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Wellness experience


Taking centre stage


Health and wellness tourism has rebounded faster and stronger than many analysts predicted, with GlobalData’s ‘Key Trends in Health and Wellness Tourism (2025)’ report projecting sustained growth across both visitor numbers and spending. For hoteliers, this is no longer a side-line business; it is the new frontier of hospitality. Alex Summers examines how wellness is reshaping the hotel industry and where the biggest opportunities lie.


ew sectors in global travel can claim the resilience of health and wellness tourism. The past decade has been a story of steady growth interrupted by a dramatic pause, then an equally dramatic resurgence. From 2016 to 2019, the sector quietly built momentum, only to be derailed by the Covid-19 pandemic, which caused arrivals to collapse from a peak of 354 million in 2019 to fewer than 94 million in 2020. Yet the rebound has been astonishing. In 2022, arrivals more than doubled to 212.7 million, climbing again in 2023 to over 300 million. By 2024, wellness tourism had not only regained its footing but surpassed pre-pandemic levels, hitting a record 383.5 million inbound arrivals worldwide. Forecasts suggest this upward trajectory will continue, reaching nearly 448 million arrivals by 2028, with a CAGR of 3.9%.


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Spending has risen even faster. After plunging from $26.45bn in 2019 to $9.54bn in 2020, wellness tourism spend surged to $33.6bn in 2024, with an expected CAGR of 8.1% through 2028. By the end


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of that period, the sector is projected to generate $45.9bn annually.


For hotels, these are not just numbers. They are a mandate. The modern traveller is prioritising well- being at unprecedented levels, creating an opportunity – and a challenge – for hoteliers to rethink the very core of their offering.


Beyond the spa: redefining wellness in hospitality


For years, hotels have equated wellness with spas and gyms. Those elements remain important, but wellness has evolved into something much broader. Today’s health-conscious traveller is not simply booking a treatment; they are booking a lifestyle experience. Wellness tourism now encompasses:


■ Preventive health programmes: yoga, meditation, nutrition, stress management.


■ Active fitness: guided hikes, cycling tours, personal training sessions.


■ Holistic health: mental health retreats, mindfulness, sleep optimisation programmes.


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