We asked a question; "Where's the best place to spend Christmas in 2026?" and we got six different voices. Read below.
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Colombia is my pick for Christmas 2026, mostly because of how long the season lasts. It opens with Dia de las Velitas, when whole streets line the curb with candles and paper lanterns. From there it runs for weeks. The novenas start on the 16th and go nightly until Christmas Eve, with neighbors gathering to sing villancicos and share a table.
I'd plan the trip around the food. Bunuelos and natilla show up on nearly every holiday table, and natilla varies a lot by region, in its sweetness and in how firm it's set. Try it in two different cities and you'll be tasting two different recipes. In Tolima the celebration dish is lechona, a whole pig stuffed with rice and peas and roasted for hours. Tamales and ajiaco fill in the rest depending on where you land.
Medellin makes an easy first stop, since the river lights go up early and the city is made for walking at night. After that, head to the coffee region or Tolima for smaller, more local celebrations. Book Christmas Eve dinner early, because families gather at home and some restaurants close.
- Jose Gaviria, AI Food Tech Specialist, Comi AI
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Singapore stands as the premier choice for Christmas 2026 by balancing high-tech infrastructure with world-class festive aesthetics. For those managing global digital experiences and distributed teams, the ability to remain seamlessly connected while immersing in the Christmas Wonderland at Gardens by the Bay is a massive operational advantage. The reliability of the city's digital ecosystem ensures a professional can handle a year-end support escalation from a quiet corner of a festive terrace without the connectivity lag that typically ruins a holiday. It represents the pinnacle of frictionless travel where technology facilitates, rather than hinders, the holiday experience.
Dubai offers a different but equally compelling experience centered on high-end hospitality and strategic positioning. The city excels at high-frictionless customer experience, where every interaction from the arrival terminal to the hotel suite is optimized for efficiency. During the holidays, the festive markets at Madinat Jumeirah provide a seasonal atmosphere in a climate ideal for travel photography and networking. For a professional traveler, Dubai serves as a strategic middle ground for managing operations across Europe and Asia during the busy holiday retail peak, permitting a morning of business oversight followed by an evening of cultural immersion.
London remains the gold standard for a traditional Christmas that does not compromise on professional connectivity. Walking through Covent Garden or the Southbank markets offers the essential human connection and empathy emphasized in high-stakes customer service. Having managed UK-based banking operations, I appreciate how the city transforms into a festive landmark while maintaining its status as a global hub. It is a place where you can enjoy deep cultural history while staying plugged into global financial and tech centers. The best Christmas destination for 2026 is one where the technology is invisible enough to let the holiday moments take center stage, yet robust enough to keep global business moving without interruption.
- Pratik Singh Raguwanshi, Manager, Digital Experience, CXrove
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I recommend visiting Istanbul in December. The summer crowds are gone, and the queues at Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, and the Basilica Cistern are short. During the Christmas season, the old churches and streets of Beyoglu take on a special, unique atmosphere.
For those who might want to add a few more days to their trip, there's Cappadocia: when it snows, the fairy chimneys and valleys transform into an entirely different, magical landscape.
And a special note regarding Christmas: Saint Nicholas—the inspiration behind the figure of Santa Claus—served as a bishop in ancient Myra, located in what is now the Demre district of Antalya. His church can still be visited today.
You can find free guides for all these destinations on Turkeyora.
Ozan Alatli, Founder, Turkeyora *
- OZAN ALATLI, Founder, Turkeyora
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I'm Runbo Li, Co-founder and CEO of Magic Hour, the AI video platform that's helped millions of creators produce professional content without a studio or a budget.
Christmas 2026 is going to reward travelers who chase experiences over aesthetics. The Instagram-perfect destinations are overcrowded and overpriced. The places worth flying to are the ones where you actually feel something different when you wake up on December 25th.
Start with Oaxaca, Mexico. I spent time there during the holiday season a few years back, and the Night of the Radishes festival on December 23rd is unlike anything you'll encounter anywhere else. Hand-carved radish sculptures, street food that ruins you for every taqueria back home, and a warmth from locals that no five-star resort can manufacture. Flights from the U.S. are short and affordable if you book by late summer.
For something completely different, Tromso, Norway. You're above the Arctic Circle, chasing the Northern Lights on Christmas Eve. The town is small enough that you feel like you know it after two days, and the contrast of polar darkness lit up by aurora borealis is the kind of thing that rewires your brain. It's cold, obviously. That's the point.
If you want warm water and zero crowds, look at Zanzibar. Most Americans don't think of East Africa for Christmas, which is exactly why it works. Stone Town is a UNESCO site with centuries of layered culture, the beaches are world-class, and December is peak dry season. You'll spend a fraction of what the Caribbean costs.
Closer to home, I'd say Santa Fe, New Mexico. The farolito walk on Christmas Eve, where Canyon Road is lined with thousands of paper lanterns, is one of the most beautiful things happening in the U.S. during the holidays. It's quiet, it's artistic, and the food scene has gotten genuinely excellent.
And for families, Tokyo in late December is magic. The illumination displays rival any European Christmas market, the food is obviously unmatched, and the energy of New Year's prep starting around December 28th gives you two holidays in one trip.
The best Christmas trips aren't about escaping your life. They're about jolting yourself into remembering how big the world actually is.
- Runbo Li, CEO, Magic Hour AI
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The best Christmas trips are in big cities that keep running through the holidays, so there is always something to do. I recently spent Christmas in Cape Town, South Africa, where December is peak summer, with beaches, late sunsets, and a festive feel across the city. Stellenbosch wine country and the hikes in Table Mountain National Park are a short trip away, and your dollar goes far, which makes it one of the best-value destinations I’ve visited. Book flights and hotels early, because the last two weeks of December sell out and prices jump.
Bangkok, Thailand is another top pick: Christmas isn’t a public holiday there, so the night markets, malls, and rooftop NYE parties all keep going. Prices are reasonable, but December is high season in Thailand, so book ahead for NYE. Either city has enough going on to keep the whole family busy.
- Chris Joondeph, Travel Expert and Content Creator, Authentic Traveling
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Belgium. Most people give it one summer day in Bruges. December is when the country is most itself.
Start in Ghent. The Christmas market runs from 3 December to 3 January, and this year, for the first time, it stays open past New Year. But the city is the real reason. The sun sets around 16:40, so by five the guild houses on the Graslei are lit over the water and the quay is almost yours. The Van Eyck altarpiece in Sint-Baafs is the best reason to come in out of the cold. Book ahead, weekend and holiday tickets sell out. The Design Museum reopened in October after four years of work. Go up to the fourth floor for the view over the winter rooftops. Lunch in December means stoverij, beef stewed in brown beer, at Meme Gusta. After dark, walk to 't Dreupelkot on the Groentenmarkt and order a dreupel, a shot of jenever, the grain spirit Belgians drank long before the beer.
Brussels throws the bigger party. Winter Wonders runs from 27 November to 3 January, from the Grand-Place to the old fish market at Sainte-Catherine, and the town hall gets a light show every evening. Go on a weekday. Last year a single Saturday pulled close to 200,000 people. Eat smoutebollen, hot dough balls buried in powdered sugar. If you are brave, caricoles: sea snails in a peppery broth, served in a paper cup. Very Brussels.
Then leave the cities. The Ardennes are an hour and a half from Brussels, and in December they go quiet. Durbuy, a tiny stone town on the Ourthe, runs its Christmas market every day from 18 December. The monks of Maredsous hold theirs until 20 December, with a small ice rink next to the abbey. Up on the Hautes Fagnes, the highest ground in Belgium, you cross the peat bog on wooden boardwalks. Afterwards: game on the menu, a fire, and an N'Ice Chouffe, the winter beer brewed in Achouffe.
One thing outsiders miss: for us, the season starts on 6 December. Children wake up to Sinterklaas presents and speculoos, and in many families the tree only goes up after that. Christmas Eve is the big dinner, with croquettes on the side, and the 25th is quiet. The best time to come is the weeks in between, when the markets are open and Belgium is at home.
- Joris Desplenter, Founder, Belgium's Wanderlust
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