Personal growth never goes out of fashion. While bed rotting – the 2024 trend of lolling around in a gorgeous hotel room all day long – was fun while it lasted, the year ahead looks set to push us further, with immersive, active exploration being where it’s at. With 34 per cent of UK travellers now citing wellness as a factor on getaways, we’ve paused – pens poised above the crisp, clean pages of our 2025 calendars – to consider which of the incoming trends we’re most excited about, and which we think will inspire and nourish you the most.
Among them, you’ll find horse-whispering workshops designed to reset a frazzled nervous system; urban saunas that combine self-care with community-building; indigenous-led experiences that promise to deepen both our knowledge and our connection to the land; mindful mountain adventures that act as reminders of the power of living with determined intent; regenerative, culinary-focused trips that will improve not only our own health, but that of the planet; and rejuvenating retreats that shine a spotlight on the menopause, an often-overlooked chapter of a woman’s life – plus many more.
A celebration of travel’s ability to remind us that the best way to care for ourselves is to keep moving forward, these are the 2025 wellness trends that we’re here for. Because, as Mary Shelley once noted – perhaps while contemplating a shiny new 12 months of blank pages to fill – “the beginning is always today".
Among them, you’ll find horse-whispering workshops designed to reset a frazzled nervous system; urban saunas that combine self-care with community-building; indigenous-led experiences that promise to deepen both our knowledge and our connection to the land; mindful mountain adventures that act as reminders of the power of living with determined intent; regenerative, culinary-focused trips that will improve not only our own health, but that of the planet; and rejuvenating retreats that shine a spotlight on the menopause, an often-overlooked chapter of a woman’s life – plus many more.
A celebration of travel’s ability to remind us that the best way to care for ourselves is to keep moving forward, these are the 2025 wellness trends that we’re here for. Because, as Mary Shelley once noted – perhaps while contemplating a shiny new 12 months of blank pages to fill – “the beginning is always today".
Rooms Hotel Kazbegi
Among those we’ve bookmarked to visit (or re-visit) in 2025 are Italy's Lefay Resort & Spa Dolomiti – whose new five-night Active and Balance Alpine Fix combines the therapeutic power of nature and the five movements from Classical Chinese Medicine to re-establish vital physiological functions, harmonise individual energy constitution, detoxify the body and reawaken muscles – Germany's Schloss Elmau, in the Bavarian Alps, just an hour from Munich, which was founded in 1916 as a sanctuary where guests could disconnect from the everyday and reconnect with their true selves, and where holistic retreats benefit from the property’s rich cultural offerings, deep musical heritage, tranquil spa facilities and healing outdoor therapies including mindful cross-country skiing – and, in Georgia, Rooms Hotel Kazbegi. Surrounded by the towering Caucasus, this former sanatorium was reimagined in 2012 as a sleek, minimalist bolthole that blends the rugged beauty of its setting with modern luxury, its focus on mindfulness reflected in meditative mountain views, rejuvenating spa treatments and connection to local culture. Want to feel on top of the world in 2025? This trend is for you.
Mountain mindfulness
Mountain mindfulness will continue its dizzying ascent in the year ahead, with a growing number of travellers opting to recharge and recalibrate against a backdrop of spectacular snowy peaks. Studies have shown that spending time amid such landscapes promotes relaxation by significantly lowering levels of cortisol, the hormone associated with stress, leading to a calmer state of mind and improved emotional balance. Mountain settings have also been shown to foster a greater sense of peace and belonging, not to mention increase cognitive function and creativity, while breathing in the oxygen-rich air has been proven to boost lung function and increase energy levels.Among those we’ve bookmarked to visit (or re-visit) in 2025 are Italy's Lefay Resort & Spa Dolomiti – whose new five-night Active and Balance Alpine Fix combines the therapeutic power of nature and the five movements from Classical Chinese Medicine to re-establish vital physiological functions, harmonise individual energy constitution, detoxify the body and reawaken muscles – Germany's Schloss Elmau, in the Bavarian Alps, just an hour from Munich, which was founded in 1916 as a sanctuary where guests could disconnect from the everyday and reconnect with their true selves, and where holistic retreats benefit from the property’s rich cultural offerings, deep musical heritage, tranquil spa facilities and healing outdoor therapies including mindful cross-country skiing – and, in Georgia, Rooms Hotel Kazbegi. Surrounded by the towering Caucasus, this former sanatorium was reimagined in 2012 as a sleek, minimalist bolthole that blends the rugged beauty of its setting with modern luxury, its focus on mindfulness reflected in meditative mountain views, rejuvenating spa treatments and connection to local culture. Want to feel on top of the world in 2025? This trend is for you.
Exploring Canada’s wilderness with Ungava Polar Eco Tours
For those travelling with the 1999-founded, conservation-driven Explorations Company, for example, tailored experiences in Uttar Pradesh, India, include the chance to spend time with remote Tharu communities. Known for their deep-rooted relationship with the land, Tharu healers, or Guruwa, are believed to possess the power to remove snake venom through age-old rituals in which they enter a trance state and communicate with deities on behalf of the patient. And, in Botswana's Okavango Delta, mindful walking safaris and slow expeditions in mokoro (dugout canoes) promote the kind of calm that can still be tapped into long after you’ve returned home. Meanwhile, for those seeking a little Himalayan magic, there's Bhutan's Pemako Punakha, a nature-centric, Bill Bensley-designed sanctuary where guests can immerse themselves in traditional national activities such as archery, khuru (a game played with darts) and healthy cooking classes, making for a meaningful and enriching stay. There’s also the property’s spa, whose treatments are rooted in Bhutan’s traditional medicine, Sowa Rigpa, the "science of awareness or nourishment", and where every detail is crafted to reflect the Land of the Thunder Dragon’s very essence. Wherever you decide to go, this is a trend that promises to boost body and mind alike, delivering a path to holistic wellness that blends adventure and cultural immersion, as well as promoting environmental stewardship.
Indigenous-led wellness experiences
If your new year’s resolution is to transcend digital distractions and embark on a health-supportive journey guided by ancient local wisdom, 2025 is for you, with wellness travel taking a transformative turn. From stress-busting Inuit storytelling sessions in northern Quebec with Ungava Polar Eco Tours to hands-on sessions exploring the extraordinary healing powers of the native flora found in Australia's Northern Territory, a diverse line-up of immersive, indigenous community-led experiences will both benefit our bodies and offer profound cultural insights, helping to preserve traditional knowledge and foster a greater understanding of the need for a more sustainable future.For those travelling with the 1999-founded, conservation-driven Explorations Company, for example, tailored experiences in Uttar Pradesh, India, include the chance to spend time with remote Tharu communities. Known for their deep-rooted relationship with the land, Tharu healers, or Guruwa, are believed to possess the power to remove snake venom through age-old rituals in which they enter a trance state and communicate with deities on behalf of the patient. And, in Botswana's Okavango Delta, mindful walking safaris and slow expeditions in mokoro (dugout canoes) promote the kind of calm that can still be tapped into long after you’ve returned home. Meanwhile, for those seeking a little Himalayan magic, there's Bhutan's Pemako Punakha, a nature-centric, Bill Bensley-designed sanctuary where guests can immerse themselves in traditional national activities such as archery, khuru (a game played with darts) and healthy cooking classes, making for a meaningful and enriching stay. There’s also the property’s spa, whose treatments are rooted in Bhutan’s traditional medicine, Sowa Rigpa, the "science of awareness or nourishment", and where every detail is crafted to reflect the Land of the Thunder Dragon’s very essence. Wherever you decide to go, this is a trend that promises to boost body and mind alike, delivering a path to holistic wellness that blends adventure and cultural immersion, as well as promoting environmental stewardship.
Running free at NIHI Sumba | Credit: Tania Arujo
The act of whispering into the animal’s ear is believed to calm the nervous systems of both parties involved, providing a grounding connection and release from the “fight or flight” mode familiar to so many of us in today’s always-on world. Meanwhile, in Indonesia, NIHI Sumba's pioneering Equine Connection programme gives guests access to Carol Sharpe’s Sandalwood Stables, home to 29 rescue horses, for a world-first equestrian spa experience, and its Kuda Guru retreat – the name coming from the Malay term for “horse teacher” – integrates yoga, classical work and mindfulness against a spectacular Indian Ocean backdrop. Oh, and for any fans of Rupert Campbell-Black and the rest of the Rutshire Chronicles’ horsey set, we can also confirm that Disney+ has a second season of Rivals in the pipeline. Giddy up!
One such retreat can be found at Combe Grove, a glorious English country pile set on 28 hectares of bucolic Somerset countryside, where the Menopause Retreat combines expert-led workshops, nutritional guidance, hormone-balancing therapies and restorative yoga and mindfulness practices to help women regain equilibrium at what can be a surprisingly destabilising time in life, all backed up by a one-year support programme that includes blood tests, weekly health content and consultations with a dedicated nutritionist. Taking a similar approach – but with added sunshine – is the 86-casita Rancho La Puerta in Baja California, Mexico, where, in addition to women’s holistic health experts, menopause retreat participants have at their disposal 64km of hiking trails, 13 hectares of landscaped gardens, an organic farm and cooking school. Then, in one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet, Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, Suzanne Carver heads up the spa at Nereus Retreats. The founder of Empowered Pelvis, a pioneering eight-week programme dedicated to enhancing pelvic floor health, Carver offers perimenopausal and menopausal women bespoke craniosacral therapy sessions, structural work and ashtanga yoga, with guests’ improved balance being further bolstered by three colourful, nutritional meals a day, all whipped up in the contemporary jungle hideaway’s health-supportive kitchen.
Horse therapy
Ponies are having a moment. Following the runaway success of Rivals – Disney+’s excess-all-areas, 80s-set adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s novel – and with the demand for riding boots, jodhpurs and Barbour jackets soaring, 2025 will see wellness-seekers galloping to destinations that offer the opportunity to explore the healing power of horses. Swapping the Peloton saddle for the saddle-saddle, we’ll be signing up for equine retreats that combine horse riding with therapeutic practices such as biomechanics, yoga and classical training techniques. Or perhaps even learning the subtle art of horse whispering. At rural French bolthole Le Barn, just an hour’s drive from central Paris, guests are surrounded by horses as far as the eye can see, thanks to the hotel sharing its bucolic grounds with world-renowned horsemanship school La Cense. But for those who want to get even closer, there’s the brand-new Whisperer’s Experience, an expert-led two-and-a-half-hour masterclass that invites participants into the lunge ring to learn how to replicate the instinctive language horses use to communicate with each other.The act of whispering into the animal’s ear is believed to calm the nervous systems of both parties involved, providing a grounding connection and release from the “fight or flight” mode familiar to so many of us in today’s always-on world. Meanwhile, in Indonesia, NIHI Sumba's pioneering Equine Connection programme gives guests access to Carol Sharpe’s Sandalwood Stables, home to 29 rescue horses, for a world-first equestrian spa experience, and its Kuda Guru retreat – the name coming from the Malay term for “horse teacher” – integrates yoga, classical work and mindfulness against a spectacular Indian Ocean backdrop. Oh, and for any fans of Rupert Campbell-Black and the rest of the Rutshire Chronicles’ horsey set, we can also confirm that Disney+ has a second season of Rivals in the pipeline. Giddy up!
Menopause Retreats
When it comes to women’s sexual health, we’ve come a long way from the “just go away and do a few kegels” days, with 2024 having seen a surge in progressive retreats offering programmes designed to empower through practices including intimacy coaching and bodywork sessions. This year, it will be menopausal health’s turn. Stella Photi, founder of the award-winning, UK-based Wellbeing Escapes, is seeing a 30 per cent year-on-year increase in female clients seeking specialist perimenopause and menopause retreats to help alleviate symptoms – which can include hot flushes, mood swings and sleep disturbances – and to help prepare for and navigate a new life chapter.One such retreat can be found at Combe Grove, a glorious English country pile set on 28 hectares of bucolic Somerset countryside, where the Menopause Retreat combines expert-led workshops, nutritional guidance, hormone-balancing therapies and restorative yoga and mindfulness practices to help women regain equilibrium at what can be a surprisingly destabilising time in life, all backed up by a one-year support programme that includes blood tests, weekly health content and consultations with a dedicated nutritionist. Taking a similar approach – but with added sunshine – is the 86-casita Rancho La Puerta in Baja California, Mexico, where, in addition to women’s holistic health experts, menopause retreat participants have at their disposal 64km of hiking trails, 13 hectares of landscaped gardens, an organic farm and cooking school. Then, in one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet, Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, Suzanne Carver heads up the spa at Nereus Retreats. The founder of Empowered Pelvis, a pioneering eight-week programme dedicated to enhancing pelvic floor health, Carver offers perimenopausal and menopausal women bespoke craniosacral therapy sessions, structural work and ashtanga yoga, with guests’ improved balance being further bolstered by three colourful, nutritional meals a day, all whipped up in the contemporary jungle hideaway’s health-supportive kitchen.
Sauna Social Club in Peckham, London | Credit Ben Farber, @bfarbr
In 2025, though, we’ll be seeing more saunas springing up in hip urban enclaves, as well as a blurring of the distinction between wellness facility and cool neighbourhood hang-out. In Peckham, south-east London, for example, Sauna Social Club is the capital’s first dedicated sauna and ambient listening space, its mission being to bring people together through a fusion of wellness, arts and community. “British social life is so centred around alcohol,” says co-founder Benji, an actor and personal trainer, who launched the club in 2024 with partner Nikki, a community organiser and DJ. “But you can take alcohol out and you can put sauna in its place, which makes you feel good, helps people connect with each other and means that instead of waking up the next day with a hangover, you wake up feeling healthy and well-rested.
In fact, frequent sauna use has been found to decrease overall mortality rates by 40 per cent, help to lower stress and blood pressure levels, promote good mental health and reduce the likelihood of conditions including dementia and arthritis. Which is a pretty high return, we’re sure you’ll agree, for simply taking off your clothes and sitting in a small wooden room heated to around 100ºC with others for a while, followed, perhaps, by an invigorating dunk in an ice bath. If you’re in Berlin and want to experience the transformative powers of steam, community and the arts, try Liquidrom, a minimalist “spa lounge” offering a smorgasbord of saunas and pools, plus revolving art exhibitions and DJs delivering gentle downbeats and mellow house vibes. And, of course, in OG sauna HQ Helsinki, you’ll find a multitude of options, spanning glossy marine spa saunas to sauna-diner combos.
From the foraging expeditions on offer at Shompole Wilderness in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, during which you’ll learn to identify and harvest health-supportive ingredients, to heritage cooking classes in Italy’s Piedmont region, the journeys we’ll be making this year will not only promote wellbeing, reduce stress and lower blood pressure, but contribute to the preservation of local ecosystems and support community-based initiatives. There are plenty of options closer to home, too. Take WildLuing, a remote, 2023-opened eco-retreat built by the farming Cadzow family on Luing, one of west Scotland’s under-the-radar Slate isles – and home to around 325 of the Luing cattle breed first developed in 1947. Guests here have the opportunity to take part in conservation efforts that directly contribute to the island’s ecological health, such as tree planting and shoreline clean-ups, learn about island rewilding initiatives, join educational farm tours, and, if they’re lucky, spot otters along the way. The ripple effect? It’s real.
Urban saunas
The year ahead is going to make us sweat, and we’re going to like it, with sauna culture continuing its sizzling march towards world domination. Saunaing is nothing new, of course: in Finland, the centuries-old practice is famously integral to daily life and formalised bathing rituals have existed all over the planet for millennia. In Japan, they have their onsens; in Turkey and the Middle East, hammams; Mexico, temazcales; Russia, banyas; Bhutan, dotshos; and so it goes on – the commonality being that all provide refuge, renewal and, often, a very real sense of community.In 2025, though, we’ll be seeing more saunas springing up in hip urban enclaves, as well as a blurring of the distinction between wellness facility and cool neighbourhood hang-out. In Peckham, south-east London, for example, Sauna Social Club is the capital’s first dedicated sauna and ambient listening space, its mission being to bring people together through a fusion of wellness, arts and community. “British social life is so centred around alcohol,” says co-founder Benji, an actor and personal trainer, who launched the club in 2024 with partner Nikki, a community organiser and DJ. “But you can take alcohol out and you can put sauna in its place, which makes you feel good, helps people connect with each other and means that instead of waking up the next day with a hangover, you wake up feeling healthy and well-rested.
In fact, frequent sauna use has been found to decrease overall mortality rates by 40 per cent, help to lower stress and blood pressure levels, promote good mental health and reduce the likelihood of conditions including dementia and arthritis. Which is a pretty high return, we’re sure you’ll agree, for simply taking off your clothes and sitting in a small wooden room heated to around 100ºC with others for a while, followed, perhaps, by an invigorating dunk in an ice bath. If you’re in Berlin and want to experience the transformative powers of steam, community and the arts, try Liquidrom, a minimalist “spa lounge” offering a smorgasbord of saunas and pools, plus revolving art exhibitions and DJs delivering gentle downbeats and mellow house vibes. And, of course, in OG sauna HQ Helsinki, you’ll find a multitude of options, spanning glossy marine spa saunas to sauna-diner combos.
Regenerative, culinary-led travel
While the concept of “leave only footprints” is here to stay, many of us will be going a step further in 2025 and taking a bite out of our climate anxiety by embarking on regenerative, culinary-led experiences whose aim is to enhance both our own wellbeing and that of the planet. According to industry reports, a holistic approach is emerging that’s less “farm-to-table” and more “soil-to-soul” – the focus being on redefining how we connect with the food on our plate and the land from which it came. Think biodynamic menus that support regenerative farming practices, dishes that showcase plant proteins, the use of closed-loop ingredients, and the increase of micro-certifications targeting specific sustainability goals.From the foraging expeditions on offer at Shompole Wilderness in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, during which you’ll learn to identify and harvest health-supportive ingredients, to heritage cooking classes in Italy’s Piedmont region, the journeys we’ll be making this year will not only promote wellbeing, reduce stress and lower blood pressure, but contribute to the preservation of local ecosystems and support community-based initiatives. There are plenty of options closer to home, too. Take WildLuing, a remote, 2023-opened eco-retreat built by the farming Cadzow family on Luing, one of west Scotland’s under-the-radar Slate isles – and home to around 325 of the Luing cattle breed first developed in 1947. Guests here have the opportunity to take part in conservation efforts that directly contribute to the island’s ecological health, such as tree planting and shoreline clean-ups, learn about island rewilding initiatives, join educational farm tours, and, if they’re lucky, spot otters along the way. The ripple effect? It’s real.
Surf retreats in coastal destinations across Mexico and Sri Lanka are a surging trend
With the number of travellers seeking waterside “coolcations” only set to grow as global temperatures rise, a wave of state-of-the-art wellness retreats has sprung up to meet demand, offering everything from ice therapy and water sound baths to snow meditation, floating yoga and surf retreats. Whether 2025 finds you island-hopping between Aegean spas or diving into waterfalls in Grenada, this trend speaks to water’s age-old ability to quiet the mind, lower stress hormones and spark creativity, making it a balm for the hyper-connected cacophony of digital life. The future? It’s fluid.
Blue Mind Therapy
Not for nothing does The Big Blue still regularly top best film lists. Directed by Luc Besson, the 1988 release was Inspired by real-life freediving legend Jacques Mayol, who made history in 1976 by breaking the 100m barrier with a no-limits dive off the coast of Elba, Italy. During the dive, Mayol’s heart rate slowed from 60 to 27 beats per minute – a phenomenon known as the “mammalian diving reflex”, more commonly observed in whales, seals and dolphins. Not that you have to go to such extremes to appreciate Blue Mind Theory, a trend whose beauty lies in its simplicity: a science-backed belief that being near, in, on or under water can boost mental clarity and emotional wellbeing. “Water is no longer the backdrop but the main event,” says Santosh Kumar, booking.com's country manager for India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Indonesia. “Three-quarters of global travellers report that being close to water instantly makes them feel more relaxed, while 36 per cent are interested in taking water-centric holidays this year."With the number of travellers seeking waterside “coolcations” only set to grow as global temperatures rise, a wave of state-of-the-art wellness retreats has sprung up to meet demand, offering everything from ice therapy and water sound baths to snow meditation, floating yoga and surf retreats. Whether 2025 finds you island-hopping between Aegean spas or diving into waterfalls in Grenada, this trend speaks to water’s age-old ability to quiet the mind, lower stress hormones and spark creativity, making it a balm for the hyper-connected cacophony of digital life. The future? It’s fluid.
Wellness nomadism
The ultimate movement for those seeking to combine their love of travel with personal growth, wellness nomadism will be at the forefront of hot-deskers’ minds in 2025, its rise speaking both to our greater, post-Covid flexibility and our desire to cultivate greater mental, physical and spiritual resilience while exploring new destinations. From yoga at dawn in Bali to biohacking on Spain’s Bay of Altea, and boundary-pushing sports programmes in the south of France, wellness-hunting wanderers can now dip in and out of a curated blend of practices, many of which integrate time-tested local traditions. Facilitated by a growing number of bespoke wellness travel companies catering to the peripatetic spirit, this lifestyle is now supported by tailored itineraries, remote, discounted accommodation, and on-the-go wellness coaching everywhere from wilderness-set nature reserves to mobile spa units and immersive cultural retreats. With each day bringing new possibilities for both adventure and inner peace, the boom in wellness nomadism spells good news for conscious travellers of all stripes.