Cross-border trains to season switching, Omio reveals its top travel predictions and hot destinations for 2025

Berlin, November 19 2024. Hot off the heels of its NowNext ‘24 report, Omio, the leading global travel booking platform, announces a fresh batch of predictions for 2025:

All Aboard the Night Train

If the night train’s a rocking, do come a knocking. In 2025, savvy travellers will rave about getting from A to B after dark. With the cost of living still high, travellers are finding smarter ways to stretch their money. How, you ask? By travelling after dark. In 2025, off-peak travel will be hotter than Berghain’s guest list. With Instagrammable views, wearing pyjamas in public, and saving on hotel stays, travellers won’t be sleeping on night trains.

Luxe Locomotion

In 2025, trains are getting a glow-up. Luxury travel is back with new high-end routes launching in England and Italy. If you’ve read Agatha Christie, you’ll know all about the iconic Orient Express from Paris to Istanbul. Once a nostalgic throwback, glamorous train experiences are making a grand return. In 2025, luxury sleeper trains will launch in England and Italy, with more on the way. High-end train travel is back—just without the murder.

Big Cities, Small Neighbourhoods

Travellers can’t get enough of capital cities, but in 2025 they’ll expand their horizons and add smaller destinations to their big city adventures. Our NowNext ‘24 Report showed a continued love for capital cities. However, in 2025, we predict travellers will go beyond the typical weekend city break. Next year, we will see the rise of ‘capital city plus’ trips, where travellers will come for the capital but stay for smaller nearby destinations.

Borderless Journeys

Why visit just one country when another is a train ride away? In 2025, travellers will embrace cross-border routes to get more from their trips. With more cross-border train routes than ever, we predict travellers will take advantage of visiting two destinations in one trip by train. Next year alone, Renfe launches its high-speed connection between Barcelona and Toulouse and Eurostar’s direct Amsterdam – London route will make a comeback. With European train travel expanding, it’s easier than ever for travellers to pop across the border without breaking a sweat.

Routing For Rail

If one thing’s certain, next year will see US Congress call for ‘all change, please’. However, one constant remains: Americans enduring love affair with European train travel. The question is, could 2025 signal a passionate return of rail to the States? It’s bold, but we’re putting our heart first and predict America’s affection for train travel will get serious. Just imagine – driving Route 66 will be a distant memory, as travellers take to Route 67 by train.

The Swinging Seasons

Extreme weather will see travellers shift from visiting Mediterranean destinations in summer to exploring them during the cooler shoulder seasons. With wildfires, floods, and scorching temperatures, 2024 was tough for many Mediterranean countries. These unpredictable factors will impact when travellers visit, and we expect they’ll choose hot destinations in the milder shoulder seasons. During summer, cooler regions like the Nordics will continue to grow in popularity.

Noodle Nation Vacations

With the Jubilee in Rome, Italy, and Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan, next year is the time to visit these two bucket-list destinations. No excuses! There’s no denying it—cultural events draw in the crowds, as seen with the Paris Olympics. This trend is set to continue with the Jubilee in Italy and the World Expo in Japan. Both of these noodle (sorry Italians, spaghetti) loving nations are dream destinations for many. While there’s often an excuse not to visit, a big spectacle makes the decision much easier.

2025’s Must-Visit Destinations

Reflecting on our user data and teams’ insider knowledge, we predict travellers will be making journeys by plane, train, ferry and bus to the following destinations next year:

– Brighton, UK: Where seaside charm meets a vibrant social scene – Brighton never gets old. Just an hour by train from London, it’s the perfect escape from the big city.

– Tromsø, Norway: Move over, Iceland – Tromsø is now the top spot to see the Northern Lights. A two-hour flight from Oslo brings Aurora lovers to this Arctic gateway.

– Villajoyosa, Spain: Colourful houses, golden beaches, and a surprising chocolate heritage make this Costa Brava gem a must-visit. Travellers can reach “La Vila” by bus from Alicante in under an hour.

– Varenna, Italy: This timeless, storybook village near Lake Como comes into its own in off-peak seasons. Sweeping lake views and historic charm are just an hour’s train away from Milan.

– Nova Gorica, Slovenia: Split twin towns Nova Gorica (Slovenia) and Gorizia (Italy) will unite as Europe’s Capital of Culture 2025, celebrating borderless culture. Get there by train from Venice in two hours.

– Folegandros, Greece: A lesser-known Greek island, Folegandros offers rugged beauty, winding stone paths, and dramatic cliffs. A ferry from Athens will get you there in under five hours.

– Tirana, Albania: Once under the radar, now a trending hotspot. The capital is the ideal starting point for exploring the Albanian Riviera or the Alps. Fly in from several European cities or take a ferry and flight from Bari, Italy.

– Ahr Valley, Germany: Destroyed by a flash flood in summer 2021, Ahr Valley has not yet fully recovered, but is ready to embrace visitors with open arms again. The region, famous for its Pinot Noir, is easily reachable by regional trains from Cologne.

– Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US: An industrial powerhouse turned cultural hub and thriving tech city, this unexpected urban gem shouldn’t be missed. Get there with a nine-hour train or eight-hour bus ride from New York.

– Santa Barbara, California, US: Dubbed ‘The American Riviera’, expect world-class wineries, laid-back vibes, and golden beaches. Reach this coastal paradise in just two and a half hours by train from Los Angeles.

The starting point for Omio’s 2025 predictions was the NowNext ‘25 Report, published this October. Based on an independent omnibus survey across thousands of European and US travellers and Omio user data, the inaugural report sheds light on what’s driving booking decisions. The report identified the following six key trends:

1. Travel with a Capital C: Remote locations have grown in popularity over the last years, but city escapes are on the up with 60% of travellers planning to visit major cities in 2025.

2. Boy Wander: We’ll soon see a surge in solo male voyagers with 30% of men compared to 23% of women planning a solo trip in 2025.

3. Lost in Translation: Travellers cite language barriers and navigating unfamiliar transport networks as the biggest sources of stress. In 2025, travellers will increasingly lean on technology to navigate the complexities of international travel.

4. Summer Suntrap: Travellers just can’t resist peak summer travel. In 2024, 74% of travellers believed June, July, and August were the best times to get away. In 2025, it is set to be a similar story.

5. The New Travel AI-gents: Savvy travellers are increasingly using AI and social media with 45% of travellers getting their travel inspiration from social media in 2024.

6. TLC (Travel Loving Care): Over half of travellers (58%) are more likely to travel to places that incentivise sustainable travel and 44% say supporting local businesses and restaurants is a key part of their travel plans.

Report: https://www.omio.com/c/travel-trends-report-2024/

Methodology of Omio’s 2025 Travel Predictions

Omio’s 2025 predictions reflect data points from travellers using Omio and Rome2Rio to discover and book travel, combined with industry knowledge from Omio’s Commercial, Business Operations and Analytics teams.