With a new decade on the horizon, it’s the time to start manifesting some 2020 travel. While you know I always find the positive wherever I go, there are some destinations whose food scenes are really making a mark right now, and I wanted to share some of them with you all as you get to marinating on where to head next year.

Whether you’re planning for a little self gifting (hey, treatyoself!) or looking for ideas for friends and fam this holiday season, you can get some sweet deals on some of my favorite food destinations with Delta Vacations right now. One of the biggest steps in upping my travel game over the years has been becoming loyalist to an airline (I’m a Delta girl). It drastically changes the travel experience getting upgraded and/or having lounge access, especially when I’m traveling for business. We have to hit the ground running working in production, and those little creature comforts make all the difference. But to be honest I hadn’t heard of Delta Vacations until recently, and this new deal they’ve got on definitely sweetens the pot. They offer more than 300 destinations and 5,000 hotels worldwide, and can help you build an entire trip complete with flights, hotels, car rentals, and transfer packages.

Right now, SkyMiles Members can save up to $350 or earn up to 35,000 bonus miles per booking when booking a flight and hotel vacation package through their site, including some of my favorite food cities here, now through 12/15. Terms apply. (Not a SkyMiles Member? It’s easy and free to enroll today. Just click here.)

Here are my picks for the top destinations for food lovers this coming year.

*This post is a paid partnership with Delta Vacations.

Mexico City

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that CDMX is one of my all time favorite food cities. It’s a wonderful mix of old school and new, with traditional farm visits and long table dinners at Yolcan, or folks like El Molino milling tortillas from ancient corn varieties that have nearly gone extinct. But there are also some progressive restaurants like Amaya serving very trendy natural wines, and female chefs like Gabriela Camara doing design-forward fare at Contramar. It’s all there. And since there’s so much to navigate, I even built a CDMX guide of my faves here.

Grenada

Known as the Spice Island of the Caribbean, Grenada is heaven not only for adventure lovers, but for food folks, too. They produce spices like nutmeg and cinnamon, and also grow an incredible amount of cacao. You can take farm tours, and even enjoy cocoa spa treatments. Plus the ocean is turquoise, the people are lovely, and there’s hiking to waterfalls and underwater sculpture park diving to be done. Heaven? I’d say so!

Western Sweden

I was so inspired by the sustainability movement in Sweden during my recent trip, where we got to try the seafood pictured above. There’s also an amazing coffee culture celebrated through their daily ritual of fika (with tasty cardamom buns to boot!), plus amazing restaurants featuring local seafood, and if you’re a sweets lover like me you’ll get a kick out of all the sour candies and black licorice. The hyper-connectedness to nature utilized in the Nordic food movement continues to make waves and set the tone for the rest of the food world, and you can see it firsthand in this idlillic Scandinavian country.

Guadalajara

The capital of Jalisco, GDL may be the second city to some, but the Ticos (or folks from Guadalajara) are actually as Mexican as they come. In fact, the most quintessential Mexican traditions — mariachi, tequila, and charros — are all from this region. They’ve also got a ballin food scene, and you can take an actual tequila train like we filmed here to get out to the agave fields and do some tastings. Plus there are some really revolutionary chefs like at La Postreria, a deserts only cafe in the heart of town. And don’t forget the signature regional dish: tortas ahogadas, which are essentially Mexico’s answer to a French dip. They are totally delicious and worth the trip alone!

Singapore

I’m a sucker for the hawker centers that Singapore is known for, and had so much fun filming those for Tastemade. The city is incredibly safe for solo female travelers like myself, and the street food is so heavily regulated that it’s always a sure bet. There are some really great craft cocktail bars in town — this is where the Singapore Sling was created at the newly remodeled Raffle’s Hotel after all — so don’t miss out on those.

Los Angeles

Look, I’m a native Angeleno so I’m a little biased here. But I can tell you after covering the food scene here for 10+ years that now is the time to be in LA. Whether you’re into authentic cuisines from Mexico, Korea, or China, or more upscale innovative fine dining, or anything in between, the City of Angeles has it for you. For some of the best spots to hit up while you’re here, check out my guide to the best restaurants in LA.

Oahu

Waikiki is no longer the tourist trap it used to be, believe me. If you head out into Chinatown, there’s an incredible blossoming makers’ movement, some super cute design hotels, great local boutiques, as well as some top notch cocktails bars and restaurants. And the farmers markets are off. the. chains. at any time of year! (It is a tropical climate after all.) It’s really got that perfect mix for the savvy traveler.

Melbourne

Having lived in AUS, I can tell you that this country loves its food. They’re sticklers for regionality, and Melbourne truly is a leader when it comes to the craft coffee scene. You can check out my list of best coffee shops and best brekkies, and my video of some of the incredible street art, here.

Tokyo and Kyoto

I’ve been to Japan three times now, and I still cannot get enough. Every time, I come back totally inspired by their incessant pursuit of perfection in everything they do, from pottery to design to, of course, food. Take the shinkansen bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto to explore some of the local ekiben — or regional bento boxes for train travel — and be sure to visit some of Suntory’s incredible whiskey distilleries too.

Portland

Most of my close friends know that if I were to ever leave LA, it’d be for PDX. I’m totally blown away by the restaurant scene there (Nongs Khao Man Gai is truly one of my all time faves), and the Willamette Valley wine region, which produces world-class pinot, is right there. Plus I just love the hippie spirit. You can check out my video from Chef's Week PDXto get inspired.

Top 10 Destinations for Food Lovers in 2020