Wellbeing getaways become a natural extension to a healthy lifestyle as importance of preventative health measures grows
As Governments and mainstream medicine are increasingly promoting preventative health and holistic practices to tackle today’s top causes of illnesses such as stress and unhealthy eating, the global travel industry sees rapid growth of wellness tourism.
Stella Photi, Founder of Wellbeing Escapes: “The Wellness Tourism Economy has now become one of the fastest growing segments in the global travel industry; more and more people are looking to feel better and more rejuvenated from a holiday rather than bloated and tired after a break of overindulgence and inactivity.”
UK’s oldest wellness travel specialist Wellbeing Escapes predicts the following trends in the industry in 2015:
Mental Health is coming to the forefront of wellness holidays, alongside physical wellbeing, meditation and mindfulness are becoming a regular offering in the activities schedule at many health retreats. Wellbeing Escapes’ “Fit Body, Fit Mind” retreat programme combines fitness and NLP to address changing mental patterns, so that healthy practices could be embedded in one’s usual routine upon return back home.
Raw, vegan and healthy food in general are becoming a way of living, with more and more people learning about immense benefits through various health retreat programmes. People also want to learn how to cook healthy food whilst attending special healthy culinary trainings.
Even the most indulgent and “guilty” experiences in life such as hen dos, weddings and honeymoons are now available in the “healthy” option; the demand for healthy hens, no-alcohol weddings; holistic Spa breaks is on the rise.
New wellness destinations appear on the global map of healthy holidays. It’s no longer only Far East that attracts people seeking a holistic retreat; new trendy locations spring up in places such as Croatia and Turkey.
Research carried out by SRI International for the Global Spa and Wellness Summit has established that:
– Wellness Tourism is projected to grow by more than 9{35d3525f1c030a1ad48e5d7c137e9475e12a267c00dd63e0fd71f891391fbb40} per year through 2017, nearly 50{35d3525f1c030a1ad48e5d7c137e9475e12a267c00dd63e0fd71f891391fbb40} faster than overall global tourism
– Wellness Tourism account for about 14{35d3525f1c030a1ad48e5d7c137e9475e12a267c00dd63e0fd71f891391fbb40} ($438.6 billion) of global tourism expenditures
– Wellness Tourism generates 11.7 million direct jobs around the globe, bringing about £800 billion in economic impact
Stella Photi: “In 2005 when Wellbeing Escapes launched it was the first company to sell travel by specific wellness categories. It was considered a niche business and only relevant to stressed highly paid executives and spa aficianados. Today the perception of spoilt women having beauty treatments at the spa is diminishing as more people embrace wellbeing as part of their lives and take control of their own health. Wellbeing holidays are now a natural extension to a healthy lifestyle.”