Concerts, sporting events, bleisure travel and road trips are driving multi-hotel itineraries this summer.

Travelers are booking more than one hotel per trip this summer. New data from Hotels.com highlights how the Hotel Hop travel trend – booking multiple hotels on a single trip – increases during the summer as travelers plan itineraries combining experiences like concerts and business travel with leisure vacation in the same destination.

Hotel Hop Summer, featured in the Unpack ’26 Summer: The Trends in Travel report, is a summer travel trend driven by three key motivations:

• Event Hopping: Music, sports and other fan-driven travel are encouraging travelers to book more than one hotel in a single trip. Travelers are pairing a hotel near a concert venue or stadium with a second stay in another part of the city to explore more of the destination on one trip. Hotel hopping enables travelers to experience different neighborhoods or find more flexibility and value.
• Road Tripping: Summer road trips are helping fuel multi-hotel itineraries. Road trips are seeing a strong resurgence as travelers pair open-road adventures with multi-hotel itineraries this summer. Online buzz for iconic road trip routes has increased, especially as Route 66 (+302%) celebrates its centennial. Other trending routes include the Blue Ridge Parkway (+206%), Great River Road (+183%), and the Pacific Coast Highway (+75%).
• Bleisure Hopping: Travelers are also extending work travel with a leisure hotel stay in the same trip. Bleisure travel is trending online with more than 165K mentions this summer, making it a popular time for extending business travel with a leisure stay in the same city. Popular destinations for bleisure hopping include Helsinki, Finland, London, U.K. and Seoul, South Korea.

“Summer travelers are trying to fit more into one trip – pairing a big concert downtown with a quiet stay on the other side of town, or a few beach days tacked on to work travel,” said Melanie Fish, Vice President, Global Public Relations, Expedia Group. “Hotel hopping provides flexibility, making it easier for travelers to have a change in scenery or find more value on vacation, which means one trip can feel like multiple summer vacations.”

For more information about how travelers are making the most of their summer trips, check out the Hotel Hop Summer travel trend.  

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Notes to Editors

Methodology

• Hotel Hop Summer data supported by increase in attach (hotel + hotel) demand on Hotels.com globally in 2024 and 2025 for summer vs. other seasons.
• Online mentions based on news, broadcast, and social media mentions of classic road trips and bleisure travel from March 16, 2025 to March 8, 2026, vs. March 17, 2024 to March 7, 2025.

Q: What is Unpack ’26 Summer?

A: Unpack ’26 Summer is a seasonal travel trends update to Unpack ’26: The Trends in Travel™, drawing on first-party data from Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo as well as social listening and third-party research conducted by OnePoll following the Market Research Society’s Code of Conduct.

Q: What makes Unpack ’26 Summer a credible source for travel trends?

A: Unpack ’26 Summer combines real-time platform data with third-party research and social listening. The report draws on insights from millions of users and builds on third-party research conducted by OnePoll, following the Market Research Society’s Code of Conduct, first shared in the Unpack ’26 report. Findings are backed by behavioral insights, booking patterns, and cultural signals, making it a trusted resource for media, industry leaders, and travelers alike.

Q: What is the Hotel Hop Summer trend?

A: Hotel Hop Summer is a summer travel trend in which travelers book multiple hotels during a single trip instead of staying in one hotel or one place the entire time. Travelers are booking multiple stays to:

• Visit different neighborhoods or experience different parts of a city
• Find more value or better deals, such as pairing all-inclusive stays with budget-friendly options

Hotel Hop Summer reflects a shift toward more flexible, experience-rich itineraries. Travelers are increasingly designing trips around multiple experiences, then using multiple hotels to unlock them.

Q: What are the best multi-hotel itineraries for summer 2026?

A: Hotels.com has identified three core reasons travelers are embracing the Hotel Hop Summer trend: Event Hopping, Road Tripping and Bleisure Hopping. These are the best itineraries for each:

• Event Hopping:
  • See BTS in Los Angeles (Sept. 1-6): Stay at The Anthem Los Angeles Stadium District for the show, then hop to The Aster for a taste of Hollywood luxury.Catch Harry Styles in NYC (Aug-Oct): Stay near Madison Square Garden at Virgin Hotels NYC, then hop out of Manhattan to the Arlo Williamsburg.
  • Cheer at the big match in Seattle (June 19): Stay at The Paramount Hotel for the game, then hotel hop to The Magnolia Hotel and Spa in Victoria, B.C.
• Road Tripping:
  • Route 66: Start at the Palmer House in Chicago and hop your way to the Americana Motor Hotel in Flagstaff, Arizona.
  • The Great River Road: Kick off your trip in the middle of the Mississippi at Nicollet Island Inn and end your trip in the rooftop pool at Virgin Hotels New Orleans.
  • The Pacific Coast Highway: Begin at the Quileute Oceanside Resort on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington and wind your way to the Casa Del Mar overlooking the Santa Monica Pier.
• Bleisure Travel:
  • Helsinki (+71%): Stay at the Solo Sokos Hotel near Stockmann, then hop to Espoo to stay at Noli Otaniemi and explore Nuuksio National Park. London (+47%): Stay at The Ned near Borough Market, then hop to Brighton to stay at the Sea Spray to enjoy the coast. Oslo (+46%): Stay at the Karl Johan Hotel just steps from Norwegian Parliament and then hop to the Sundvolden Hotel near King’s View to enjoy golf and the spa on property. Paris (+24%): Stay at Le Cinq Codet near Rue Cler, then hop to the French countryside and stay at Château de Courcelles near Reims.
  • Other trending summer bleisure destinations: Cape Cod (+97%), Lake Michigan (+88%), Seoul (+36%), Chicago (+35%), Sao Paulo (+28%), and Boston (+23%).

Q: Why does Hotel Hop Summer matter to travelers?

A: Hotel Hop Summer matters because it shows how travelers can get more out of one trip by booking multiple stays. Multiple hotels can support more flexible, experience-rich itineraries instead of a single-base vacation. Rather than staying in one place for an entire trip, travelers can use multiple stays to connect events, neighborhoods, scenic routes and work travel in ways that maximize convenience and variety.

It also reflects a broader shift in summer travel toward multi-stop planning, more varied stays and experience-led itineraries.