‘Coolcations’ had another big summer. Here are the places travelers went

Extreme temperatures are driving travelers to seek cooler destinations. And there’s a term for the trend: “coolcations.”

Heat waves — which are increasing in frequency, duration and intensity, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — are affecting where people are choosing to vacation, especially during the hot summer months.

“Often, when we think of vacation, beaches and tropical escapes come to mind,” a spokesperson for Expedia told CNBC Travel. “Coolcations however, are all about opting for destinations where the temperatures are more moderate, where you’re packing a light sweater instead of a sun hat.”  

From January to June 2024, flight searches increased 705% to Lapland, Finland, according to Expedia. The online travel agency said flight searches are also up to Canada, specifically Banff (65%) and Lake Louise (55%), its data showed.

The home rental website Vrbo reported that cooler places emerged among the top 40 most booked destinations this summer, a list which included Breckenridge, Colorado; White Mountains, New Hampshire; and Pocono Mountains, Pennsylvania.

Californian Stephanie Greitzer said she planned a family trip to Whistler this summer.

“We live in the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles where we experience extreme heat for most of the summer, reaching highs well above 100,” she said. “We want to be comfortable when we are traveling to experience all a city has to offer and take a break from the extreme heat at home.”  

European cities, such as Rome and Madrid, top the list of popular summer destinations. But rising temperatures in southern Europe are hitting the summer travel season hard.  

This summer, Italian officials placed 12 cities under heat warnings, as temperatures hit triple digits in some areas.

“For the summer as a whole, June through August, temperatures averaged 3-8 degrees F above historical averages in southern Italy,” Jason Nicholls, lead international forecaster for the weather website AccuWeather, wrote in an email to CNBC. “There were several rounds of heat across Italy and into the Balkans later in July into August.” 

As a result, northern Europe is seeing an uptick in tourism.

“Northern Europe as a whole has really surged in the last two years,” says Delphine Combes, a product executive at the travel agency Scott Dunn. “Norway has emerged as a top five destination for us in Europe, which is up eight spots from 2022.”

She said Scott Dunn is adding more options for summer trips to Finland, Sweden and Switzerland to accommodate increased demand.

“These are destinations where we only offered winter and festive products until recently,” said Combes.

According to Visit Finland, foreign visitors made more than 4.8 million trips to the Nordic country in the last 12 months. The number of registered foreign overnights from January to June 2024 was 9% higher year on year, with the largest number of visitors coming from Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Sweden, the United States and the Netherlands, it said.

Combes had a suggestion for American travelers who are looking for cooler vacations.

“Be open-minded to traveling to places where Americans are not the primary tourists,” she said. “Unlike the Mediterranean, many coolcation spots are not packed with Americans. It creates an interesting atmosphere that allows perhaps a more cultural experience.”

Combes also suggests booking early. “There are fewer quality hotels in a lot of the cooler, less visited destinations. Growing demand is starting to outpace hotel inventory, so pricing will either be sky-high or there will be no availability if you wait until the last minute.”

Sara Steele-Rogers and her husband, who currently live on the Caribbean island of Anguilla, booked a trip to Estonia in September to beat the heat.

“It’s always hot in the Caribbean, so cooler weather destinations are more appealing than they ever were to get our taste of fall,” says Steele-Rogers. “Little things like being able to walk distances without sweating through my clothes are things you don’t miss until they’re gone.”