Wellness tourism hits $894B, with more growth ahead

Traveling for wellness is not a new concept. Ancient authors wrote about visiting special sanctuaries for healing, coastal towns for thermal baths or traveling to warmer climates to recover from illness. 

What's different in 2026, according to Phocuswright and WiT’s Online Travel Tracker: The Wellness Stack, is the vast pool of different options and destinations available. Wellness tourism is now at “the powerful intersection of two large and growing multi-trillion-dollar industries: tourism and wellness."

What exactly is wellness tourism?

• The Global Wellness Institute (GWI) defines wellness tourism as “travel associated with the pursuit of maintaining or enhancing one’s personal wellbeing.” In contrast to medical tourism, the organization describes it as a proactive effort to maintain health and augment wellbeing.  
• Wellness tourism is growing fast. It has doubled in size from $438 billion in 2012 to $894 billion in 2024, surpassing pre-pandemic levels by 36%.  
• Wellness tourism is forecast to reach $1.4 trillion by 2029, with a CAGR of 9.1%. It is increasingly promoted alongside regenerative and sustainable tourism: wellness for the body and mind paired with wellness for the destination itself. 

Consumer demand is high

• Wellness can be a primary or secondary goal during travel. GWI has identified two wellness-traveler profiles—those whose primary motivation for a trip is wellness and those who simply look to maintain their wellness or participate in wellness experiences during their trip.
• Around one in 10 consumers across Europe and the U.S. traveled for wellness in 2025, while up to a quarter of German travelers participated in spa/wellness. 
• Consumers generally are placing high importance on wellness. A McKinsey 2025 Future of Wellness Trends Survey showed that is a “top” or “important” priority for a majority of consumers in the United States (84%), the United Kingdom (79%) and China (94%).
• Wellness spend is a resilient category. In the same McKinsey survey, consumers noted that in a downturn, they are less likely to cut down on their wellness subcategory spending than clothing or entertainment. 
• Consumers are increasingly seeking in-person experiences. 56% of U.S. consumers reported traveling 2 hours or more for wellness retreats, and 60% of consumers who traveled for health and wellness treatments in 2024 expected to travel for wellness in 2025. 
• Travelers are seeking respite. Hilton’s 2026 Trends Report, The Whycation: Travel’s New Starting Point highlighted that the top motivation for 56% of travelers is “to rest and recharge.” 67% of American travelers noted a stronger interest in nature immersion retreats (67%), followed by spiritual retreats (60%) and meditation/silent retreats (56%). 
• Online search shows growth in mindfulness, spas and geothermal destinations. Trip.com and Google’s “Why Travel?” report showed in H1 2025 YoY growth in wellness activity searches across multiple search terms, including “Japanese tea ceremonies” (53%), “all inclusive spa” (250%), "ski and spa" (250%) and "golf and spa resorts (300%). 
• Wellness isn’t only for leisure travelers. Australia has seen wellness shift to a strategic design element for incentive travelers, linked to productivity, engagement and retention.
  Phocuswright and WiT’s Online Travel Tracker: The Wellness Stack

  The report explores how wellness is taking shape across Asia Pacific and the broader APMEA region through a mix of consumer demand, destination strategy and private-sector investment. It traces the rise of both technical, medicalized “hardcare” offerings and more human-centered “softcare” experiences, while also highlighting how many APAC countries are building wellness into tourism policy, infrastructure and brand positioning. At the same time, it maps the role of hotels, resorts, startups and OTAs in bringing wellness further into the online travel ecosystem.  

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