Online travel agency Booking.com’s latest travel and sustainability research shows that 79 per cent of APAC travellers now factor the risk of extreme weather into both their destination and timing decisions. Nearly half (44 per cent) have also said they have cancelled or changed travel plans in the past year due to high temperatures, storms, floods or wildfires.
The findings, drawn from a survey of 32,500 travellers across 35 markets globally, point to a significant behavioural shift across generations. While sustainability has long been associated with reducing plastic waste or saving energy, climate adaptation, particularly avoiding extreme heat, is becoming central to travel planning in the region.
More than half (56 per cent) of APAC respondents said certain destinations have become too hot to visit at preferred times of the year and 63 per cent have removed destinations from their wish lists due to news of extreme weather or natural disasters.
Extreme heat has become a pervasive and visible reality across much of Asia in 2026, with large swathes of the region experiencing record‑like or near‑record temperatures much earlier in the year than in the past.
In Southeast Asia, countries such as Thailand and the Philippines have already seen temperatures exceeding 40°C in parts of major cities, prompting heat‑health alerts, school closures, and warnings that some of the hottest conditions on record may be repeated or surpassed as the year progresses.
At the same time, scientists and regional climate agencies point to a developing super El Niño‑type pattern and long‑term warming trends that are pushing both minimum and maximum temperatures above normal across much of South and East Asia, making prolonged heatwaves and water‑stress conditions more frequent and more intense.
The stress levels from extreme weather events are also tangible among APAC travellers. 68 per cent of travellers said extreme weather makes booking stressful, while 64 per cent said unpredictable weather makes it difficult to determine when to travel.
As a result, 28 per cent of travellers in the region now plan to seek out cooler destinations, 47 per cent intend to travel outside peak seasons, and 40 per cent aim to avoid overcrowded tourist hotspots. Among those travelling off-season, one-third said they want to reduce pressure on destinations, signalling a growing awareness of both environmental and community impacts.
Danielle D’Silva, director of sustainability at Booking.com, said adapting to extreme weather and avoiding crowds are fast becoming travel norms across all age groups and that the company is encouraged by how travellers are already becoming more sustainable, and how they plan to continue.
Sustainable travel across age groups
The report also included findings on age groups and how they perceive sustainable travel. While 88 per cent of APAC travellers at all ages say that more sustainable travel is important or very important to them, younger generations (80 per cent of Gen Z and 76 per cent of Millennials) express stronger sustainability intentions but take fewer practical actions, whereas older generations demonstrate greater commitment through concrete behaviors.
Among those intending to travel more sustainably, 75 per cent of Boomers say they will reduce general waste while travelling, 63 per cent to reduce energy consumption in accommodation compared to 50 per cent and 45 per cent of Gen Z.
Older travellers are also more inclined to travel off-peak, with 67 per cent of Boomers planning to do so, compared to 35 per cent of Gen Z.
Accommodation choice is also reflecting climate and sustainability concerns among age groups. Nearly half of Boomers (46 per cent), and a third of Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z travellers, indicated plans to stay at properties with sustainability certifications in the next 12 months.
D’Silva noted that in 2025, travellers booked more than 100 million room nights at accommodation partners with third-party sustainability certifications through Booking.com.
The data suggests that for APAC travellers, sustainable travel is increasingly intertwined with climate resilience. Beyond reducing waste or energy use, travellers are rethinking peak seasons, popular destinations and even entire itineraries to cope with intensifying heat and weather volatility.
