by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 7:00 AM ET, Thu February 26, 2026
From new concerns about international visitors being unable to visit the United States, or unwilling to, during the FIFA World Cup, to recognizing some of the most-visited countries of 2025, we’ve got a lot of news to break down for you this month.
Read on to get the biggest news you should know from February, and click the links provided to read the full stories.
Destinations Breaking Records
The Eiffel Tower above the River Seine in Paris, France. (Photo Credit: Lacey Pfalz)
Destinations around the world are still analyzing the trends and visitor numbers from last year—and many of them are reporting great gains in visitation.
France remains the most-visited country in the world, welcoming 102 million international visitors in 2025. Mexico became the sixth-most-visited country in the world, reaching a new record of 98.2 million visitors, with great gains among Canadian visitors especially.
Anguilla, the small Caribbean island, achieved its highest number of arrivals in 33 years, welcoming just under 230,000 visitors. While it’s a paltry number in comparison to larger destinations, that’s a big win for an island that’s only 35 square miles.
US Travel: The World Cup and More
There’s been quite a bit of new surrounding U.S. travel and the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup.
First off, Las Vegas’s 2025 tourism numbers represented the worst decline since the pandemic halted travel worldwide—and, without measuring the pandemic, it represented the worst decline for the city since it began keeping visitation records in 1970. Check out the full story to learn why Sin City’s been struggling this past year.
The U.S. Travel Association issued a statement warning that visa barriers, like Trump’s expanded travel ban and potential increase in visa fees and requirements—including one that would require a person to provide their social media history and even their DNA—could stifle the potential for growth and opportunity the global event, which several U.S. cities are hosting, could provide for the United States.
Check out our story on FIFA World Cup travel trends, too.
Now, for some good news: Hawai’i. The American Hotel & Lodging Association and the Hawai’i Hotel Alliance found that hotels and visitor spending generated $12 billion, supported over 60,000 jobs and contributed $1.9 billion in state, federal and local tax revenue, demonstrating the economic power of a beloved destination.
Future Destination Trends
Some travel advisors are seeing an increased interest in cruises to off-the-beaten path destinations, including those in Africa. (Photo Credit: AdobeStock/Rob Schultz)
There’s been quite the bit of news surrounding destination trends, or how certain places are tapping into new trends.
This month, we reported on how Aruba is positioning itself as an ideal destination for those seeking ‘glowcations,’ or wellness-centric vacations that focus on skin health and restoration.
A new report by the African Travel & Tourism Association is also pinpointing the biggest travel trends in Africa this year. Expect to see more cultural and heritage-focused travel experiences popping up from social media to tour operator’s trip profiles, along with an emphasis on slow travel and multi-country trips.
Barcelona is expecting 2026 to be a banner year for tourism: it’s celebrating the 100th anniversary of the death of legendary architect Antoni Gaudí in Gaudí Year 2026. This year is also when the Tower of Jesus Christ at the Sagrada Familia is expected to be completed.
A new airport in Peru’s Sacred Valley is sparking controversy about bringing overtourism to the region’s delicate ecosystem and historic sites. Expected to open in 2027, the airport will welcome as many as eight million passengers to the region every year, as much as 200 percent more travelers than the region gets currently.
Lastly, new data presented at the European Travel Commission shows that Europe’s undergoing a transformation that might just help tourist-dense cities: a growing interest in lesser-visited destinations, from Poland to Southern Finland.
Overtourism Rules
Overtourism is a major buzzword, but it’s also impacting travel and travel rules around the world.
In February, we covered news of a popular Roman attraction that’s now requiring an entry fee to enjoy: the Trevi Fountain. The iconic fountain in Rome now requires a 2-euro entry ticket to enjoy access to, due in large part to the massive crowds that would gather in the historic square to take selfies and toss coins into the fountain for good luck.
One city in Japan is also cancelling its cherry blossom festival this spring due to overtourism. Fujiyoshida’s 10-year-old annual cherry blossom festival has been cancelled this year, after 2025’s festival saw a record 10,000 travelers descending upon the city. Concerns about overtourism and poor behavior led to the local government to choose to cancel the festival this year.
The World Travel & Tourism Council also warned that popular U.K. cities’ individual proposals for overnight traveler taxes might make these destinations less popular, and grow confusion among travelers since these decisions are being made on a per-city basis, instead of a national one.
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