Mental well-being and personalized experiences are emerging as the defining priorities for American travelers, according to new findings from Amadeus’ Travel Dreams 2026 research.
Based on a survey of 1,000 U.S. travelers, the report reveals that 42% prioritize achieving a refreshed mindset and a calmer nervous system from their vacations—far outpacing interest in activity-focused travel such as learning a new hobby (6%) or capturing social media content (4%).
Technology and Human Touch
As AI and automation become more embedded in travel, most Americans expect a balance between technology and human interaction. Around 70% of travelers prefer room service and luggage handling to remain primarily human-led, while 63% say the same for service requests. Check-in and concierge support are also expected to retain a human element.
At the same time, AI is playing a growing role in trip planning. Nearly three-quarters (71%) of U.S. travelers say AI-generated summaries provide enough information to make booking decisions without further research. Travelers are now more than twice as likely to seek trip inspiration from a chatbot than they were five years ago, surpassing both influencers and newspapers in impact.
Personalization Drives Revenue
Seventy-eight percent of U.S. travelers indicated that tailored itineraries are important to them. Leisure travelers’ top paid amenities include preferred room view (+9% on ADR), early check-in or late check-out (+8.4%) and curated local experience kits (+7.7%).
Business travelers show a stronger spending appetite across similar priorities: early check-in or late check-out (+12.8%), preferred room view (+12.6%) and sleep enhancement amenities (+12.3%).
“What we’re seeing is a shift in how people think about travel. It’s no longer just about where you go, but how the experience makes you feel. As data management and hospitality technology evolve to allow more sophisticated retailing, hoteliers, destinations and travel companies will be able to unleash their creativity to meet the needs of travelers in ways never before possible,” said Jill Boegel, SVP of commercial, Americas, Amadeus.