For years, an important part of tourism has been built around the places that had to be visited: the great capitals, the historical monuments or the destinations capable of providing the expected photography. Among younger travelers, Airbnb now detects another criterion when choosing where to go, and that is that the place has a good story behind it.
The platform has named this trend as lore-trippingan expression that combines lore -the set of stories, legends, traditions and stories associated with a place- and trippingtravel. In practice, it consists of choosing a destination because of the peculiar history that it allows you to discover and then tell, even if it is a small town far from the usual tourist circuits.
Generation Z wonders what is the strangest or most interesting story behind a place
The concept appears in Airbnb’s trends report for fall 2026, compiled from both internal search and booking data and a survey conducted by Focaldata in July among 2,000 American adults. For data specifically related to Generation Z, 183 people belonging to this group were surveyed.
“Instead of saying ‘I want to go to the biggest or most famous destination,’ Gen Z asks what the weirdest or most interesting story behind a place is.”explains Alex Bender, Senior Communications Manager at Airbnb. The company summarizes it as “travel through history.”
One of the examples used by Airbnb helps to understand the phenomenon. Point Pleasant, in West Virginia, has been linked since 1966 to the legend of the Mothman, a mysterious winged creature with red eyes whose alleged sightings ended up becoming part of American folklore. History has left a small tourist ecosystem made up of a museum, a statue and an annual festival. It is precisely that combination between an unusual place and a story that can only be found there that fits the lore-tripping.
But you don’t need a legendary creature. Airbnb also includes Leavenworth, Washington state, a former railroad and logging town that was reinvented as a Bavarian town in the Cascade Mountains, with alpine facades, concerts alphorn and cuckoo clock shops.
Other examples show the extent to which the concept can encompass different histories: Gibsonton, Florida, was for years the off-season residence of circus and traveling fair workers; Williams, Arizona, preserves some of the aesthetics and history of Route 66; and Bemidji, Minnesota, has built part of its identity around the giant figures of folklore character Paul Bunyan and his blue ox.
The common denominator is not, therefore, a specific aesthetic nor necessarily a legend. It is the existence of a unique local history capable of transforming one’s own destiny into something to discover.
Small towns are attractive for an autumn getaway
Interest in lesser-known destinations is growing
The change also appears in data collected by Airbnb. 90% of Gen Z respondents say small towns and off-the-beaten-track destinations appeal to them for a fall getaway. Among the main reasons are the more affordable prices, the local culture and the peculiar attractions that can only be found in that place, factors mentioned by approximately half of the participants.
Searches on Airbnb also point in that direction. Among Gen Z travelers, Twentynine Palms in California has seen more than 50% growth; Hot Springs, Arkansas, increases 30%; and Helen, in Georgia, 15%, according to the platform’s internal data that compares searches carried out in the second quarter of 2026 for autumn trips with the same period of the previous year.
The phenomenon also connects with another change observed by Airbnb: the rise of short getaways over long vacations. 60% of the participants in their study planned to take a weekend trip during the fall and, according to the platform’s data, in 2025, more getaways of this type were made during this season than in any other.
