Heard of Travelasana? The Top Health and Wellness Travel Trends in 2024

Stress, anxiety, and depression are quite common these days. As stated by GoStress,

6 out of 10 people experience stress at work. And, China has the highest rate of workplace stress; 86% to be precise.

Stress is often not limited to the workplace, but there are various other factors that contribute to it. These include monotonous lifestyles, financial breakdowns, social media anxiety, relationship issues, and so on.

To help people break this chain, doctors recommend going on a vacation or taking a break from their daily routine. This is where health and wellness travel is one of the upcoming trends in the hospitality industry. 

If you are new to this concept, this blog is for you. Today, I’ll tell you everything you need to know about health and wellness travel trends, along with some tips for hoteliers to make the best of it. 

What is Health and Wellness Travel?

Health and wellness travel is going on a vacation, staying at a retreat hotel, and indulging in various activities for mental and physical well-being. This involves going for therapeutic sessions like Ayurvedic spa treatment, being a part of yoga training sessions, or meditation classes, that can help in the rejuvenation of mind and body.

Often this stay lasts from a week to a month. In fact, most of the retreat hotels are offering a workation to guests, opting for health and wellness travel. Meaning, they can stay, experience therapeutic sessions, and simultaneously work from the property. 

Nowadays, many organizations are encouraging their staff to go for such workation and take a break from their routine, especially for those working from home.

Why is Health and Wellness Travel Trending?

As I mentioned earlier, stress is quite common these days. In fact, WHO has declared that depression is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. 

Traveling is said to be an effective treatment for stress. Whenever you visit any destination, the first thing that helps you get out of depression is the change in surroundings. Secondly, you tend to meet different people, make new friends, and share your stories with them. 

Now, when you add the health and wellness factor to it, the trip becomes more productive, indulging, and rejuvenating. Reason being, the activities you do gives you a sense of relaxation, and calmness, and help you break free from the shackles of stressful thoughts. 

Let me share my experience with you. I lost my job in 2020, and I was sitting idle for around 6 months. I tried my hands on certain things like teaching, business, multi-level marketing, and whatnot. But none of them worked.

Eventually, I became depressed and had to seek a way to get rid of it. That’s when I thought of traveling to ‘Rishikesh  – The Yoganagiri’. The trip lasted for almost a week. 

My stay was clubbed with meditation sessions, yoga classes, and other stress-relieving activities. And trust me, it literally worked. I came out of depression, had a relaxed state of mind, and gained good control over my anger.  

This is not just my story. There are various people out there who opt for this kind of wellness travel to get rid of stressful issues and work on their physical and mental well-being. That’s why health and wellness travel is a trend among people.

What are Different Kinds of Health and Wellness Travel Trends?

When it comes to health and wellness travel trends, it is not just limited to one single category. Here are some of the prominent ones.

1. Sustainable travel 

We are all aware that the earth is in grave danger owing to global warming. Hence, various organizations are adopting eco-friendly ways to help save the environment. And, so are the hotels. 

Sustainable tourism is one of the ongoing travel trends in the hospitality industry. Guests often look forward to staying in a hotel that has adopted sustainable ways. This helps them live in a clean, refreshing, and healthier environment. 

For instance, many hotels are switching to renewable energy resources to reduce their carbon footprints. This includes opting for solar-powered water heaters instead of coal and wood-based. 

Another commonly accepted measure is organic products. There are many properties that have resorted to disinfectants, room fresheners, and toiletries that are made from natural products and are chemical-free. 

These kinds of initiatives are appreciated by guests, and in turn, give a boost to a sustainable lifestyle. In fact, as per a report shared by IMARC Group, the global ecotourism market size reached US$ 172.4 Billion in 2022. It is expected to reach US$ 374.2 Billion by 2028, exhibiting a growth rate (CAGR) of 13.9% during 2023-2028.

Considering these stats and figures, it could be rightly said that ecotourism is one of the emerging health and wellness travel trends.

2. Tours for physical wellness 

Physical wellness is not just about going to the gym, building muscles, or having 6-pack abs. It’s more about developing your flexibility, agility, and reflexes. 

There are many martial arts form famous across the world, such as Kalaripayattu, Thang-Ta, Judo, Kushti, and Tai Chi, that help open up your muscles and make you more flexible. Additionally, they also help in improving agility. But, how can traveling help you with that? 

Well, many guests look for hotels providing packages that include such activities. In fact, there are retreat properties that have martial arts experts on their premises. Where, guests can come, stay for a long duration, and do a crash course during their vacation.

Not only this, indulging in sports such as trekking, mountain climbing, cycling, and marathons helps in physical well-being. And even they are quite popular among guests. Let me share an example for the same.

In Bali, Indonesia, there is a rocky mountain cycling tour that starts at 4 AM in the morning. This involves visiting Mount Batur to witness the glorious sunrise and glimpse the iconic volcanic mountain. And it’s one of the sought-after activities by travelers for leisure and physical well-being.

There are thousands of other destinations promoting such sports to help travelers indulge in physical activities during their vacations. Some of the famous ones are:

• Kayaking in Costa Rica
• Scuba diving in Spain
• River rafting in North India
• Skiing in Whistler (Canada)
• Skydiving in New Zealand

3. Traveling for mental health

Yoga is widely accepted across the world as a path to restore mental balance, attain peace, and improve physical well-being. There are 84 asanas in yoga, and of that, meditation is the most recommended to channel your thoughts and have control over your mind. 

Here’s a scenario that will help you understand the reason behind it. Imagine yourself sitting on the mountainside with a mesmerizing view of surrounding valleys and greenery-clad peaks. 

Once you close your eyes and focus on your breath, you’ll start hearing the melodious music of nature. And every gust of breeze flowing through your hair seems like sweeping away all your worries. With time, you’ll find yourself a bit closer to attaining nirvana and filled with a surge of positive vibes.

This is just one scenario. People often travel to natural places just to experience serenity. Opting for yoga sessions during such trips can help in improving your mental wellness. 

That’s where hotels come into the picture. Guests can book a stay for a long duration in hotels located at remote/natural destinations and experience a yogic lifestyle. 

In fact, retreat/wellness properties offering yoga training are perfect for guests to rejuvenate themselves. Here are some interesting facts about yoga tourism shared by Book Retreats,

• There are around 300 million yoga practitioners worldwide.
• Of these, around 86% have reported a strong sense of mental clarity.
• There are approx 20,000 yoga retreats in the world.
• The worth of the yoga industry is a whooping US$84 billion worldwide.

I guess these stats are more than enough to justify the fact that the yogic way of living is one of the health and wellness travel trends of 2024. 

4. Therapeutic travel

Last but not least is therapeutic travel. As the name suggests, this involves traveling to destinations to receive a therapeutic massage or attaining therapy sessions. 

You might be aware of the famous Ayurvedic spa treatments offered in Kerala. Travelers visiting there often opt for it. And considering its popularity, many hotels have started including spa therapy sessions as a part of travel packages. 

There are basically three widely accepted Ayurvedic treatments by properties in India, viz;

• Abhiyangam
• Shirodhara therapy
• Panchakarma 

These therapy sessions last for a week or two. Out of these 3 sessions, the former two are opted for by travelers only if recommended by doctors. Talking about the latter one, it can be experienced by any guest for rejuvenation purposes. 

Word to wise: If you opt for Abhiyangam or Shirodhara, ensure you consult your doctor first. In case you have any medical history, do not go for it.

5. Rehab tourism

Rehab Tourism is one of the quirkiest types of wellness travel.

Yes, you heard it right.

For those who aren’t aware of this form of travel, it is a vacation where travelers mostly seek treatment for their addiction problems.

The reason behind rehab tourism gaining traction is that a basic vасаtіоn-lіkе trеаtmеnt wоrkѕ well for most treatment seekers. This form of treatment and travel is not trаumаtіzing to the traveler (the patient, to be precise) аѕ оutrіght еxреnѕіvе hоѕріtаlіzаtіоn.

To make this approach of rehab effective, centers and hospitality businesses are partnering up to curate a ѕоft аррrоасh that nоt оnlу аttrасts recovering аddісtѕ but also helps in significantly асhіеve соurѕе соmрlеtіоn rаtеѕ.

Despite being a farewell new trend, it seems to be catching up at a good speed as it is focused totally on delivering health and wellness.

If you think, you and your hotel can be a part of this cause, then it is certainly a great way to jump into the trend and offer what’s best for people.

How can Hotels Tap into this Segment?

Hotels play a pivotal role in health and wellness travel. After all, they are the accommodation providers to travelers opting for wellness tourism. 

They can make the best of it by providing facilities associated with health and wellness travel at their property. Be it introducing the concept of yoga, physical activities, or therapeutic sessions.

But whilst you partner with such service providers, it’s important that they have certified practitioners. Or go for ones that have been associated with these segments for a long time and have good client reviews.

For therapeutic sessions, it is mandatory to check if the person giving it has proper certification in the same. Also, ensure that s/he is using proper oils and equipment to deliver it the way it’s supposed to be. 

The Kairali group in India is the best example of a retreat property. They have a plethora of packages with almost every type of Ayurvedic massage for the guests. Moreover, travelers can combine it with yoga sessions to complete their treatment cycle and feel completely rejuvenated. 

Trust me, I’ve stayed at their properties and went under a treatment for my spinal issue. The results were quite amazing, and to date I recommend everyone to experience it themselves.

Here is a video that’ll compel you to go for it. 

What does the Future of Health and Wellness Tourism Look Like? 

Post-pandemic, people are more concerned about their well-being. And after a long work from home, everyone is looking forward to a break to rejuvenate themselves. That’s why various health and wellness programs are being reintroduced in the hospitality industry. 

The concept is not new, but it has gained momentum in recent years. Moreover, it has helped people to start things afresh. 

Even now, people opting for workation are looking for places that can aid in improving their physical well-being and finding inner peace. This has led to exponential growth in wellness tourism.  

It can be rightly said that health and wellness travel is one of the trends in the hospitality industry with a bright future.