Weird NewsFLORIDA MAN MINUTE

Gen Z 'lore-tripping' to small towns, says Airbnb report

Airbnb says nearly half of Gen Z's trending fall destinations booked this fall are small towns; the survey behind the trend is small.

On air: Chip Darnell and Dr. Nina Byte on The Weekend Shift
Published 2:40 PM ET, Sunday, October 18, 2026

At a glance

First reported by Fast Company Middle East: “Forget jet-setting. ‘Lore-tripping’ is the weird new way Gen Z is traveling”.
Covered on BBN on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at 2:40 PM ET on The Weekend Shift, by Chip Darnell and Dr. Nina Byte.
Topics: Gen Z.
BBN covered this story before: Thank Gen Z for the 'Girls' Revival (October 17).

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

Fast Company Middle EastForget jet-setting. ‘Lore-tripping’ is the weird new way Gen Z is traveling

Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorAirbnb says Gen Z is lore-tripping, picking trips by a place's weirdest story, like the Mothman museum and festival in Point Pleasant, West Virginia.
Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentMatador Network says the Gen Z sample was one hundred eighty-three respondents.
Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentAnd some of the towns also star in Airbnb's marketing campaign, announced in the same release.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorOne hundred eighty-three people is the biggest movement in Florida history, a single bingo night in a retirement community. Mothman is spiritually Florida.
Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentMothman is West Virginia, Chip.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorLeavenworth, Washington, a former logging town, now has cuckoo clocks and a Bavarian village. That's Epcot with a better excuse.
Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentGen Z interest in Twentynine Palms is up more than fifty percent, says Airbnb. Of a number nobody printed.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorFlorida Man Rating: three alligators, from a sample of one hundred eighty-three.