Travelers now seek purpose, personal growth and new skill sets, so programming is moving beyond mindfulness to actually feed their thinking minds—from more citizen science programs to immersing people in the creative arts
Our 2022 trend, “Wellness Travel, Seekers Welcome”, argues that with social forces such as the “great resignation,” record retirements and global nomadism, people are now seeking travel experiences that tap into their sense of purpose, their desire to grow creatively and intellectually, and that make a real impact on the planet. Intention is the future of travel, and more travel destinations and companies are answering the call for what could be called a new “intellectual wellness”—whether the surge in citizen science programs or more destinations getting people writing, painting and immersed in all kinds of creative expression.
You could say that the first chapter in wellness was mostly “mindless” (the focus was physical fitness and beauty), the second chapter revolved around mindfulness, and a new chapter is emerging of experiences that respect and feed people’s intelligence and their growing quest for knowledge and personal growth. May is Mental Health Month, and while the mental wellness space has focused on stress-reduction and meditation, the wellness that comes from a life of intellectual growth (is there any true wellbeing without it?) has long been the missing piece. The future? Less wellness that requires magical thinking and more that sparks some actual thinking.
A few ways the trend is playing out in travel:
Contributing to science
Lifelong learners who want to make a difference can increasingly participate in citizen-science programs. Visitors to the tropics have long been able to help ocean stewards with coral growing efforts; at the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island in the Maldives, guests work with the resort’s marine biologist to help plant the coral nursery, and the Rosewood Bermuda in Bermuda offers family-friendly coral-planting swims.