The hot hotels on my 2026 bucket list
...the places I'm currently plotting my travels around
If you’re anything at all like me, you’re always planning your next trip while you’re still on holiday. I have a never-ending list of hotels and destinations around the world that I want to visit some day, but these are some of the places that sit right at the top of my list, and that I’m eyeing up for 2026 (yes, I’m currently deep in planning mode for the year ahead).
From spectacular design-led mountain retreats to cosy boltholes in the English countryside, all of these hotels offer something distinctly unique, and have been on my radar for a while.
Abbaye des Vaux de Cernay, France
This fancy farm retreat is France’s answer to Heckfield Place or Soho Farmhouse: a converted monastery surrounded by 185 pristine acres of glistening lakes and biking trails. Their spa and clutch of exquisite restaurants have been highly lauded, and their weekend brunch offering is supposedly the stuff of legend: think huge platters of lobster and fries, and a dessert spread that would make Marie Antoinette proud…
Updown Farmhouse, England
I’ve been wanting to visit this sweet farm stay for what feels like years. Located near Deal, along Kent’s coastline, Updown Farmhouse is a 17th-century farmstead that’s been transformed into an eclectic restaurant with rooms. Each of the 10 bedrooms have been individually designed, with joyful use of colour and pattern. The food is the hotel’s headline act, offering farm-to-fork fare that champions what’s growing in season.
Ett Hem, Sweden
This sumptuous Stockholm hotel stretches across three 20th-century townhouses, with generous living spaces and stylish bedrooms designed with considered Scandinavian sensibility and homely touches. Going by a “whatever, wherever, whenever” policy, guests are encouraged to pull up a chair at the chef’s table and request something to eat at any time of day; Ett Hem known to feel more like a private home than it does a hotel.
