As summer 2026 booking windows begin to open, early signals from European beach destinations and major city hubs suggest a clear shift in traveller behaviour: more guests are choosing 5–7 night stays over the traditional 3–4 night getaway, aiming to unlock extended-stay pricing and reduce the “cost-per-day” of travel.
The move comes as households remain highly price-aware, even as demand for peak-season travel stays resilient across many markets.
A longer-stay trend
Industry benchmarks from the last two years show trip length has been rising structurally:
• Mastercard Economics Institute found that leisure trip length globally increased by about one day, moving from around four days (2019–2020) to close to five days by March 2024.
• The European Travel Commission’s long-haul barometer indicates longer holidays are gaining share: trips exceeding two weeks rose from 13% (2019) to 21% (2024) among surveyed long-haul travellers to Europe.
For 2026, what’s changing is how deliberately travellers are choosing extra nights. Instead of adding time “if it fits,” many are planning around length-of-stay (LOS) discounts that make longer breaks feel financially rational.
Platforms are reinforcing the behaviour with multi-night discounts
Multi-night booking platforms are leaning into “stay longer, pay less” merchandising to match inflation-conscious demand. Stayforlong, for example, positions itself around long-stay value and promotes that discounts can improve when travellers book multiple nights, helping consumers compare total-stay value rather than only nightly rates.
For travellers who prefer mobile-first planning, the Stayforlong: Long Stay Hotels app is another touchpoint where extended-stay deals are surfaced in a dedicated experience. In practice, this creates a straightforward consumer calculation: if a 5–7 night stay unlocks a meaningful percentage reduction, the total trip can look more attractive than a shorter stay booked at standard rates, especially in peak summer periods where nightly pricing is already elevated.
Booking lead times for 2026: a two-speed market
Lead times are also showing a split dynamic. Some operators continue to report cautious, later commitment behaviour from certain source markets, as travellers monitor budgets and macro uncertainty. In parallel, operational frictions such as visa processing delays are encouraging earlier planning for others—effectively pulling bookings forward where paperwork is a factor.
The net result is a “two-speed” market: hotels may see both very early planners (often value-driven and organised) and late converters (watching prices and flexibility). LOS-led offers can be a strong tool for the first group, without necessarily sacrificing pricing power for the second.
Longer stays as a strategy, not a compromise
For hotels, longer stays can improve profitability beyond the headline room rate: lower cost per occupied night (less frequent room resets), improved forecasting, and a longer runway for ancillary revenue (F&B, experiences, parking, transfers).
Hotels aiming to capture this “cost-conscious but commitment-ready” demand are increasingly experimenting with: tiered LOS pricing (5+ and 7+ triggers), arrival-day controls (protect peak weekends while stimulating shoulder nights), and value-add bundles (breakfast, late checkout) that preserve ADR while improving conversion.
With consumers already trending toward longer trips and platforms actively rewarding multi-night behaviour, summer 2026 may be the season where LOS strategy becomes a primary lever—turning “staying longer to save” into a deliberate profit driver.