How Gen Z Travels

New Travel Trends

For decades, travel followed a predictable script: arrive, take photos in front of landmarks, buy a magnet, repeat. There was comfort in a tightly packed schedule, even if it left little room to wander. But now? Travelers, especially Zoomers but not exclusively, are asking different questions.

Not “What should I see?” but “What do I feel like doing?”

Not “What’s the top-rated sight?” but “Where’s a place I’ll actually remember?”

If travel used to be about collecting experiences, today it’s about choosing them with intention.

Film Cameras and the Search for Something Real

Take the resurgence of film cameras. What began as a hipster novelty has quietly become a love letter to imperfection. A blurry photo, accidental light leak, or crooked horizon isn’t a flaw. It’s proof that someone was there, trying to capture a fleeting moment rather than manufacture the perfect one.

It’s not just nostalgia. It’s resistance to the algorithm, to performative travel, to the idea that you need ten apps and a ring light to have a “good” vacation.

The film photo says, “This was enough.”

Where the Good Coffee Is the Main Attraction

The modern traveler might skip the national museum but walk 30 minutes to a café with vintage furniture. This isn’t laziness. It reflects a shift in what we value.

A café, for many, is not just a caffeine stop. It’s a place where one might journal, people-watch, or spiral existentially over a flat white. It’s the rare place that feels both local and universal.

Often at the top of Gen Z’s café maps:

• Toby’s Estate, Brooklyn (and now far beyond) — a place where everything feels intentional, from the atmosphere to the very first sip.

• Onyx Coffee Lab, Arkansas — a café that somehow feels like a Nordic design showroom, only run by baristas who welcome you with the warmth of an old friend.

• KAWA, Paris — a corner spot that lets you feel romantic without trying too hard.

The lighting, the playlist, the quiet conversations drifting between tables — for some, this is the soul of a city.

Aesthetics Over Achievements

Social media hasn’t disappeared from the travel landscape, but the tone has changed. Instead of “Look at me in front of this monument,” it’s “Look at this light on this table in this corner of Lisbon, where I sat thinking about everything and nothing.”

The content is slower, more ambient, almost meditative, with less proof-of-trip and more personal timestamps.

How Travel Changed Across Generations

It’s tempting to pit Gen Z against Millennials (or Boomers, or Gen X, or whoever’s next). But the truth is, many of us, regardless of when we were born, now crave something more personal and intuitive.

Millennials were the travelers who crammed every possible sight into a packed schedule, leaving no room to relax. Gen Z, on the other hand, is the vibe-driven explorer, unafraid to travel solo without a strict plan but always chasing the perfect mood. Still, the lines between them are blurring.

Believe it or not, some 45-year-olds collect vintage postcards from local markets, while a Gen Zer builds a full expense spreadsheet before even picking a destination (but shh, we didn’t tell you that).

The Rise of the Custom Journey

More and more, people are turning away from prepackaged trips. They don’t want to be herded through monuments with a flag-waving guide and 12 photo stops. They want something that feels... more them.

Whether that’s a food crawl through family-owned dumpling joints, a walk through obscure Soviet architecture, or just finding the perfect overlook for golden hour, it’s all valid. It’s also worth designing your trip around.

That’s where services like FindGuide come in. The app connects you with local guides who don’t just know the city — they get your kind of travel. Want a half-day tour of indie bookstores and natural wine bars? Done. A quiet walk through Parisian cemeteries? Also done.

No loudspeakers. No rigid routes. Just real humans helping you experience a place the way you would want to.

So, How Does Gen Z Travel?

With curiosity, softness, and a quiet rebellion against speed, sameness, and surface. Regardless of age, what matters now isn’t how many sights you’ve seen but how deeply the journey felt like your own.

Go at your own pace and let the café breaks be your little reward along the way.