How we'll travel, why we travel
As Black Tomato turns twenty, we’re proud to reflect on two decades of uncovering the ideas, destinations, and emotions that have shaped the way we travel.
This year’s report passes that baton forward into 2026, where we've provided a glimpse into what’s next and a reminder of the “why” behind our journeys: to feel more deeply, to see more clearly, and to reconnect with each other through the wonder of our magical planet.
01
For travelers who have “seen it all,” the next chapter is about looking up and looking in – celebrating night skies that feel both ancient and undimmed. These include Chile’s Atacama, where desert air and altitude reveal the Milky Way with pin-point clarity, Namibia’s NamibRand Reserve, New Zealand’s Aoraki Mackenzie, and Spain’s La Palma.
Together, they map a quiet, planetary pilgrimage in search of undiluted night.
But with light pollution accelerating, scientists estimate that your children could see a quarter of the stars that you did when you were growing up – unless action is taken.
We’ve been translating this attention into quietly theatrical journeys that celebrate the skies – including a new 6-night trip in Chile’s Atacama Desert, whose crystalline atmosphere create some of Earth's clearest nights; observed with startling clarity through professional telescopes we’ll arrange for private viewing sessions.
In an era of constant connectivity, these journeys offer luxury’s rarest commodity: the space to hear yourself think.
02
“I’m bored” used to be a phrase parents dreaded. Lately, however, it’s become a feature, not a flaw. When Wi-Fi drops on a long train through Patagonia, or when signal evaporates between the islands of the Galápagos, families are discovering that unfilled time sparks curiosity – and that a little “nothing” helps the brain pay attention to something different and new.
For you, that might include slow rail segments on the Blue Train through South Africa with a sketch book, wildlife spotting with a naturalist’s field journal, and learning the cathartic art of fly fishing.
We help parents set screen-free windows that fit the day’s rhythm, making boredom feel beautiful. On our The Pursuit of Feeling Mongolia itinerary, we’ve included breathtaking drives through vast terrain, designed to shake off the insistent noise of daily life – paired with starlight dining, sand-sledding, and riding with Kazakh eagle hunters in the mountains.
The result is calm, connection, and the kind of ideas that only appear when we lift our eyes up from our feeds.
03
Wellness is evolving from solo pursuits to shared rituals, where travel can help your family to reset and reshape daily life back home. Today, families are seeking cool-air hikes and lake swims in Norway followed by sauna-cold dip cycles and simple, healthy meals, and slow days in Japan where onsen rituals teach care, boundaries, and respect. In Cambodia, it's about embracing Buddhist teachings and discovering inner peace, while in the desert nights of Utah it's about rebooting sleep to the rhythm of the stars.
Our Travel Experts are part planner, part facilitator, part therapist for your itinerary: asking the right questions, listening closely, and workshopping every detail so you can be fully present. We start with what you hope to change and design the journey to surface it: cadence, routines, sleep-friendly nights, even gentle screen habits. We’ll weave in coached conversations and learnings to help you face real-world challenges – coming home with rituals you’ll keep.
It's about shared rituals and routines that are grounded in healthy and holistic habits – many of which can be learned while you travel.
04
Wild swimming has shifted from a niche hobby to a meaningful travel ritual. Imagine floating through Denmark’s harbor-bath traditions, Mexico’s cenotes, Iceland’s geothermal soak-and-talk, Japan’s onsen etiquette, and Scotland’s glass-calm lochs.
The cultural momentum is real. Writers and influencers – like Jessica J. Lee and Bonnie Tsui – have been diving into the subject. Meanwhile, cities across Europe, from Paris to London, are reclaiming their waterways – offering legal, safer places to swim, plus richer local stories to absorb.
And we’re here to curate these waterways – such as rafting down the Snake River with naturalist guides and spotting eagles and elk on an “American safari”, or our Field Trip experience in Loch Ness: diving into the science and speculation surrounding the world’s most mythical lake.
Or you can learn friluftsliv (‘open air life’) on Denmark’s coasts with a local coach, float through Icelandic geothermal pools after hours, or take in purification ceremonies at Bali’s Sebatu Temple. The result feels less like exercise and more like moving meditation, with just enough edge to heighten your presence.
05
While the Mediterranean sizzles in July and August, Europe’s “cool belt” feels like a relief valve. Destinations like Slovenia, Norway, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland aren’t just stunning in summer: they’re naturally cooler thanks to altitude, and they pair that comfort with culture, design, and welcoming hospitality.
Last summer was Europe’s warmest year on record, and it’s warming faster than the global average. This is pushing summer travelers to head uphill during heatwaves, discovering cooler climes that are perfect for hiking, lake swims, picnic cable-car rides for grandparents, or via ferrata routes for teens.
Meanwhile, new hotels – like Cabane Tortin and erirö – are embracing alpine “cool” as a summer essential, celebrating slow mornings, big views, active afternoons, and early nights under starry skies.
06
The most valuable journeys aren’t always about what we achieve, but the things that dwarf us.
Stand at the foot of an Alaskan glacier and feel the ancient ice crack like thunder, cross the Mongolian steppe with nothing on the horizon but vast emptiness, sit quietly with shamans in Peru’s Sacred Valley and listen more than you speak. These moments shrink the self and stretch perspective. Boosting health and reducing stress.
This could mean a Get Lost expedition through Mongolia where navigation and decision-making are earned, not supplied, a helicopter expedition to a remote summit in Alaska that respects the will of mother nature, a conservation morning in Namibia where rangers do the talking, or an earth blessing ceremony on the banks of Peru’s Urubamba River.
07
One of the most powerful and meaningful tools of regenerative travel is the impact it has on local people, especially families. But for us, we endeavor to take this a step further and have been integrating experiences that uplift local communities by revisiting and engaging for months and years after first meeting. For us, it’s about growing our relationships with these families, where they become far more than pen pals at a distance, but part of a community.
At Black Tomato, we’ve been working with an inspired organization called Al Foulki pour les Femmes and helped as a company in rebuilding efforts of their village in the Atlas Mountains, while supporting the development of travel programming and a guest house in situ. Our co-founder Tom has been back several times since then, with his own family, and has gotten to know the people in this village, which in turn has created new relationships and lasting bonds.
At Black Tomato, we’ve chosen not to resist technology, but to harness it. Humate™ is our promise that people stay at the helm, while technology remains in the background. The prevalence of AI will only heighten the value of the human touch, where genuine knowledge and empathy – like knowing Kyoto’s best tearoom or pairing you with the most prescient guide – remain the true currency of travel.
08
Around the world, travelers are seeking places where sound becomes the guide: the call to prayer rising over Istanbul at dawn, monks chanting in Bhutan, quiet alms in Laos, a nocturnal trek in Borneo, or trekking a Costa Rican jungle so dense you can hear the Pacific long before you see it.
This isn’t just poetic – it’s protective. Recent studies tie natural soundscapes to higher satisfaction and pro-environmental attitudes: useful proof that tuning in can change how we care for a place.
Planning your trips, we can bake in quiet-hour museum slots, soft-sound rooms, low-stimulation dining, guides trained to pace transitions, and routing that avoids acoustic spikes, meaning you can choose when to tune in – and when to tune out. Join us for a three-day Kumano Kodo pilgrimage in Japan with temple blessings (part of our See you in the Moment service). By day, the soundscape is cedar, bells, and the soft cadence of sutras. By night, mountain lodges, stories, and a sky full of stars.
It’s about travel that has its finger on the volume controls.
09
The question we hear most now isn’t “where”, but “why” – with travelers weaving meaning into their itineraries and letting the destination do the teaching.
In Kenya, time with Maasai rangers turns conservation into conversation. In Costa Rica, travelers can participate in an enriching, hands-on introduction to a father-daughter reforestation project in the Central Valley.
In Laos, a morning with master weavers shifts “shopping” into cultural stewardship, while a stay at Switzerland’s Appenzeller Huus Quell, one of the world’s best wellness retreats, shows how design itself can be regenerative.
We’re seeing travelers carve out part of their trip for regenerative experiences: volunteering at our ongoing project to help Alfoulki Pour Les Femmes build a community-led guesthouse in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains, or learning about biodiversity, ancient agriculture, and spirituality in the Peruvian highlands with our Bring it Back service.
Our role is to make this effortless. We vet partners, align timing, and keep it joyful – designing purpose as a module, not a mandate. You leave with memories, and with proof of what you stand for.
