WHILE many holidaymakers seek the sun, sea and sand as lockdown eases, it’s wellness retreats that are tempting luxury travellers this summer.
Sanctuaries, resorts, and spas that focus on wellbeing have emerged as the growing travel trend, according to researchers at Altiant.
While almost half (46 per cent) of wealthy travellers are ready to book a “general” holiday when they get the green light, one in five (22 per cent) say they will plan a wellness retreat as soon as possible.
With hotels set to reopen in England on July 4, this could happen sooner than they think.
Speaking at the World Travel Market Global Hub online seminar, Alison Gilmore from the International Luxury Travel Market said that people have been at home taking part in online yoga classes, and now they wanted the real thing.
She said: “I think we have all experienced the need to build on our own physical and mental health over the last four months. But in terms of wellness and wellbeing: we have come a long way in such a short time and there’s been nothing like a pandemic to accelerate preventative medicine. So there’s a lot going on.
“But I think after so much home healing, and online yoga and meditation and personal trainers – I think everyone now is craving the real thing. And I think that’s what people are going to be doing for the rest of this year and into 2021 and beyond. And I think it’s going to have a real focus.”
As a word of caution though Chris Wisson of Altiant revealed that even among rich travellers, spending would be conservative this year as families reassess their spending behaviour.
To help encourage people to travel though he said they wanted to see high hygiene practices, social distancing and staff wearing PPE.
He said: “Many airlines and hotels are communicating the investments that have made to try to reassure travellers that it’s safe for them to start taking holidays again.”
According to the Global Wellness Summit report, the industry is already booming and worth $4.5 trillion (£3.6 trillion) in 2020.
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