What Are The Most Expensive Travel Destinations in 2026?

Our team determined the most expensive travel destinations in 2026 by creating an expense index that combines reported trip costs from over 100,000 travel insurance sales, surveys of over 6,000 customers, and data from external booking platforms.

Key Data Points

• The most expensive travel destinations in 2026 are Greenland, the British Virgin Islands, and French Polynesia, based on our analysis of 5 major travel cost factors.
• Several other destinations repeatedly stood out as most expensive across multiple cost categories, including Antarctica, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, the Maldives, Anguilla, Turks and Caicos, and Zambia.
• Destinations catering to certain types of trips tend to top the list, including polar and expedition-based destinations, followed by island and beach destinations, and safari and wildlife destinations.
  • Antarctica, Botswana, and Rwanda have the highest average trip costs, based on reported insured trip costs from Squaremouth customers.
  • Namibia, Antarctica, and Zimbabwe rank as the most expensive destinations for airfare for flights from the USA.
  • Anguilla, Turks and Caicos, and French Polynesia rank as the most expensive average weeknight hotel costs.
  • For everyday drink and dining costs, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Switzerland are the most expensive destinations.
• When surveyed, 45% of travelers stated their travel budgets would increase in 2026, with 16% increasing them “significantly”.
• Roughly a quarter of travelers are spending more this year to get a premium or bucket-list experience.
• Rising trip costs in 2026 mean travelers have more money at risk if they need to cancel, delay, or interrupt their plans, highlighting the importance of travel insurance that can reimburse the full prepaid, non-refundable cost of an expensive trip.

List of The 15 Most Expensive Travel Destinations 2026

Our expense index compares each destination across 5 cost categories:

1. Average per-day trip cost (total cost / total days) 
2. Average flight cost 
3. Average accommodation cost
4. Average car rental cost
5. Average everyday food and drink prices

Below is a full list of the top 15 most expensive places people are traveling in 2026, based on the average cost for each item in the table.

* For Antarctica, flight, accommodation, food, and transport costs were based on Ushuaia, Argentina, the most common gateway for Antarctic expeditions, and represent pre-expedition costs rather than costs on the Antarctic expedition itself.

Greenland ranks as the most expensive destination overall, driven by cost pressures across nearly every category: an average daily trip cost of $1,171, average flights of $1,357, the highest daily car rental cost in the study at $110, and some of the highest food and drink prices among all destinations analyzed.

Premium Experience Destinations

The clearest pattern to emerge is that destinations typically associated with premium travel experiences like adventure expeditions, tropical island getaways, and wildlife safaris top the list of the most expensive destinations, indicating that planned activities and amenities are a significant factor in total trip cost. 

Our expense index shows that destinations with the following vacation themes were the most expensive:

1. Polar and expedition destinations 8.50 out of 10, 
2. Island and beach destinations 5.00 out of 10, 
3. Safari and wildlife destinations 4.50 out of 10.

Not only are these the most expensive types, but travelers also report the most interest in prioritizing these types of trips. 

Our survey revealed that 42% of travelers said they were most interested in prioritizing a luxury island vacation, while 24% chose an African safari and 12% chose a polar expedition.

In essence, these are not niche-interest vacations, and the rise in demand for premium travel is leading to increased traveler spending.

Remote Destinations & Islands

The data shows that remote and geographically isolated destinations align with higher overall trip costs. 

• In fact, 4 of the top 5 fall into this category, including Greenland, French Polynesia, Antarctica, and the Maldives.

Their geographic location drives up costs as they are often harder to reach, more expensive to supply, and often cater to luxury and adventure travelers seeking unique, premium travel experiences. In many of these destinations, premium hotel and resort costs play a major role in pushing them up the rankings.

While the overall expense index helps compare destinations across several potential cost drivers, to show where travelers are most likely to face a more expensive trip overall, it does not represent what travelers actually spend, as travelers may find cheaper flights, book lower-cost accommodations, avoid car rentals, or budget differently for meals and activities.

To better understand what travelers are actually spending on trips, we turned to Squaremouth’s insured trip cost data, which reflects real trip costs travelers reported when purchasing travel insurance. However, it does not account for non-prepaid expenses, such as meals, local transportation, or other day-to-day expenses.

Most Expensive Destinations By Trip Cost 

Based on Squaremouth’s internal travel insurance quote and sales data, Antarctica, Botswana, and Rwanda had the highest average trip costs among the destinations analyzed.

Below are the 15 destinations with the highest average daily trip cost.

One noteworthy trend to highlight is that not all the destinations above are featured in the overall expense index. This is because insured trip costs only represent prepaid, non-refundable trip costs, such as bookings made before arrival, whereas the travel index accounts for all anticipated expenses at a location. 

Total Trip Cost vs. Daily Trip Cost

Squaremouth data shows that:

• Trips to Antarctica are the most expensive on average at $27,195 per trip, followed by Botswana at $24,411 and Rwanda at $24,138. 
• However, when factoring in trip length, Rwanda actually has the highest per-day trip cost at an average of $1,609.20 per day, followed by Botswana at $1,525.69, then Antarctica at $1,510.85.

This data is interesting because it shows that although certain destinations claim a higher overall trip cost, the average spend is heavily influenced by the amount of time at the destination.

Rwanda’s shorter average trip length (15 days) means travelers here actually spend more per day than in places like Antarctica or Botswana, highlighting that not all expensive destinations are equal. Some shorter itineraries may actually work out to be more expensive depending on the destination. 

Safari, Polar, and Island Trips Drive High Real-World Spend

Once again, safari and wildlife destinations dominate the most expensive destinations:

• Botswana, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Namibia, Kenya, South Africa, and Zambia all appear among the 15 most expensive trips by average cost, reported by real travelers.

Polar and expedition travel also stand out:

• Antarctica ranked first by total trip cost and third by average daily trip cost, reinforcing the high cost of expedition-style travel and the additional expense of reaching Ushuaia, a common gateway for Antarctic departures.

Luxury island destinations also remain prominent:

• The Maldives, Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, and Turks and Caicos all appear among the most expensive trips by average cost, reflecting the role of premium accommodations and resort-led travel.

Most Expensive Destinations by Flight Cost

Flight costs are a significant driver of overall trip expense, particularly for long-haul and remote destinations. 

After analyzing airfare from major U.S. departure points, including New York and Los Angeles, Namibia, Antarctica, and Zimbabwe rank as the most expensive destinations by average flight cost in the study.

Below are the 15 destinations that are the most expensive to fly to in 2026, based on our analysis.

Over half of these 15 destinations also made it into our overall index, and many of these destinations also appear in our internal trip cost data.

• These include Namibia, Antarctica, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, Greenland, the Maldives, and French Polynesia.

This points to airfare being a meaningful contributor to the total cost of the trips travelers are booking, but other expense factors could also be driving up the cost of these destinations as well. 

Notably, places like Madagascar, South Africa, Tanzania, Mongolia, Rwanda, Uganda, and Kenya all rank among the most expensive places to fly to, but do not all appear in our index of the overall top 15 most expensive destinations. This shows how, although airfare is a major portion of a trip’s expense, in many cases, lower food, hotel, or local transport costs can offset higher airfare once travelers arrive.

We found that many African destinations like Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Rwanda, Uganda, and Kenya are especially prominent in the flight data, and travel times help explain why flight costs can be higher for some of these destinations.

Although some countries like South Africa have direct flights from the U.S., certain destinations such as Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana frequently require an additional flight after reaching an African hub, pushing total travel times to 22-33 hours, depending on the departure city and route.

Where long-haul destinations dominated the rankings for flight costs, the accommodation rankings tell a different story.

Most Expensive Destinations for Accommodations

The most expensive destinations for hotels are largely island destinations, where luxury resorts, villas, and limited accommodation inventory can push nightly rates much higher.

Anguilla, Turks and Caicos, and French Polynesia rank as the most expensive destinations for accommodations, based on our analysis of average weeknight hotel costs across the destinations in the study.

With hotel costs this high, the cost of accommodations in these destinations significantly influences their weighting and placement within the index.

Here is the list of the 15 most expensive destinations for accommodations, based on the average weeknight hotel cost.

A major pattern emerged from our review of accommodation data. Fourteen of the 15 most expensive destinations for accommodations are island or beach destinations. Italy is the only destination in the top 15 that falls outside this category.

Several island destinations, including Anguilla and Turks and Caicos, had such high hotel costs that it pushed them into the overall rankings even when airfare was comparatively lower.

Anguilla is the clearest example of how accommodation costs can shape the wider expense rankings and inevitably influence how expensive a destination is. 

While African countries appear to have lower overall accommodation prices, costs align closely with planned activities and regional experiences in each destination.

• For example, in Tanzania, the national average for hotel costs was just $413, but in safari regions like the Serengeti, this cost skyrockets to around $1,543 on average.

This is just another example of how the prevalence of luxury trips shapes the overall cost figures of certain destinations.

Most Expensive Destinations for Food & Drinks

Dining plays a role in how travelers budget for more expensive trips, 11% of our survey respondents said they cut back on dining out to save for travel.

Where Squaremouth’s reported trip cost data reflects prepaid and prebooked travel expenses, it does not reflect certain on-the-ground costs such as meals, drinks, and other incidental spending once travelers arrive, which is why we included food and drink costs in our expense index. 

Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Switzerland ranked as the most expensive destinations for food and drinks per person, based on the cost of a meal at an inexpensive restaurant.

Here are the 15 most expensive destinations for food and drinks per person:

Switzerland, Iceland, and Norway are the clearest examples of why including on-the-ground costs like dining is important for ranking the top 15 most expensive destinations. 

These destinations did not rank among the most expensive places for flights or accommodations, but the high cost of drinks and dining upon arrival helped push all three of them into the index of the 15 most expensive travel destinations. 

Greenland follows the same pattern on a larger scale, with day-to-day food and drink costs adding to its already high prepaid daily trip cost, flight cost, and car rental cost.

Premium Trips Are On The Rise

Squaremouth data shows that travelers are still prioritizing premium experiences, even as travel costs continue to rise due to external factors such as inflation and jet fuel shortages in 2026.

Our recent survey of Squarmeouth customers found that:

• 23%  are spending more this year, specifically to obtain a premium or bucket-list experience.
• 24% of travelers also reported booking a private tour or exclusive experience, business class, or 5-star accommodation in the past year. 

The vast majority of travelers surveyed also reported they were interested in prioritizing luxury vacations that clearly align with the most expensive destinations in our index:

• 42% will prioritize luxury island vacations
• 24% will prioritize an African safari
• 12% will prioritize a polar expedition

As the index data shows, destinations that cater to these types of trips are some of the most expensive places you can visit in 2026.

All of this shows that despite the squeeze on travelers’ wallets this year, premium travel is on the rise, and over half of travelers are cutting back on other expenses to afford their trips. 

Travelers Are Making Trade-Offs to Afford Bigger Trips

Travelers aren’t just spending more due to external factors; they are prioritizing luxury travel, and many are making tradeoffs to do so. 

Our recent survey found that in 2026, 53% of travelers are cutting back on spending elsewhere to afford travel this year:

• 19% are cutting back on retail shopping and clothing to save for travel
• 13% are cutting back on saving or investing to save for travel
• 12% are cutting back on dining out to save for travel. 
• 10% are cutting back on home improvement or furniture to save for travel

Additionally, Squaremouth’s 2026 travel trends report recently found that 1 in 3 travelers is skipping out on comprehensive travel insurance in favor of medical-only coverage at a time when trip costs are higher than ever. This means that over a third of travelers are leaving their trip costs unprotected, likely in an effort to save money. 

All of these data points demonstrate that premium travel is now an active priority for travelers rather than being simply aspirational.

Why This Data is Important

As evidenced by this report, travelers in 2026 are booking destinations where the total cost of travel can easily reach tens of thousands of dollars per person, and many are making sacrifices elsewhere to afford it.

Nearly all of the destinations in this report involve high prepaid, non-refundable expenses: 

• Long-haul flights
• Luxury hotels
• Guided tours
• Safaris
• Cruises 
• Expedition costs
• Etc. 

These bookings are exactly the costs that are hardest to recover without a comprehensive travel insurance plan in place.

With this high of an investment on the line, reducing or skipping travel insurance leaves you at significant risk for financial losses. 

It is also worth noting that relying on a credit card coverage or a refundable booking pales in comparison to the coverage offered by travel insurance. 

All of this highlights the importance of having adequate travel protection in place to reimburse you in case of unexpected disruptions.

Chrissy Valdez, Senior Director of Operations at Squaremouth, offers the following: 

“We’ve seen clear signs that travelers are making budget cuts elsewhere to afford premium travel this year, and the types of trips and destinations in this report are not ones where it’s easy to absorb a financial loss and move on. 

So, for expensive vacations like these, it’s important to make sure your policy reflects the full value of what you’ve booked, not just part of it. A comprehensive travel insurance policy with full trip-cost cancellation protection is your best option. 

If you are concerned about needing to change your plans, consider Cancel For Any Reason coverage and  Interruption For Any Reason coverage, which can provide partial reimbursement if they choose to cancel or end their trip early for a reason not otherwise covered by standard coverage.”

Methodology

Rather than ranking destinations on a single cost, our index measures expense across five categories: average daily trip cost, flight cost, accommodation, local transport, and food and drink. 

Destinations were then grouped by trip type (polar and expedition, island and beach, safari and wildlife, culture and heritage, and adventure and nature) to show how different styles of travel compare in overall cost.

Data Collection

This report is based on Squaremouth internal travel insurance quote and sales data covering policies sold between April, 2025 and April, 2026.

Destinations were first filtered to include only those with at least 50 Squaremouth sales during this period, helping to reduce the impact of one-off high-value bookings. From this filtered list, the 50 destinations with the highest average insured trip cost per day were selected as the seed list for the final index.

The overall expense index included destination-level cost data across the following categories:

• Squaremouth average daily trip cost
• Average flight cost
• Average daily car rental cost
• Average food and drink cost
• Average weeknight hotel cost

Flight costs were collected using Google Travel Flights, based on return economy fares for one adult passenger leaving on September 12, 2026, and returning on September 19, 2026. 

To identify the destinations with the highest airfare, we reviewed return economy flight prices from two major U.S. departure hubs, New York and Los Angeles, to the primary airport or travel gateway for each destination. Fares were collected using the same travel dates across each route, then averaged to create a single flight cost for each destination.

Accommodation costs were based on the average weeknight hotel cost for each destination according to Kayak hotels.

Food and drink costs were sourced using a standardized basket of common traveler purchases:

• A meal at an inexpensive restaurant
• A domestic beer
• A cappuccino

The three figures were combined to create a single food and drink benchmark for each destination.

Local transport costs were based on the average daily cost of car rental in each destination, sourced from Kayak cars.

For Antarctica, flight, accommodation, food, and transport costs were based on Ushuaia, Argentina, a common gateway for Antarctic expedition cruises. These figures represent pre-expedition gateway costs, not the cost of traveling within Antarctica itself.

Data Analysis

Each destination was scored across five expense categories: Squaremouth average daily trip cost, average flight cost, average daily car rental cost, food and drink cost, and average weeknight hotel cost.

For each cost factor, destinations were standardized so that higher-cost destinations received higher scores. The five standardized factor scores were then combined to create an overall expense score out of 10.

Squaremouth also reviewed each individual cost category separately to identify the destinations with the highest trip costs, flight costs, accommodation costs, and food and drink costs.

Destinations were also grouped into five travel categories:

• Polar & expedition
• Island & beach
• Safari & wildlife
• Culture & heritage
• Adventure & nature

These categories were used to compare average costs by trip type and identify which types of vacations ranked highest across the full expense index.

Survey results were also reviewed by age band and trip cost bracket to identify how travel priorities, premium purchases, and cost sensitivity differed across traveler groups. Age bands included 18–34, 35–54, and 55+. Trip cost brackets included less than $2,499, $2,500–$4,999, $5,000–$9,999, and $10,000 or more.

Sources

• Squaremouth internal quote and sales data
• Squaremouth traveler survey data
• Google Travel Flights
• Kayak hotels
• Kayak cars
• Squaremouth digital PR data set