The most engaging travel marketing campaigns right now
Roughly a 12 minute read by Evie
In today’s travel landscape, inspiration alone is no longer enough. Airlines, destinations, tour operators and platforms are all competing in the same feeds, moments and mindsets, fighting not just for bookings but for attention.
As our latest travel market trends research shows, demand is strong, but loyalty is oh-so fragile, with travellers constantly weighing up their next option and ignoring the plethora of loyalty schemes that perhaps don’t really reflect how we want to travel.
At Engage, we spend a lot of time thinking about attention, time and desire and how brands earn all three. The campaigns that cut through now go a lot further than just glossy storytelling. They invite participation, deliver real value, tap into lived culture and blend human warmth with that smart technology everyone talks about all the time (you know the one). This first edition of our annual series highlights seven recent travel marketing campaigns that did exactly that.
Methodology
To create this ranking, our travel marketing experts - the team behind some of Jet2’s most successful digital activations - shortlisted the travel marketing campaigns that most impressed them over the past year or so. These were then presented to the wider agency, with colleagues voting on the work they felt delivered the strongest engagement.
Votes were based on a shared set of criteria, including interactivity, memorability and purpose. The results formed what we have now call the Engage-ment Travel League, a snapshot of the campaigns that earned attention and made it count.
Our top 7 favourite recent travel campaigns
7: Austrian National Tourist Office - ChatSkiPT
What makes it stand out
- Celebrates human intelligence rather than competing with AI
- Builds trust through real local voices
- Timely cultural commentary on travel sector marketing campaign automation
What the campaign is
ChatSkiPT was conceived as a deliberate response to the growing dominance of AI-driven travel planning. Rather than launching another automated tool, the Austrian National Tourist Office chose to spotlight real ski instructors, positioning them as trusted guides for winter travel. Travellers were invited to ask practical questions about conditions, resorts and après ski and receive answers shaped by lived experience on the slopes.
Rolled out through social content, paid digital, PR and a branded hub, the campaign framed human knowledge as a point of difference and positioned Austria as a destination best understood through its people, rather than prompts.
Why we love it
In a moment where AI dominates travel conversations, ChatSkiPT confidently swims against the tide. By putting real people front and centre, it reminds travellers that local knowledge, humour and warmth still matter. The campaign builds trust through authenticity while cleverly tapping into wider cultural debates about technology versus human expertise.
6: Mindtrip - Group Chat Travel Planning
What makes it stand out
- Reflects real group travel behaviour
- AI adapts to multiple preferences, not just one user
- Simplifies planning by replacing fragmented tools
What the campaign is
Mindtrip introduced its group chat feature to address a simple but often ignored truth about travel planning: Most trips are decided together, yet most platforms are built for individuals. The feature brings group conversation, shared ideas and preference setting into one space, allowing travellers to plan collaboratively while an AI assistant responds to the discussion in real time.
Instead of delivering static recommendations, the experience evolves as the group talks, debates and refines what they want from a trip,. reflecting how trends in travel marketing increasingly centre on collaborative, human-led experiences.
Why we love it
Most travel platforms still treat planning like a solo activity, despite the reality that holidays are often a group decision. Mindtrip recognises this behavioural gap and designs around it. By combining AI with group dynamics, it removes friction and creates inspiration that evolves naturally as people contribute. The collaboration between humanity and the hivemind of AI feels actually heartwarming rather than weird.
5: Oxfam - Taxing Luxury Travel
What makes it stand out
- Demonstrable real world policy impact
- Bold satirical use of travel aesthetics
- Turns awareness into participation
What the campaign is
This campaign used the visual language and tone of aspirational travel advertising to challenge the environmental cost of private jets and superyachts. Developed by Oxfam, it spanned film, social, digital out of home, influencer partnerships and PR, using satire to highlight how fair taxation on luxury travel could generate billions for climate justice.
A public open letter formed the centrepiece of the activation, giving supporters a clear and simple way to add their voice and push for tangible political change. The campaign contributed to a 50% rise in Air Passenger Duty for private jets – a real win for a campaign that soared above many others.
Why we love it
This is purpose with teeth. Rather than vague sustainability messaging or corporate greenwashing that smells off from the start, Oxfam delivered a campaign with measurable impact. By reframing climate justice through a travel lens, it made inequality feel immediate and relevant and gave people a clear way to act.
4: Wonderful Copenhagen - CopenPay
What makes it stand out
- Gamifies sustainable behaviour in the real world
- Evidence led and supported by credible partners
- Encourages exploration through meaningful action
What the campaign is
CopenPay is a destination-wide initiative designed to reshape how visitors move through Copenhagen. Instead of promoting sustainability as an abstract value, the city introduced a reward-based system that links low carbon actions to cultural experiences.
Travellers earn small rewards by cycling, using public transport, arriving by train or taking part in community activities such as clean-ups and urban gardening. These rewards unlock access to partner attractions, turning responsible behaviour into a playful and practical way to explore the city. After a successful pilot, the programme returned at greater scale and duration, making Copenhagen just as wonderful as the song always told us it was.
Why we love it
CopenPay transforms sustainability from a passive message into an active behaviour. Rather than telling travellers what not to do, it rewards positive choices and makes responsible tourism feel playful and achievable. These types of campaigns highlight emerging travel industry marketing trends and participatory initiatives that shape visitor behaviour.
3: Visit Iceland - OutHorse Your Email
What makes it stand out
- Human, humorous response to digital burnout
- Unexpected physical execution
- Strong sense of place and cultural character
- Erm, horses
What the campaign is
OutHorse Your Email was built around a familiar holiday tension: the inability to fully switch off from work. Visit Iceland responded with a playful physical installation, where Icelandic horses walked across a giant keyboard to type real out-of-office messages on behalf of travellers.
Captured through film and amplified via social, earned media and a dedicated microsite, the activation reframed Iceland as a place where digital noise fades and true escape begins. The use of the country’s iconic horses grounded the idea firmly in Icelandic culture while delivering global appeal.
Why we love it
This campaign perfectly balances charm and insight. By using Iceland’s iconic horses to replace workplace notifications, it creates a joyful human antidote to digital overload. The physical installation adds surprise, while the message lands universally. It also felt like it could have been a Bjork video, which is a good thing.
2: Jet2Holidays - The #Jet2Challenge
What makes it stand out
- User led storytelling at massive scale
- Deep cultural relevance through sound and humour
- Simple mechanics that unlock creativity
What the campaign is
Rather than a planned campaign, the #Jet2Challenge grew out of an organic social moment, when its hugely familiar audio track became widely used on TikTok to soundtrack humorous holiday chaos. Rather than forcing a brand-led response, Jet2 embraced the behaviour already happening and shaped it into a participatory challenge.
Travellers were invited to recreate or lip sync to the sound across TikTok and Instagram Reels, with the chance to win a hefty Jet2holidays voucher. By formalising the trend without trying to control or own it, Jet2 extended the life of the moment and embedded itself deeper into summer travel culture.
Why we love it
Rather than trying to control the narrative – or holding our hand too tightly – Jet2 leaned into community creativity. The brand became part of a wider cultural moment, using a simple low-barrier prompt to spark mass participation.
The fact this all grew from an organic trend also shows the power of long-term brand building. Jet2’s distinctive assets, especially that instantly recognisable sound bite, gave people something to rally around when the moment hit.
1: Black Tomato - The Feelings Engine
What makes it stand out
- Emotion-first personalisation
- AI used as an enabler not a shortcut
- Perfect alignment with brand purpose and storytelling
What the campaign is
The Feelings Engine was launched by Black Tomato to rethink how travel inspiration begins. Instead of starting with destinations or dates, the tool asks travellers how they want to feel, then uses AI alongside expert human curation to suggest experiences aligned to that emotional state.
Developed as part of the brand’s 20th anniversary, the tool sits within a broader content ecosystem that includes storytelling, creator partnerships and a podcast series exploring emotional travel. It positions planning not as a transactional step but as the first chapter in an experience driven by feeling, hope and intent. In many ways, it’s driven by dreams.
Why we love it
This feels like a genuine step forward for travel inspiration. By starting with emotion, Black Tomato reframes planning as a deeply personal act. The AI enhances creativity rather than replacing it, while the tool fits seamlessly into the brand’s wider ‘pursuit of feeling’ platform.
Where travel campaigns are heading in 2026 and beyond
Taken together, these campaigns point to a clear evolution in how travel brands earn attention. The best work now invites audiences to step inside the story and play a role in shaping it. Trends in travel marketing now emphasise interactivity, human presence, and emotion-led personalisation.
Storytelling is becoming increasingly participatory. From socially fuelled moments like #Jet2Challenge to playful executions such as OutHorse Your Email, brands are finding that humour, cultural fluency and interaction outperform polished but passive content. The audience is no longer just watching the journey unfold. They are helping create it.
We’re also seeing a shift towards discovery that feels earned rather than handed down. Initiatives like CopenPay point to a future where destinations guide behaviour through incentives and design rather than instruction. Small, tangible actions are becoming a powerful way to unlock experiences, encouraging travellers to explore places more thoughtfully and responsibly.
Purpose hasn’t disappeared, but the bar has risen. Campaigns such as Oxfam’s show that values-led messaging only resonates when it’s supported by evidence, clarity and a clear route to impact. Vague sustainability promises are losing credibility. What cuts through now are outcomes that people can see.
At the same time, personalisation is becoming more nuanced. The strongest examples move beyond surface level AI recommendations, using emotion and group dynamics to shape inspiration. Tools like The Feelings Engine and Mindtrip signal a move towards planning experiences that reflect how people feel and decide, not just what they search for - a concept increasingly recognised in business travel market trends as well.
Despite rapid advances in technology, one thing remains constant: Human presence still matters. Campaigns like ChatSkiPT and the characterful work from Visit Iceland reinforce that expertise and personality remain powerful differentiators. The next generation of travel marketing will belong to brands that use AI to enhance creativity and relevance while keeping human experience firmly at the centre, where it belongs.
“The most engaging travel campaigns are not shouting louder in an already noisy room. They are inviting people in. From emotional AI tools to playful participation and purpose-driven action, the work that stands out today reflects how people travel, feel and connect.”
Will Blackmore, Technical Director & Jet2 Account Lead
Make every journey count.
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