Lonely Planet dropped its Best in Travel 2027 list on September 22, naming 50 destinations and experiences worth planning a trip around. It's the latest edition of the publisher's annual ranking, and alongside the online guides there's a printed guidebook for anyone who still likes their trip planning on paper. The full list stretches from remote islands to steppe capitals, but a handful of picks stand out for being either unexpected or genuinely off the beaten path.
The boldest entry is the Red Centre in Australia. Lonely Planet's take is that the famously barren outback heartland is far from empty — its hub has quietly become a hotspot for art and creativity, giving travellers a new reason to go beyond Uluru postcard photos.
Astana, Kazakhstan makes the cut as one of the more surprising capital cities on the list. It's a place where ultra-futuristic, almost organic architecture sits alongside Central Asian culture most visitors have never experienced first-hand. If you want a city break that feels genuinely new, this is the sort of pick that delivers.
Montserrat is the Caribbean option, and it's deliberately under the radar. The tiny island takes effort to reach, but rewards you with black sand beaches, green volcanic peaks, and a food scene the ranking singles out as unusually inventive.
Closer to the classics, Darjeeling in India makes the list for its Himalayan foothill setting and its tea-town charm — including a famously scenic railway journey of just 8.6 miles that Lonely Planet flags as short but memorable. Miami represents the United States on the strength of pure style: glamorous hotels, spa-heavy stays, and whatever version of glitz you're chasing.
Europe's pick among the highlights is Dessau, Germany, the small town near Potsdam where the Bauhaus design movement was born. Architecture fans will find themselves surrounded by it at every turn; even sceptics tend to come away impressed.
Finally, Taiwan earns a whole-country nod for being unlike anywhere else — a mix of indigenous traditions with Chinese and Japanese influences, best sampled at its night markets, where eating, shopping and people-watching blend into one evening.
Why it matters: annual lists like this tend to shape where flights, hotels and tours expand next, so these are names you'll be hearing a lot more about through 2027. They're also handy if your travel style leans towards places before the crowds arrive — Montserrat, Astana and Dessau in particular are still easy to visit without bumping into a tour group. Whether you're plotting a long-haul adventure or a short design-themed city break, there's likely one entry here that fits your budget and calendar better than the obvious repeat destinations.
Story via TravelAwaits.
