Indigenous travel and going to the cultural source for wellness tourism was one of the biggest travel trends for 2023. Travelers are now seeking stronger local cultural experiences and showing interest in going to the source of ancient healing and knowledge in more intimate groups.
According to a report by Grand View Research, Inc., the global wellness tourism market is predicted to reach $1.02 trillion by 2030. The market is expected to expand at a rate of 9.93% from 2022 to 2030.
These three travel trends from Fast Company are predicted to be a significant focus of wellness tourism and the travel industry.
Related: 7 Wellness Tourism Trends in 2023
1. Socialized Learning
Fast Company points to the opportunity to travel with fellow enthusiasts and learn in a fun, social, and transformative way as a driver of the wellness tourism trend. The Global Wellness Institute predicts wellness tourism will grow 21% by 2025 and be the leading growth sector within the wellness category.
Wellness retreats and spiritual retreats are also popular on social media, with the two hashtags having a combined viewing of more than 33 million on TikTok and more than 584,000 posts on Instagram.
Fast Company sees wellness tourism as a positive trend with a focus on socializing via learning abroad and opportunities for entrepreneurs to start niche travel companies that create entirely new travel categories and communities.
2. Hyperlocal Travel
More travelers are opting for week-long stays in a single city or region instead of traveling across multiple countries in one trip. Travelers are going deeper into local cultures and gaining value from the uniqueness of the experience.
Fast company predicts tremendous growth in demand for regions and cities that are not the perennial favorites and more money being injected into local economies and the travel industry as a whole.
3. Personalization and Privatization
Travelers continue to seek private, tailor-made experiences over large group format experiences. The tailor-made travel market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.8% from 2023 to 2029, growing to over $500 billion in market size by 2029, according to Fast Company.
The company claims that travelers have a specific vision of what they want to see, the types of accommodations they want to stay in and what they want to taste, an experience that is difficult to produce in a pre-set large group format. While this shift will create opportunities, Fast Company also suggests it could render a tier of travel agencies and advisors obsolete due to a shift towards using AI to curate itineraries.
