Why detoxing, TikTok fads and overpriced treatments are making way for a new type of inclusive wellness travel

Wellness is a loaded word. Depending on who you ask, it can conjure up an eye-roll or launch you into an enthusiastic conversation about the benefits of Lymphatic drainage and sound baths. Some see it as a Gwenyth Paltrow-esque fad full of vulva scented this and crystals that. Others date it back to the ancient practice of Ayurveda, originating in 3,000 BC, and see it as a human practice to connect with our bodies.

With many of us tailoring our trips to the pursuit of wellness, it has gradually become the core of travel in 2024. Often, I’ve replaced city breaks with digital detox cabin retreats or cold-water experiences, wanting to come back from travel feeling in tune with my body and relaxed, as opposed to more exhausted than when I left. From wild swimming in Scottish lochs to having acupuncture in Kerala, connecting with my body and feeling well in myself has become just as important as other elements of travel I’ve historically prioritised, such as food, sightseeing or adrenaline-seeking.

I’m not alone. Global travel network Virtuoso reports that 97 per cent of their advisors find clients are seeking wellness experiences that separate them from the daily stresses of life, with 63 per cent of clients seeking outdoor and nature-focused retreats when they travel.

But, as is often the case when ancient customs and lifestyles turn into fashionable fads, much of modern Western wellness has been whitewashed, commercialised and manipulated into a farce during the 2020s. TikTok influencers selling gua sha tools to get rid of double chins; aesthetics doctors naming filler procedures as empowering; cryo chambers pushed as a one-time miracle weight loss treatment… all in the name of wellness. It has become a get-out-of-jail-free card for those pushing capitalist, Euro-centric beauty standards. For many, wellness feels like a closed door that only welcomes the rich, thin, white, able-bodied, cis and neurotypical.

Callie Thorpe, an intentional travel influencer, has personally felt this exclusion. “There have absolutely been times when I’ve felt unwelcome in wellness spaces, typically traditional gym settings or organised classes,” she tells us. “I think the perception of well-being is very narrow. I’ve had rude experiences from trainers in the past and been a victim of verbal abuse by men.” Thorpe recalls a time she was walking to her local gym in Putney, “A group of guys shouted, ‘Go to the gym, you fat c**t’. I felt like shouting ‘I LITERALLY AM’.”

A perfect example is when activewear brands receive criticism for having extended sizes or using larger bodies in their advertising – remember the Nike uproar in 2019 when the store used a plus-size mannequin? “Society demands that people should be health conscious but in the same breath say that those very people don’t deserve activewear or representation, which begs the question: is this really about health and wellness at all?” she notes.

But things are changing, and travel is at the forefront of this shift. As a rejection of how exclusionary wellness has become, individuals have taken it into their own hands and created safe spaces.

Dr Stacie CC Graham felt propelled to start OYA Retreats, an immersive retreat experience to support Black women and women of colour, after getting tired of attending many spiritual and wellness events only to find that she was always the only Black woman there. “It wasn’t until I went to India that I experienced being in such an environment surrounded by non-white people. When I am the only one, I am othered in ways that make it impossible for me to actually relax into the offering, whether by just showing up as my full self, to experience a breakthrough or to leave feeling well,” she explains.

Dr Graham believes that everyone will define wellness differently, but for her, it didn’t matter if she was attending a yoga class, completing her mindfulness teacher training, going on a spiritual retreat, or just going to a spa. The experience was the same, and she continually felt othered. “In the UK and Europe, I very rarely saw another person in attendance who looked like me. When I go to a yoga class for the first time, teachers assume I am a beginner. When I go on a meditation retreat, facilitators and participants gawk and ask me questions as if I am a representative of my entire race. It’s very challenging,” she says.

Over the last few years, retreats like OYA Retreats dedicated to targeting these systematic problems have appeared. Through virtual programmes and in-person weekend and day retreats, they offer immersive holistic wellness events for Black Women and Women of Colour, strongly focusing on inclusive yoga, sound healing and journaling. Their retreats take place all over the world, with one in Mallorca coming September 2024 titled ‘Awaken the Sacred Goddess’. Similarly, Tameika G and Whitney Gee founded Whole Experience to offer inclusive wellness across the world, with past retreats in places like South Africa, Kenya, Italy and Greece. This July, they’re heading to Thailand. From wellness workshops to daily yoga and Muay Thai classes, they aim to empower those who attend in a welcoming way, noting that sessions can be skipped if they do not ‘speak to you’. If a more spiritual travel experience is your thing, the global wellness platform for Black Women and Women of Colour, OMNoire, has retreats all over, from Arizona to Bali.

But there is still progress to be made. “I think wellness is becoming more inclusive in some ways. There is more attention on body acceptance. There is more care around the inclusion of varying abilities. People are doing more not to assume participants’ gender and/or pronouns,” Dr Graham admits. “However, race remains the topic people avoid the most. It’s the subject that people are most afraid of getting wrong. It’s also the one that people across all races assume they know a lot about but actually have very little understanding of its historical origins and how that relates to today’s disparities. We cannot truly embrace people’s intersecting identities without embracing race.”

For neurodivergent people, travel can already be difficult, let alone travel that incorporates wellness. Kelley Colihan Robertson, the founder of Avolve Wellness, launched a retreat in Costa Rica for neurodivergent families, inspired by her experience raising a neurodivergent son. Speaking with Condé Nast Traveller, she explained, “I created wellness spaces for neurodivergent people because I saw how underserved these folks were and still are. We still have a long way to go in embracing neurodiversity in the wellness industry. It’s still a niche area, most likely because many in the wellness area are not trained in how to serve the neurodiverse population.”

“For me, it’s personal – I have a 22-year-old autistic son. We have a large, extended community where I live (near Atlanta in the US), and I saw so many of my friends (myself included) not able to take their children to certain places, whether that was on vacation or even to gyms. There was such little understanding of the autistic population and a lot of judgement,” Robertson says.

Bigger companies are changing, too. Karisma Hotels & Resorts has introduced the Autism Double-Checked certification for select resort brands in Mexico and the Dominican Republic, providing the world’s first-ever Autism Concierge. For example, at the St. Somewhere Spa at Margaritaville Island Reserve Riviera Maya, the trained property staff ensure that guests with autism receive a tailored and supportive experience, with personalised service adjustments and considerations to personal space. Hopefully, such training will become commonplace in travel, ensuring that neurodiverse people get to experience wellness with the ease neurotypical people do.

Money is yet another elephant in the room whenever we talk about wellness and travel. The UK has been in a cost-of-living crisis since late 2021. Abrdn Financial Fairness Trust reports that those in the middle fifth of the income distribution are struggling to pay for food and other essentials. Despite this, Mintel’s UK Wellness Travel Market Report 2024 found that 72 per cent of those who describe their financial situation as tight show interest in wellness holidays. If anything, the austerity we are living in has created a higher demand for wellness travel, not the opposite. Societally, this is likely symptomatic of how individualistic care has become in the UK, as public services are stripped and the NHS is on its knees; people are looking at more holistic and non-traditional methods of self-care.

For those with some disposable income, rather than splurging on quick-fix products, wellness retreats or holidays focusing on looking after our minds and bodies could be a more helpful investment. There are no quick fixes for wellbeing.

On a personal level, my wellness needs are specific. I have psoriasis, a chronic illness which means many treatments are not appropriate, and that (due to inflammation) certain fitness-based activities are off the table. I am also mid-size (at a UK size 14-16), which can be exclusionary; many times at spas I’ve had a gape in my dressing gown or felt unstable on a rickety massage table. These intersecting parts of my identity have made it hard to feel accepted in wellness, even as a journalist who works in the area.

Thorpe believes that, for the most part, people just lack the understanding of other people’s experiences. “I think more and more people are being open about their experiences than ever before, and that allows others to be empathetic and understanding. This is why it’s so important to have diverse voices behind teams who can share their experiences and make sure they are represented. If you don’t have that in your team, then find someone to help consult you on that journey.”

“I also think post-pandemic we, as a society, have finally pieced together that the body and mind are connected and that mental health is as important as physical,” she expands. “Connection, meditation, movement, nutrition and rest are part of my understanding of wellness and wellbeing. I really wish I could see more of that represented with brands and wellness spaces.”

Inclusive travel that focuses on wellbeing is necessary for the industry and is becoming more commonplace, thanks to those pushing for change, like Dr Stacie CC Graham and Kelley Colihan Robertson. Now, we just need others to follow in their footsteps.