The American West is having a moment. Sunset magazine has just announced the winners of its 2026 Travel Awards, a round-up of the most memorable experiences across the region — spanning the Pacific coastline, the mountains, and the desert. For anyone plotting a western US escape, it's a ready-made shortlist of the places and experiences the magazine's editors consider the most transporting in the region right now.
The awards are a reminder of just how much variety the West packs into one corner of a single country. You can surf and beach-comb on the California coast in the morning and be hiking alpine trails or exploring high-desert terrain within a day's drive. That coast-to-desert-to-mountains range is exactly what the awards celebrate, and it makes the West unusually well suited to road-trip holidays where you can string several very different landscapes into one itinerary.
Road-trippers have another reason to pay attention this year: Sunset has also published a monster guide to Route 66, with 66 things to do along America's most fabled highway. The list runs from classic roadside diners to lava fields — a nod to the stranger, wilder stretches of the route beyond the neon and nostalgia. The historic corridor runs from Chicago to Santa Monica, and its western half passes through Arizona, New Mexico and the California desert, making it easy to combine with the award-winning destinations above.
If you'd rather stay put than drive, Sunset is also offering a look inside its 2026 Idea House: a warm, modern Malibu retreat belonging to lifestyle creator Camille Styles, perched above Zuma Beach. It's designed around open doors, salt air and easy entertaining — a useful mood board for anyone dreaming of a slower-paced coastal break. There's also a feature on a 1972 Sea Ranch home in Northern California, restored by Bay Area designer Clara Jung of Banner Day Interiors, that shines a light on the area's distinctive boho-utopian architecture — a quieter alternative to the Malibu coast, and a good excuse to explore the Sonoma and Mendocino shoreline.
Why does this matter for travellers? Because it's essentially a season's worth of trip inspiration in one place. Whether you want a curated list of standout western experiences, a legendary drive broken into 66 digestible stops, or design-led places to dream about, the pieces work together as a planning kit. The awards suit travellers deciding where in the West to go; the Route 66 guide suits anyone who prefers the journey to the destination; the house features are for those plotting a coastal California stay with a design bent.
The through-line is a gentler, more experiential style of travel — long lunches, open windows, stops you'd never find on a motorway. If your 2026 plans include the US, the West looks like the place to start.
