| Wellness Travel continues to increase in popularity. Pre-pandemic it was reported to be the fastest-growing segment of the tourism industry, growing more than twice as fast as tourism overall. Many now agree that, post-pandemic, wellness-focused travel will recover stronger than ever.
This is not surprising because people have become more proactive with the state of their own health, conscientiously making changes in their daily lives and adopting healthier practices and habits. They want the same when they travel, and they realize that giving themselves time for self-care truly is the new luxury.
But what is driving this growing demand for wellness travel?
The following eight driving factors were taken from The Travel Institute’s new online Wellness Travel course:
1. The often noisy, congested, and stressful environment that has become our world.
2. Heightened consumer awareness. Reports on scientific advances have highlighted the importance of changing day-to-day practices and habits that can help shape our overall health and wellbeing. This has led to more people learning how to be more proactive with their health and taking vacation time to do so.
3. The adoption by more consumers of wellness lifestyles and the desire to travel the way they live.
4. The increase in an aging population with the time and finances to travel and the goal of living healthier longer.
5. The rise of organizations such as the Global Wellness Institute (GWI) and the Wellness Tourism Association (WTA) that have collected and shared information on the growing sector.
BONUS:
6. The decision by hospitality and other industries to create more options in all price categories and to cater to an increasingly broad range of special interests.
7. The sharing of information by the media – traditional, digital and social – so that the term “wellness travel” has come into common use.
8. The evolution of the concept of “self-care” to become less selfish and more accepted. |
