Virtuoso predicts 2025 luxury travel...

Racket sports, wellness travel, mood boarding and multi-generation holidays are on the rise

Luxury travel network Virtuoso has partnered with travel trend forecasting agency Globetrender to compile its Luxury Travel Trend Watch: 2025.

Trends were determined using global data from Virtuoso’s 2024 Brand and Travel Tracker Survey of its high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clientele.

Globetrender and Virtuoso have identified seven trends that will shape the luxury travel landscape for 2025.

1. Silver Bullet Wellness
Wellness tourism, projected to grow 16.6% annually, is seeing the rise of ‘Silver Bullet Wellness’, with a focus in longevity plans. Luxury travellers are seeking treatments for insomnia, cognitive decline and disease prevention, moving beyond traditional pampering treatments to life-extension programmes. Switzerland, Spain, Germany and Thailand are among the countries leading the charge. Adopters want to return home regenerated and rewired, whether that’s thanks to a ‘monk-level’ meditation retreat in Thailand, menopause therapy in the Maldives, or ‘quantum healing’ in Abu Dhabi.

2. F***-it Lists
The focus has shifted from bucket lists to F***-it Lists, spontaneous, short-term experiences, reflecting a carpe diem mindset. As the affluent continue to favour experiences over luxury goods, this trend is fuelling splurges on yacht charters, first-class flights and private jets. Other experiences include canyoneering in Utah’s Zion National Park, hot air ballooning in Namibia, and attending Burning Man.

The Ritz-Carlton Superyacht

3. Mood Boarding
As travel designers ask the right questions to tap into clients’ true motivations, they can address deeper emotional needs, giving rise to the ‘Mood Boarding’ trend in pre-trip consultations. Virtuoso believes luxury travel advisors should help clients distinguish between ‘wants’ and ‘needs’, curating experiences that offer emotional nourishment. For instance, a candlelit beach dinner may be less about the event itself and more about fostering connection or forgiveness between partners.

4. Wander Women
The rise of independent travel among women is set to grow in 2025 with more women of all ages opting for adventurous solo trips. Travel providers are responding by offering tailored experiences to cater to ‘Wander Women’. According to Virtuoso, 71% of its solo travellers are women, with 47% of them divorced, separated or widowed, highlighting a surge in post-partner or family-raising travel.

5. XZ Beta Travel
By 2025, seven generations will be travelling together for the first time in history, as ‘Beta Babies’ are born to Gen Z parents (aged 16 to 30). This includes Generation Alpha (aged one to 15 in 2025), Millennials, Gen X, Boomers and the Matures. A key trend, ‘XZ Beta Travel’, will see young Gen Z parents travelling with their children and Gen X grandparents, who often finance the trips.

6. Memoirs in Motion
This trend involves luxury travellers hiring professional film crews to document their travels, turning holidays into cinematic experiences and personal legacies. Unlike the 'Set-Jetting' trend, which focuses on visiting movie locations, this trend lets clients star in their own documentaries.

7. Racketeering
This trend reflects the growing popularity of racket sports like tennis, pickleball and padel during vacations, spurred by the 2024 film Challengers. Companies like Pickleball in Paradise now organise racket sport-themed vacations. Resorts worldwide are capitalising on this trend by adding state-of-the-art courts, clinics and tournaments. Notable destinations include Marbella Club, the birthplace of padel in Europe, and Necker Island, where Richard Branson hosts the exclusive Necker Cup tennis tournament.

For more information, visit www.virtuoso.com

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