What Is The New Big Trend In Tourism?

 

The tourism sector is evolving and wellness tourism is the new big trend here. More and more luxury wellness spa resorts prop up everywhere while wellness brands are focusing on creating unique experiences.

 

Wellness tourism has become one of the biggest trends being covered by the leading luxury travel magazine. The travel and tourism industry is undergoing dramatic transformation at present. More and more travelers are shifting their focus from ego tourism to true experiential travels that rejuvenate them and contribute to changes to their lifestyle.

In this guide, you shall learn what wellness travel is and explore its growing popularity.

What is Wellness Tourism?

Wellness tourism and travel is the kind of experience that allows you to initiate, enhance, and maintain a healthy lifestyle. It also increases or supports your sense of wellbeing. And it continues to be at the core of the experience and services offered by the top wellness tourism destinations in the world.

Wellness tourism lays an emphasis on all the different aspects of wellbeing including:

• Mental
• Physical
• Spiritual

Wellness Trends in the Luxury Tourism Sector

As the popularity of wellness tourism grows, luxury hotels and resorts are the ones leading the trend by incorporating wellness into all areas of the guest experience they offer.

Transformative Wellness Tourism

There is more to wellness tourism than just experience travel. It is also about adding transformational value to the overall experience of traveling. So what does this form of travel include:

• Travelers are given the chance to undergo self-reflection
• You can find the opportunities make valuable and lasting changes to your life
• These changes are also expected at the emotional level, not just the physical level
• Wellness travelers are given an environment that empowers personal growth that covers the body, mind, and soul

It is no longer about pampering guests.

Luxury spas focus on demonstrating the transformational value they are able to offer in order to attract the modern luxury traveler. Some of the key features of this experience are as follows:

• Resorts and hotels are taking travelers through a story based wellness journey. The emphasis is on immersive storytelling and making the guests a part of those stories.
• Role-playing and gaming are being used as the pathways to charge emotions and encourage personal transformation.
• The modern spa experience is an active journey that combines treatments and experiences like fitness, nature connectivity, healthy eating, and cultural experiences.

There is a connect between the amenities, programs, treatments, itineraries, and classes. 

Wellness is Replacing Over-Tourism

The travel industry continues to face the challenge of over-tourism. Top luxury wellness spa resorts are overcoming it by providing an alternative. Travelers are now able to find new destinations that are healthier and have lesser traffic.

• Over 1.3 billion travelers are heading to international destinations every year
• There is a growing population with new-found wealth that seeks to spend on travel
• Some regions are shifting the focus from their hot tourist destinations to the lesser-traveled wellness destinations
• It is not just the hotels and resorts, but even governments are emphasizing on the importance of wellness tourism
• This is helping countries diversify tourism, create niche, reduce seasonality, and reduce over-tourism

The growth experienced by the wellness tourism sector is being fuelled by the developing markets. This includes the regions like:

• Latin America and the Caribbean
• Asia Pacific
• Middle East and North Africa
• Sub-Saharan Region

Asia continues to be the biggest growth area in terms of the number of trips and the revenue generated by wellness tourism.

Wellness Centers in Populated Areas

It is not just that the most popular Luxury Body Spa treatments destinations are restricted to remote locations. Wellness brands are settings up facilities in populated cities as well. Some of the examples of cities where many big brands have set up their wellness tourism centers include the following:

• Tokyo
• Singapore
• New York
• Dubai
• Hong Kong

Related Trends

Some of the related trends in this domain include:

• Female-only wellness tourism
• Architectural design wellness
• Emphasis on meditation
• Nature tourism

Interestingly, meditation has emerged as the fastest-growing trend in this sector. People travel to feel rejuvenated and refreshed in the true sense. De-stressing is an essential part of the process. And whatever, people learn from these experiences, the focus is on making them a part of their life. Thus, wellness tourism is not just about a one-off experience. It is about inculcating the principles into your lifestyle and taking back home something much more than experiences.