Dream Destinations

After spending months at home in many cases, Americans are eager to head someplace warm in 2021, according to new research from online travel marketplace KOALA, which analyzed Google data to determine which places U.S. travelers have been searching for the most over the last six months. Here’s a look at the 10 most popular future travel destinations.



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10. Iceland

With 189,100 total searches, trendy Iceland remains a popular vacation locale for Americans. While the European country is undoubtedly worthy of being at the top of your travel bucket list it’s still off-limits to travelers from the United States. 



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9. The Bahamas

The Bahamas is one of the closest international destinations for Americans and flights to the sun-kissed archipelago are relatively cheap so it’s no surprise to see it gaining momentum among Americans anxious to get away once the impact of the pandemic has subsided. 



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8. Costa Rica

Costa Rica, which recently opened its borders to all Americans and eliminated COVID-19 testing requirements, is the most popular future travel destination in the state of Wyoming and the eighth-most popular vacation setting nationwide, KOALA found. 



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7. Aruba

Aruba was one of the first international destinations to reopen to Americans this past summer and is even inviting travelers eyeing an extended stay to take a “workation.” According to KOALA’s research, the Caribbean island was searched 244,400 times on Google over the last six months.



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6. Greece

Over the last six months, Americans have searched Google for a trip to Greece at least 247,000 times, which is surprisingly more than any other country in Europe, which remains a no-go for U.S. travelers amid the pandemic.



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5. Jamaica

Jamaica has established a resilient corridor to safely accommodate tourists in the COVID era and thus is among the most sought-after destinations among Americans this winter. The country’s 269,100 searches on Google are the fifth-most, according to KOALA.



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4. Japan

Japan is a perennial international travel hotspot and is set to host the Summer Olympics in 2021. According to KOALA’s research, the Asian country is the top future travel destination for Americans residing in a handful of states, incluidng Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Hawaii, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Utah. 



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3. The Maldives

It turns out that Americans are still dreaming of faraway destinations despite the coronavirus crisis, with the Maldives ranking third overall with 312,200 Google searches. The serene South Asian archipelago reopened to tourists this past summer so determined Americans don’t have to wait anymore.



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2. Mexico

Mexico, in particular Cancun, Cabo San Lucas and Puerto Vallarta, is garnering a ton of interest from Americans heading into 2021. The tourist-friendly destination is one of the few that U.S. travelers can fly to without having to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result or secure insurance that covers potential COVID-19 expenses.



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1. Puerto Rico

With a whopping 580,100 total searches, Puerto Rico is the most coveted destination for a post-pandemic getaway. It should be pointed out that the Caribbean hotspot is a U.S. territory and therefore doesn’t require a passport for American travelers. North Dakotans are split between Puerto Rico and Japan but a majority of the country, including the entire East Coast, most of the Midwest and Texas are very much looking forward to visiting this island territory in the near future.



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