Wellness tourism a growing niche

Wednesday, 30 Oct, 2013 0

Interest in trips that enhance and heal the mind, body and spirit are growing, opening new options for travelers and a new niche for travel agents.

Wellness Tourism Worldwide has offered up a list of "Wellness Travel Trends for 2014" to help travel planners and agents include wellness programs in their work and market them to customers.

The first step is to think beyond spas and hotels with healthy air, and remember that "Mind Matters" and mental health is perhaps the most important souvenir travelers can bring home.

Meditation, yoga, qi going and journaling learned on vacation are skills that can be brought back to help manage stress and improve cognitive capacity.

So, too, is altruism. Studies show that charitable work can improve well-being, and volunteer opportunities that connect people to charitable causes and local communities will be increasingly popular in 2014.

So too is the human connection. Consumers will continue to look for "locally relevant and authentic experiences with an emphasis on living la local vita (the local life)," and enjoy getting to know the locals in a meaningful way.

Along the same lines, food tourism is a big trend intersecting with wellness travel.

In addition to the physical aspect of sustenance, "food tours, cooking classes, agriculture and farm-to-table experiences speak to the emotional, social, intellectual and sustainable aspects of well-being," the report says.

Interest in slow travel is also growing, and can be incorporated into a wellness travel program by simply changing the pace in order to allow time to "sip, savor and revel in the vacation experience."

By Cheryl Rosen

Cheryl

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