Yoga retreats and spa vacations used to be the norm when it came to wellness travel. Visitors would spend their days on the beach attending yoga classes or getting couples massages, eating healthy food, and resting by the pool. And, although such holidays do exist, wellness travel is no longer a one-size-fits-all endeavour. Wellness tourism is moving beyond spas and treatments, especially when we consider the post-covid world. Consumer attitude towards well-being is touted to change drastically in the coming years moving more towards a holistic approach and emphasising group well-being above individual well-being.
“According to a report by Global Wellness Institute (2021), wellness tourism is slated to grow at an average annual rate of 7.5 percent by this year-end. This is higher than the projected 6.4 percent rate for the annual growth of overall global tourism. India is one of the most preferred destinations for wellness tourism with more than 48.2 million wellness trips happening in the year 2020.To capitalise on this uptick and progression of wellness travellers’ wants, the hospitality industry is offering highly bespoke getaways, such as stays at a local farm or far-off monastery, hikes to the hills, or sound treatment therapies. As the definition of well-being has changed, so have travellers’ wellness expectations. To keep up with this demand for personalised wellbeing experiences, not only established wellness players such as Ananda in Himalayas, Vana in Dehradun and Atmantan in Pune but also the newcomers like Shatam Jeeva in Jhansi and Aramness in Gujarat are offering tailor-made holistic wellbeing packages. The world is yearning for a better way of life as an alternative to the frantic way of life we now lead. If hospitality stakeholders don’t act quickly adapting to this shift, they may risk losing revenue. Interestingly, the trend toward niche wellness travel gives independent hospitality players a competitive edge. International hospitality brands, on the other hand, may struggle to adapt to specialised offerings due to various reasons like infrastructural hurdles or adaptiveness struggles. Post Covid-19, the awareness of wellness and Ayurveda has increased not only for the ailing individuals but for the healthy. Overall wellness is now considered a lifestyle rather than a leisure activity. Earlier in India, Kerala was the most preferred destination for Ayurveda and Yoga retreats but lately, other parts of India are too witnessing a good surge in booking enquiries for wellness retreats and centres. Ayurveda therapies like Shirodhara and herbs like Ashwagandha have no doubt enjoyed their global recognition. It won’t be wrong to anticipate that India soon may surpass Bali, Thailand and Maldives in terms of favoured wellness destinations. In the future, we may see travel combine wellness with exploring nature in all its amazing diversity: birdwatching, walking through rainforests, connecting with life in the Himalayas or spiritual sites like Varanasi. For brands aiming to target the wellness tourism market, it can be a fantastic idea to collaborate with a nearby wellness centre to provide tourists with a more authentic experience and a sense of community. Or to make the local wellness experience a part of in-house offerings. Moving forward, spas are about to enter a new era as a result of the fusion of next-generation wellness and health informatics. We will have access to information that will enable spas to create specialised enhancement and preventive programmes. Technology will be the game changer. Wellness although attributed to the speciality of human touch, AI and machinery may come forward in detecting the exact treatment needed in wellness retreats and spas. Some centres may meld new available technology and data with the traditional experience to varying degrees. In India, destinations like Pune, Lonavala, Coorg, Gir and Bir Billing are likely to take up the pace of becoming the next wellness hub of India. Not to forget the existing famous destinations like Kerela, Goa, Rishikesh, Gokarna and Rajasthan. And peeking into a distant future, a lot is in the kitty of wellness tourism. Whether it’s new or renovated bathhouses featuring hydrothermal bathing (saunas, steam rooms, pools, etc.), large-scale wellness water resorts, or public parks where nature meets art and wellness, cities around the globe are suddenly making the pursuit of wellness accessible, affordable and inclusive. Furthermore, health and wellness are attractive to the Metaverse which needs to diversify beyond gaming. The metaverse is happening…it isn’t a maybe and the rise of the “Wellness Metaverse” is inevitable. To build a Wellness Metaverse, there will be unprecedented new synergies between the technology, wellness and health industries. Wellness sectors, including fitness, beauty, healthy eating, mental wellness, wellness tourism, spas and workplace wellness are introducing new technologies and virtual worlds that deliver a far more immersive experience and radically transform how wellness is delivered to global consumers.