The Informed Traveler
The Informed Traveler
Cruising The African Coast & Booking.com's Travel Trends for 2026
Travel Expert Onanta Forbes has been doing what she loves best for the past few week's and that is travelling. She began her journey in Barcelona so on this week's show we'll catch up with her to see what adventures she's been up too. Plus, we'll start the New Year chatting with one of our regular guests, Dani Musse from Booking.com who'll run down their travel trends for 2026 on what kind of experiences travelers are looking for this year.
Well, hello and welcome to the Informed Traveler Podcast, a weekly travel podcast where our goal is to help you become a more informed traveler. And I'm your host, Randy Sharman. Travel expert Onanda Forbes has been doing what she loves best for the past few weeks, and that is traveling. I do know that she began her journey in Barcelona, but I've since lost track. So we'll catch up with her in a few seconds to see what adventures she's been up to. Plus, we'll start the new year off chatting with one of our regular guests, Danny Musi from Booking.com, who will run down their travel trends for 2026 on what kind of experiences travels are looking for this year. But first, let's kick things off chatting with travel expert Onanda Forbes, who joins us each week to discuss some of the travel news and travel trends. You can follow her adventures on Instagram, Facebook, and X at Onanta Forbes. OnantaForbes.com is her website. Hello, Onanta. Happy New Year.
SPEAKER_02:Happy New Year, Randy.
SPEAKER_03:Well, the last time I spoke with you, you were starting your winter adventure and you were in Barcelona. Obviously, uh you've moved on from there. So uh give us an update on uh what you've seen, what you've done, and and some of the adventures.
SPEAKER_02:So I am sailing on Regent Seven Seas Voyager, and I'm pretty lucky um to be sailing from Barcelona. Uh, where we touched space in Cadiz, and now we're cruising down the west coast of Africa. So just to tell you about the cruise ship, it's a luxury all-suite cruise ship with around 350 suites, and they all feature private balconies, um, wonderful bathrooms, and personalized butler service, which we have, and also many other suites have it. And um I can tell you the food's really good here. There's got multiple restaurants, everything from casual pool side pool side meals to French and Italian cuisine. And there's uh great entertainment on board with live music, there's theater shows, there's a casino. I lost my$10, so I don't know if I'm going back, but casinos here. There's a great spa, a fitness center, there's a jogging track and um nice shops, um, as well as a really high crew to guest ratio. So one of my favorite crew members is Way, and he is the tech guy on board, and he helps us all with our all our tech questions because we all need to be LinkedIn, right?
SPEAKER_03:Yes, we do, no matter where we are in the world. We get kind of nervous when we can't connect.
SPEAKER_02:I know that's it, that's it exactly. So after Barcelona, we did have a C date, which was a good time to just settle into the ship life. We, you know, unpacked, we wandered around, checked out where where could be a favorite lounge or coffee spot. And um, and then what was kind of neat about it, and it's throughout the whole um cruise, there's different talks by guest speakers here. So um you don't have to always be in port, but it's um a nice opportunity to enjoy um life on the cruise ship, right? And so I can say that Cadiz being our first port, it was a rainy day. So I would definitely recommend at this time of the year to pack a raincoat or a slicker. Umbrellas are available on board, but Cadiz is beautiful. It was easy walking, um, lots of histories. You could see orange trees and um great as uh if you were there long enough to see flamenco dancing. So it was a perfect introduction to southern Spain. And then we had another peaceful day at sea before we reached the Canary Islands. And um we visited two islands here. One was Lanzarote, which almost felt outer whirly with volcanic landscapes and vineyards going growing straight out of black lava, and that was it was amazing to see that. I've never seen that before. It was like um like depressions in the ground with rocks surrounding it, and then the the uh the uh the trees or the the vineyards were growing the different vines with the grapes, and so kind of interesting, and every um residence or building is white, so kind of a very neat uh place to visit. A lot of um people go there to do long stays in winter, and then we had Tenerife the next day, and this is where you were able to enjoy the beaches, but also it has a pretty dramatic mountain um backdrop. Um, it's funny, you could be on the beach, look up and see a snow capped mountain. Pretty neat. And then we had a uh a long evening in port, so we got to visit, you know, different places that we wanted to. Um, Christmas Day was at sea, and it could have been and it was a really nice way to enjoy Christmas Day. Um, the ship was beautifully decorated, the meals were festive. Um, it was uh it was neat to spend Christmas surrounded by an ocean, right? And then we went into Cape Verde, stopping in Mendelo, which you know, beautiful, colorful streets, live music everywhere. Um, and that was our first taste of Africa. Um, it was neat, I have to say. And then we came into Dakar, Senegal. And I have to tell you, it's chaos. There's so many people. And interesting fact, and they the ship warned us way ahead of time that when you're in port, um, you can't get internet. It's um it's just something that happens. So if you are one of those people that get nervous without your internet, you just have to deal with it. It's only for one day. It's only for one day. Yeah, and then you leave. So here it was um huge as far as like visiting Gori Island was that's where it was um where the slave traffic started in Dakar. So it it could it was very um powerful, emotional, sombering all at the same time, and understanding the history of of this part of the world. Um, it is amazing to be here, but it is really crowded, lots of activity. Um if you really needed the internet. One of the tips that we got from the speakers is do a Google search before you get here and see a nice hotel, which was like the Pullman. Go have a coffee, use your internet if you really needed it. So there's my hot tip. And then we went into the Gambia, and it's called the Gambia. That's two countries in the world that have the as part of the name, and the other is the Bahamas. And we went, we sailed into Banjul. It's smaller, it's quieter, uh, incredibly warm and welcoming uh with the markets, the river landscapes, and it was it was uh it was a good way to um see Africa again in a different way. Um be prepared for poverty, be prepared for um delightful smells. Just be prepared. Um, but it it's a good way to see this part of the world. Um, and then we came to Abidjan Ivory Coast. Um, again, busy streets, lagoon views. Um it really kind of changes your expectations about West Africa. Um, I'm gonna say as you continue your your journey down West Africa, don't expect a huge tourism development. Um it was pretty neat, I have to say, because what happens when you arrive here is that you um the the customs officials have to come on board and then you have a face-to-face where they um take a copy of your passport and then um you get a sticker that says that you can go um onto uh the land um into port, but then they are focused on tourism because they really do want to build it. So we had like a police escort on our crew. Yeah. So we had four motorcycles that flanked our bus and drove us through every single traffic light. If there was a roundabout, they blocked the traffic incoming into the um roundabout so we could go. Um if one, like it was like a three-lane highway in each direction. So if our three-lane highway going in one direction was backed up because it was a day where people went back to work after the holiday, so it was busy, um they would go into the opposing traffic and shut down one lane with the our police escort and then make us go through that way. So the there's two lanes going in the opposite way, and we were going forward. So and then they so we did not have any traffic problems. We're in um Dakar, there's lots of traffic problems.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, right. Yeah, how many people on a tour though for to do that? Like I would think the process of going face to face with a customs official takes a little time.
SPEAKER_02:It does. We were delayed um a good hour from when we were like the tour start was supposed to be because there was lots of different uh tours departing, maybe not going to the same destinations. So it was time in in, but I think they tried to make it up with the police escort, and I've never had that happen to me in my life, so I was pretty impressed, very impressed.
SPEAKER_03:So, and if you weren't on uh uh uh uh a tour, an official tour, then you wouldn't be allowed off the ship.
SPEAKER_02:Yes, you could, you still have to go through the process, same process.
SPEAKER_03:I get it.
SPEAKER_02:Yes, yes, and then there were a shuttle, and there has been shuttles um to different places within like the central marketplace in each destination, and then you would just do your own thing. But again, I do recommend that you be cautious. You are in a third world country, you have to understand like their yearly income is quite small if they if you're obviously a tourist, right? So you have to make sure that you're not wearing um big gobs of great jewelry on you or dressed in a manner that um invites somebody to come and grab your backpack or um and no police escort, obviously. No, no police escort. Yes, yes. So um, you know, it it it's it's a different way of life, it's a it's a way to see if you want to come back, obviously. Um, but it it's uh you have to understand that perhaps um your tour guide may not be able to express himself in English in a manner that you are comfortable with or you understand. Um so we we were a um when we were in the ivory coast, we had these great big buses, but it just blew hot air, like so you were hot. So there, you know, one bus didn't have any air conditioning. Um, we were told when we were entering Africa that um at night you have to turn off your lights. Like, you know, if you have a window in your cabin or um a balcony and you have the lights on your balcony on, you have to turn them off. Or say, like, for an example, like I work remotely still, but it's eight hours ahead. So I work in the evening to capture my clients in the morning and during the day, and then I get this knock on the call, Miss Odanta, Miss Odanta, your lights are on.
SPEAKER_03:And so why is that?
SPEAKER_02:Um, for for pirates, for uh people that yeah, yeah, and uh they or yeah, people that want to attack the ship. And also we were told that we would see um additional security on board, and we have been so on the upper deck during the days, ex you know, if you're at sea or if you come back from a port visit, you're just walking around on the the track on the deck. Um uh you notice these two gentlemen that are and this this ship security that are walking around looking for ships, looking for some.
SPEAKER_04:And are they heavily armed?
SPEAKER_02:No, not that I see. I can't see, yeah, yeah, yeah. I can't see anything. Um interesting. Yeah, it's uh shopping's fun because they usually they have um different uh booths or like canopies with uh different tables of local um, you know, shopping, like uh clothing or jewelry or masks. So that's always fun. And and you know, one of our tour guides yesterday said, if they ask you for$60, go for$10 or go for 20. Okay, I'm okay with that. That works, works in my budget. Um, but interestingly enough, not all like if you went kind of low ball, they don't they just walk, they just let you walk away. They don't need like, but even though obviously they need money. And another interesting fact is they have they can take credit cards.
SPEAKER_03:They're pretty high tech then. Yes, they learned their lesson, I think, right? People would offer a credit card, and but you know what?
SPEAKER_02:Like we are in very sometimes very depressed areas, and going through the markets is just chaotic. Like you're going through a market and you're going through the area where there's fish, you know, very live fish offerings because they don't a lot of people don't have fridges, right? Or store it. So they have to shop daily. Um, so you you know, when you come back to the ship, you might want to just make sure like you disinfect everything, like you're the bottom of your shoes and stuff like that. Um, yeah. So it's very very interesting. Yeah. And then um, so today we were in um Ghana, and you do need a visa that you can pre-purchase before you get on board. And um again, it like we were um we went and and we did a panoramic view of uh the twin cities or the second cities here, like Tacoradi. Um, and I I apologize if I'm not saying the the the names correctly, and it was interesting. Um just just just seeing everything. Um you you saw the influences of like uh the different rules, whether it's Dutch or French or British, and then they became um their own state, um and uh what what their industry is like. We went through a fish market today, and today uh because it was part of the holidays um season, all the fishing boats are in, and you would not understand how they were able to cram them all in. And then you would see like different flags for a lot of um like soccer teams like FC Barcelona. Oh yeah. Um yeah, who they're interested in. I saw one Canadian flag, I saw yeah, Italian flags and Spanish flags, stuff like that. And then they took us, um uh they so they showed us where all the uh fishing boats were, and then we went into where they because you the fish has to be fresh, right? And it has to be when it gets um uh like uh harvested for lack of a better word, they they showed you how they make ice so that the fish are put in ice um to keep them. So it was quite interesting just seeing that. Um, you know, that process and such. So you have you do what you have to do in where you are, right? This is a hot destination, third world country, but fishing's that's their industry, so they have to protect it, right?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, very interesting, very fascinating. Must be quite a culture shock though, right?
SPEAKER_02:It is, and you but you have to be, I think the biggest thing for travelers you're not in Canada, you're not in the US, you're not traveling in Europe. You have to be respectful of their customs and recognize you're not gonna get air conditioning in some cases.
SPEAKER_03:Get used to the heat, in other words.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, wear sunscreen, wear a hat, um, wear loose clothing, don't draw attention to yourself, even though we're tourists, that you know uh you will see us.
SPEAKER_03:Um, yes, I always used to say, uh you know, you stick out like a sore thumb. Like as much as you try to not look like a tourist, you might as well just have a sign above you that says I'm a tourist.
SPEAKER_02:Right. And then what you can do is, you know, look at your itinerary before go and just see which areas take euros, which will accept US. Um, I would I break down a lot of my um big bills like yours. Like I have a lot of fives and stuff. And I guess I must be um, I forgot this because we don't have two dollar bills anymore in Canada. Somebody gave me change of a US$2 bill, and I'm looking at I'm thinking, is that real? Like, is that is that a legal? I had to Google it to see if it was a legal tender. So I tried to use it again in one of the stores, and this Ghana mama looked at me and goes, Oh, I'm not gonna accept that. And I go, uh, yeah, it's real.
SPEAKER_03:So where where are you off to next for your cruise?
SPEAKER_02:Um, so tomorrow I'm in Togo, and then I'm going to San Tome and Prince Pay. And then um before the end of the trip, which is in Cape Town, I'm going to uh Walvis Bay, Namibia.
SPEAKER_03:Wow, and quite an adventure. And you literally are going down the coast of Africa. It sounds like if you started in uh Barcelona and the Canary Islands, and you're gonna end up in in South Africa.
SPEAKER_02:Yes, yeah, it is, and I wanted to do it because Africa, if you've ever gone, it will change you. And a lot of people go to South Africa and Kenya and Tanzania. Um, as you know, it's probably their first stop of Africa, maybe Egypt, but West Africa is different. It's not it's not as touristically developed, yeah. So we have to be aware of that and accept it and be open. Um, I know people were were hot, you know, after the the the bus ride with no air conditioning, but unfortunately, that's just the reality in some places.
SPEAKER_03:That's the way it is, exactly. Yes. Well, it sounds like an amazing adventure. I can't wait to hear more. Oneta Forbes is a travel expert. You can follow her adventures on Facebook, Instagram, and X. That's when she has uh Wi Fi or internet. At OnataForbes. OnataForbes.com is her website. Uh truly amazing stuff. So uh can't wait to hear more.
SPEAKER_02:I guess, yes, I'm very blessed and I'm grateful to start 2026 on this uh amazing adventure.
SPEAKER_03:This is the Informed Traveler Podcast. I'm Randy Sharman. Just want to remind you of our website, the informed traveler.org. That's where you can find our contact page if you have any questions or comments about the podcast. You can also email me too with any questions you might have. My email address is randy at theinformtraveler.org. And you can check out our social media pages too at facebook.com slash informed traveler, Instagram at informed traveler, or on X at Informed Traveler. That's where you'll find a number of videos and reels from our adventures throughout the past year and audio clips from our past shows. Plus, you can sign up for our monthly newsletter. It's released at the beginning of every month. Our January issue is available now. Just go to our website, theinformedtraveler.org, click on the newsletter button, and it'll take you right there. Or better yet, you can subscribe to it and have it arrive in your inbox each month. So let's continue our first show of the new year, chatting with one of our regular guests, Danny Musi from Booking.com, who joins us now to run down their recent travel trends survey for 2026 on what kind of experiences travelers are looking for this year. You can find it on the Booking.com website. Hello, Danny.
SPEAKER_00:Hey there. Long time we don't talk.
SPEAKER_03:I know it's been a while, and here we are into 2026. Uh, and Booking.com came out with their top 10 trends for Canadian travelers in 2026. Uh I always like to ask how many people did you ask? Uh this is this is quite a big survey, though. More than 29,000 travelers across 33 countries and territories uh were asked uh for this research. So uh this is uh this is a big deal, right?
SPEAKER_01:It's a big deal for us. We want to make sure that we are always customer-centric, and for that we need to understand what the customer wants. This is the 10th year that we are doing the trends, and it's fun to observe the trends, how they move in the shape according to um what we have in the world going on. So if we have in the past something that was very connected to family, just a couple years ago, everybody's seeking to reconnect with family and friends and trying resorts and places that would have entertainment for everyone. In 2026, the trend is hyper-personalization and a celebration of your yourself, your individuality. So it's quite fun to see how the trends are changing and how the travel is moving from just uh where and what to a why. Why am I traveling? What am I searching? Um, why do I need this?
SPEAKER_03:Well, it's interesting you say that because I was gonna ask, like, over time, over the 10 years, do you see sort of uh this this ebb and flow of how what people are looking for? And uh and and most of the time, like like how correct is it? Like like when people say uh this is what their uh travel trend is gonna be, does it pan out?
SPEAKER_01:It does, it does, especially because when we were we are talking to the traveler, we are not specifically searching for uh a specific hotel or a type of experience, but we are talking about okay, what's your dream here? Uh who do you want to be when you travel? And we are talking really about um dreams and hopes. So it's a real evolution. And as we see tech growing year over year, in 2026, there is a lot on the trends that is already disembedment of AI and and the technologies into the travel experience and more and more becoming a companion for the travel, becoming a travel agent, which changes the behavior of the consumer. They become more uh spontaneous, they want to try um road trips because they want to have that experience throughout the journey, and now they have a tool, a companion, uh an assistant that helps them plan them out without wasting too much time and being precise with their likes. So the change is beautiful to see, and it does it does come to reality when we see how the year goes.
SPEAKER_03:What I'm hearing is it's easier than ever to go where you want, when you want, and do what you want. Is that is that a good takeaway?
SPEAKER_01:It is it's to that extent. You can um which comes this hyper uh personalization of the trip because you can go from uh I'm sicking for a trip where I can sleep in quiet, and you are going to find the places and the locations that are gonna give you that, or uh you are looking for a globe, you want to go into a place where you want to take care of your skin and your health, your physical health, and the generate the travel assist will generate this whole trip for you uh under the budget that you're looking for and with the transportation that you are seeking for. You just embed the experiences and in two clicks, you have the whole route done for you.
SPEAKER_03:Mm-hmm. Well, and it is about experiences now, right? Uh I'm looking at some of the results here. Uh travel that celebrates you. So, so things that personal milestones, maybe it's uh a birthday or something like that, or or an anniversary or or anything to celebrate. Uh, people are looking to do those kind of things now and do it somewhere else other than home.
SPEAKER_01:That's right. And I particularly like that a lot because as we are receiving so much information and which makes time go very fast, it's fun for us to create these milestones where we pause a bit, celebrate, and create the memories that actually are gonna stay with us. Um it is uh it is a good thing that we are taking pride in our little achievements and taking time to celebrate all of those. But one of my favorite ones here would be what we are calling the turbulence test.
SPEAKER_03:I was just gonna mention that one.
SPEAKER_01:I love this one. I love this one because the travelers are saying, hey, you know what? We can just do this real speed moment where we are going to go on a trip together. I don't have a long relationship with you. It can be a friend, a colleague, or uh a partner, a romantic partner, and we go for a trip. And with that, we will see, do we match or we don't match? And I find that amazing.
SPEAKER_03:Well, there's the old saying, you don't really know someone until you travel with them. So uh Isn't that? This comes up where 65% of Canadian travelers are open to taking a trip with a potential partner, colleague, or new friend. So it's interesting that the that people are willing to do that to see uh how they match up with a with a certain personality, right?
SPEAKER_01:It is amazing because it's a compression of multiple moments. You have the restaurant, you have decisions, you have how neat the person is in the bedroom, and how do they organize themselves. So I I think you get a full x-ray in just a weekend and off you go.
SPEAKER_03:It'd be interesting to know who initiates that though in the relationship, right?
SPEAKER_00:It starts with that already.
SPEAKER_03:Anything else that stood out for you?
SPEAKER_01:Well, I really, really enjoyed the piece where they are talking about the uh they are calling it Pastports, which is traveling back to the future where you recreate photos that you have from the past by visiting this place with that photo and using technology, you recreate the moment in time in that same distance.
SPEAKER_03:I've I've I've had friends do this on social media, and it is really interesting where they there's a photo of them, I don't know, 20 years ago with uh in this particular instance where I saw this was with a friend that they met, and then they've they've reunited with that person to take that same image uh 20 years later or or whatever. It's really interesting.
SPEAKER_01:It's really interesting and keep our uh memories alive and and all the things that we once were bringing back to the present moment. I I think it's such a good way to reunite people and bring us back to roots and good memories. That one really stood out for me.
SPEAKER_03:I think it would be really interesting. Uh well, in my case, I have two children and and so, you know, uh for example, they were in Disneyland when they were younger. It'd be interesting to go back to that same spot and get an image with um Goofy or or Mickey Mouse or whatever when they're when they're older.
SPEAKER_01:Isn't it? It's a big celebration, those little ones that you were just planting the future, and boom, there they are, grown and healthy and and ready to take the world. And and it's such a good way to to celebrate all the achievements.
SPEAKER_03:Mm-hmm. Well, and another one that comes up uh that I'm looking at here, uh Canadian travel has expressed that they are drawn to road trips that make travel more spontaneous and flexible. So they are, and that's 72%. So uh a vast majority of them are willing to you know just uh go at the spur of the moment kind of thing and and be flexible rather than planning, you know, a year out or something like that.
SPEAKER_01:Which we are seeing very, very close to home already. We are seeing the booking window being extremely short and these decisions happening in the morning off. Oh, why don't we go just there to Blue Mountain a couple hours and we have a nice day there? So we are observing that behavior already starting, and 2026 seemingly that's going to be even larger. This moment to be spontaneous has a lot to do with the confidence that technology brings. So they know as long as they have their phone with them or the computer, the internet is available, they can uh find a place to stay, they can find experiences, they can buy a little tour, they can find a restaurant that matches everyone's dietary restrictions, and anything peculiar that they're looking for, they can find as well. So this this empowerment, I guess, that technology gives for the traveler to initiate experiences is really amazing.
SPEAKER_03:Well, it's it's good this to see that uh not just Canadian travelers, travelers worldwide are open to traveling still in 2026. Nothing's holding them back, it seems.
SPEAKER_01:Nothing is holding them back from having experiences, and uh they are really looking forward to see how the accommodations are going to start embedding this technology into the experiences in the home, how the homes are becoming uh smarter and and all integrated. So there is this appetite as well from the traveler to see the advancements, almost like feeling a sci-fi movie when they enter a home. Which is kind of funny. I went to Montreal not long ago, and the hotel I was staying in, uh, I I got a room service and the hotel sent a little robot that delivered my food.
SPEAKER_03:It was like that's interesting.
SPEAKER_00:Set of a fun moment for me.
SPEAKER_03:Did you have to tip the robot?
SPEAKER_00:And I didn't have any. I just did you score. Just like, did you like me? Score, and then you just press a button, like give it, give him a tab, and he even says, like, it was the sweetest thing.
SPEAKER_03:It's the top ten uh trends for Canadian travelers from booking.com in 2026. Uh, you can find that on the uh booking.com website, of course, at booking.com. And Danny Muse is the area manager for Canada with Booking.com. It's uh always a pleasure to chat with you, Danny. Thank you so much.
SPEAKER_00:Thank you so much.
SPEAKER_03:And that is our show for this week. If you have comments or questions, we'd love to hear from you. If you have a show idea, send that along as well. My email is Randy at theinformed traveler.org. And if you like what you heard, tell a friend. You can check out our website too at theinformtraveler.org. In the meantime, thanks for listening. Travel safe and be an informed traveler.