BBC Travel has published its list of the 20 best places to travel in 2026.

The list of global destinations only includes two U.S. travel spots, and one is the Oregon coast.

The BBC write-up is glowing, calling Oregon’s coastline “one of the country’s bucket-list road trips” – and noting that Oregon is the only U.S. state where all beaches are free and public.

• 6 Oregon towns make list of ‘most adorable’ in PNW

Kaitlyn Brajcich of Sustainable Travel International contributed to the BBC’s article, praising the coast’s accessibility and sustainability:

“Mobi-Mats laid over the sand and free beach wheelchairs enable more visitors to enjoy the shore, as does a new partnership with Wheel the World that maps inclusive lodging and experiences.”

Brajcich also cited the easy availability of bikes, sustainable seafood and transit options as reasons to visit the Oregon coast.

The Oregon coast has racked up plenty of superlatives over the years” “most adorable” small towns, most beautiful landmarks, best campground and more.

If you’re planning to visit the coast this winter, Winter Whale Watch Week begins Saturday, Dec. 27 and runs through Wednesday, Dec. 31.

“Trained Oregon State Park volunteers will be stationed at 14 sites along the Oregon Coast from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.,” the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department said in a news release, “to help visitors spot gray whales on their southward migration to the calving lagoons in Mexico.”

A map of the volunteer sites is available on the Oregon State Parks website.

Winter is also the best season to watch storms and view king tides at the coast, but remember to follow safety guidelines if you go.

• The 6 best places to witness king tides on the Oregon and Washington coasts this winter

The other U.S. location to make the BBC’s travel list? Philadelphia, where 2026 will see a yearlong celebration of America’s 250th birthday, including art and museum exhibits, concerts and a variety of sporting events like the FIFA World Cup.

Gov. Tina Kotek’s commitment to boosting prosperity through economic development is encouraging, and I hope her efforts are successful, (“Oregon’s governor unveiled a ‘roadmap’ to business prosperity. Here’s what’s at stake,” Dec. 2). Too often, Oregon’s leading industries and businesses hear platitudes on the importance of economic development only to witness actions that dilute economic development funds, which provide high returns on investment.

Oregon hospitality and leisure is the third-largest private employer sector, creating more than 200,000 jobs and generating $14 billion in annual economic activity – driven in part by state and local lodging taxes.

The state’s 1.5% lodging tax raises approximately $40 million a year and is reinvested in economic development, including tourism promotion and related infrastructure. But some state lawmakers are trying to increase the tax and divert the additional revenue for things without economic benefits – things which should be paid for with general funds. Worse yet, there are efforts to change how county and city lodging taxes are distributed.

State and local lodging taxes are designed to be an economic development tool, and the current system has proven itself – a $40 million investment at the state level and hundreds of millions at local levels for a $14 billion return.

The economic headwinds facing Oregon’s economy are fierce. We should be laser focused on creating the strongest multiplier effect we can with these finite economic development resources. If lawmakers care about Oregon’s economic prosperity, they will abandon these harmful proposals in the upcoming session, and the governor should rebuke any efforts contrary to the goals of her economic development roadmap.

Jason Brandt

Brandt is president and CEO of the Oregon Restaurant and Lodging Association

To read more letters to the editor, go to oregonlive.com/opinion.