JUST A FEW YEARS AGO, as we resurfaced from pandemic restrictions and border closures, we saw the emergence of “revenge travel” as people packed their bags and flew to far-flung corners of the globe for epic adventures. We went big. We spent big. We stopped talking about those bucket-list trips and booked a ticket, no matter the cost. But now, the way we travel is shifting once again. Here are some thoughts on how travel is evolving in the year ahead.
Uummannaq, Greenland. Photo by Aningaaq Rosing Carlsen – Visit Greenland
1 THE JOY OF MISSING OUT
Forget about FOMO. Now, we actually want to miss out. After all, spending your vacation time trying to get the perfect shot for Instagram can be exhausting – and take away from the joy of experiential travel. As the countermovement to the fear of missing out, JOMO is the joy of missing out – where you’re not documenting every moment on your phone, but simply being more present in the moment.
This might mean travelling to less “popular” destinations or in the off-season (when you might not get those postcard-perfect pictures). Or, it might mean travelling to reconnect with loved ones (or yourself), with no specific itinerary in mind. So it doesn’t matter if you don’t get the perfect selfie at an iconic location. Your phone is turned off, and you’re in the moment. That’s the joy of missing out.
2 SOFT TRAVEL
Over the past year we saw the rise of “slow” travel, where we take the time to fully immerse ourselves in a destination rather than ticking items off a bucket list. While slow travel is still going strong, it goes hand-in-hand with another trend we’re seeing: soft travel, where we prioritize our health and well-being. Indeed, more than one in five travellers are prioritizing self-discovery or mental health on leisure trips, according to Hilton’s 2025 Trends Report. This goes beyond the typical spa vacation (though we still love a good spa vacation!). Rather, it’s about taking a step back from the stress of our daily lives to embrace simplicity, spontaneity and even “intentional boredom,” where we avoid overstimulation that, in turn, can help to restore depleted energy and creativity. Soft travel is also about serendipity–or going with the flow – where we leave room in our itinerary for those magical travel moments you can’t plan for.
Ruins in Tikal, Guatemala. Photo Austin Curtis on Unsplash
3 QUIETCATIONS
Sleep tourism has been growing in popularity, with a number of luxury hotels offering sleep retreats and even science-backed programmes to help you rest, recharge and reset through the power of sleep. While that trend will continue,we’re also seeking more than a good night’s sleep: silence. Maybe it’s the physical noise of our daily lives, or maybe it’s the mental noise – being inundated with email, texts, social media – that we’re looking to escape.
That’s where quietcations come in, where we can turn down the volume, cut out distractions and reclaim silence. That could mean different things to different people: maybe it’s going on a digital detox at a wellness hotel; maybe it’s taking the train instead of flying (in a well appointed private carriage, of course); or maybe it’s heading out into nature, like a dark sky preserve. This craving for silence could be why countries like Mongolia, Greenland and the “Stans” in Central Asia – with their wide open spaces – have been making their way onto travellers’ wish lists for 2025.
4 THE ROAD LESS TRAVELLED
Maybe it’s a response to overtourism or an extension of the other trends we’re seeing, but there’s more interest in seeking out less-visited destinations. Backlash against overtourism in tourist hotspots like Barcelona is perpetuated, in part, by “selfie tourism” – where tourists visit iconic landmarks for the express purpose of curating photos for social media, rather than immersing themselves in a destination’s history or local culture.
Isla de Ometepe, Nicaragua. Photo by @colinmcm
At some of the world’s famous landmarks, this has led to all sorts of issues, from overcrowding to degradation of local infrastructure. Taking the road less travelled means visiting lesser-known parts of the globe that aren’t overrun, say Nicaragua, Guyana or the Northwest Territories, for example – and where you don’t have to book a time slot to visit a fountain or museum. Not only can this help bring back the joy of travel, but it could also be a salve for overtourism.
5 SPORTS AND ADVENTURE TOURISM
Sometimes we want to do absolutely nothing on vacation, while other times we have a very specific purpose for travel, and it involves doing something we love: whether it’s hiking to remote Himalayan monasteries in Bhutan, visiting White Lotus filming locations in Sicily (part of the set-jetting trend) or taking part in a cultural or sporting event, like an Oasis concert in L.A. or an F1 race in Monaco. Even “extreme” bird-watching makes Lonely Planet’s 2025 travel trends list.
While sports and adventure tourism may seem like the exact opposite of the other trends on this list, like soft travel and quietcations, it often involves being very much in the moment. After all, whether you’re trekking amongst the jagged peaks of Patagonia or searching for the elusive quetzal in the jungles of Guatemala, you’re totally absorbed in something you truly love.
