If your 2027 wishlist still says 'Bali, maybe?', a new crop of small-group trips is here to argue for somewhere stranger. Intrepid Travel has rolled out a dozen offbeat itineraries for 2027, several tied to its annual 'Not Hot List' of under-the-radar spots, and the mix spans six continents' worth of quiet corners.
The headline act is arguably western Greenland. On the Premium Greenland trip you sleep at Ilimanaq Lodge, where the windows are shaped like icebergs and private terraces look over Disko Bay. Days involve the UNESCO-protected Ilulissat Icefjord, where ice calves off the Sermeq Kujalleq glacier, plus Disko Island and trails through the old Inuit settlement of Sermermiut.
Hikers get two strong picks. Georgia's Svaneti region — a Not Hot List entry for 2027 — delivers Caucasus peaks, the Chalaadi glacier near Mestia and the alpine meadows around Ushguli on a Transcaucasian Trail trek. Sri Lanka's answer is the Pekoe Trail, a new 300km footpath through tea country; the 10-day trip covers six sections and includes a night camping under the stars among the estates.
Several trips trade resorts for real life. Jordan Uncovered swaps Wadi Rum's reds for the green Northern Highlands, walking forest reserves at Ajloun, Yarmouk and Dibeen and meeting beekeepers and cheesemakers while staying in local guesthouses. In the Maldives, Beyond the Beaches skips the private islands for home-cooked meals on Goidhoo, lunches with Thuladhoo fishermen and guesthouse nights on Thoddoo. Indonesia's Sumba Island, Bali's quieter neighbour, offers village visits at Ratenggaro and Prai Ijing, swims at Waikuri Lagoon and sunsets at Walakiri Beach.
There's variety for wildlife and culture fans too. Cycle Rwanda packs an 11-day route over the Congo Nile Trail and a stretch of the UCI Road World Championship course, with optional gorilla trekking in the Virungas. Kenya's Samburu — pitched as an alternative to the big parks — adds a 'Special Five' safari, stargazing and bonfire storytelling, plus Ol Pejeta rhino conservancy and Lake Nakuru. Northern Norway in Winter brings orca and humpback watching in the Skjervoy archipelago, husky sledding and Sami cultural encounters during polar night. Mexico's Sierra Gorda trip runs from Guadalajara's agave fields to Guanajuato and a cloud-forest biosphere reserve home to rare axolotls. Canada's Whitehorse, long a pass-through town, gets two full nights on the Wild Canada & Alaska trip with a Tlingit guide from the Kluane First Nation. And for families, a new Taiwan trip lets kids aged five and up make bubble tea, learn bao and beef-noodle soup, cycle Sun Moon Lake and spot green sea turtles off Lambai Island.
Who's this for? Travellers who've done the marquee sights and want shorter queues, deeper local contact and a bit of physical effort — nearly every trip involves hiking, cycling or getting properly off the grid. Book ahead: Not Hot List destinations tend to grow fast once the word's out.
