The Luxury Travel Destinations Wealthy Families Are Choosing in 2026

The most interesting shift in luxury travel right now is not about where people are going. It is about why. The destinations gaining ground among discerning travellers in 2026 share a common thread — they are rare, unhurried, and almost entirely free of the kind of visibility that used to define a luxury holiday. Flashy is finished. What is replacing it is considerably more interesting.

These are five destinations worth knowing about.

The Dolomites, Northern Italy

The Dolomites have been quietly exceptional for years. What is changing is the calibre of property arriving to meet the demand. Mountain lodges with Michelin-starred restaurants, architecture that works with the landscape rather than against it, and a level of solitude that the Swiss Alps gave up some time ago. The crowds have not found it yet, which is precisely the moment to go. That window tends to close faster than people expect.

Mallorca, Spain

Forget the version of Mallorca you already know. The north coast is a different island entirely — stone farmhouses converted into private villas, olive groves, hidden coves, and a demographic that looks considerably more Hamptons than Magaluf. Old money has been moving quietly into this part of the island for several years. The infrastructure is catching up, the restaurants are serious, and the privacy remains intact for now.

Japan

There is no country that combines design, discipline, and hospitality the way Japan does. It has always been exceptional for the traveller who takes service seriously, and the luxury offering has matured considerably in recent years. The Aman Kyoto alone justifies the journey — set in a private forest at the foot of the mountains, it is one of the few hotels in the world that genuinely earns the word sanctuary. Beyond Kyoto, the depth of experience available across Japan rewards the kind of unhurried itinerary that wealthy families are increasingly choosing.

New Zealand

Nature-led luxury is the defining travel shift of this moment, and no country delivers it more completely than New Zealand. Remote lodges accessible only by helicopter, glacier experiences that have no equivalent elsewhere, vineyard stays in Marlborough, and a consistent absence of other people. The distances between experiences are part of the appeal rather than an inconvenience. It demands commitment from the traveller and rewards it accordingly.

Tuscany, Italy

Tuscany has never really gone anywhere, but what is happening now feels different to previous iterations of the Italian villa holiday. Slow luxury — private wine cellars, farm-to-table dining grown on the property, weeks rather than weekends — is back in a way that feels less like nostalgia and more like a considered response to the pace of everything else. The families returning to Tuscany in 2026 are not doing it because it is fashionable. They are doing it because it is the opposite.

2026 is not about the loudest destination on the list. It is about the one that stays with you longest.

BC members receive tailored itinerary planning and private introductions across all five destinations. Enquiries through the usual channel.