The best replacement for xpath is xquery.

The best alternatives to xpath are rated as following:
★★★★★  xquery
★★★  jaxb
★★★  linq
★★  xslt
★★  css
★★  sax
★★  xmlreader
★★  linq performance
★  sax parsing
★  regex
★  linq to xml
★  selector
★  predicate
★  sax parser
★  css selectors
★  css selector selenium
  css selector
  jquery selector
  stax
  css locator
  xsl

Your alternative for xpath is not listed? Suggest!
Speaking about xpath, one probably shouldn't forget about namespace.

Other search terms related to xpath and their ratings are:
★★★★★ namespace
★★★★ attribute
★★ xmlns
★ attribute value
★ jdom
namespaces
xdocument
xslt
You have in mind a companion for xpath and it is not yet here? Propose!



Google Trends

Scale is based on the average worldwide traffic of xpath in all years. Click on graph for more.
xpath
xquery
jaxb