paying participants who want more than a museum visit.

This is archaeological dig tourism, and it is growing.

Programs range from week-long introductions to month-long fieldwork. Participants learn how to document finds, map excavation grids, and carefully sift soil for artifacts. It is slow, patient work. Sunburns are common. So is quiet concentration.

For many travelers, the appeal is simple. Instead of standing behind a rope looking at history, they help uncover it.

These experiences are tightly regulated and run by academic teams to protect cultural heritage. When done responsibly, they offer something rare in modern travel.

Until next time,

Emails From Afar Team

Back in September, the team behind both Letters From Afar and Emails From Afar launched a brand new venture… especially for kids.

Introducing:

Inspired by Pokémon, but with an educational twist, Creature Cards delivers a pack of animal trading cards to your door every month.

In every pack, learn about modern-day and extinct creatures from around the world. Discover their rarity, diets, habitats, size, and even where they fall on a danger meter!

Collect, trade, explore, and learn.