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From home swaps to tour tourism, there are travel trends to suit everybody’s style in 2025. If you’ve been thinking about booking a holiday, take inspiration from what’s trending right now in the world of travel…
With travel having gotten more expensive in recent years, many tourists are turning to home swaps to get more bang for their buck. By swapping homes with another traveller, the money you save on short-term accommodation allows you to stay abroad for longer, with flexible work arrangements also making this a possibility. There are plenty of emerging platforms to help facilitate your home swap – check out Twin City and Kindred.
As global warming takes effect, many tourists are now chasing the cold rather than the sun. Once popular literal hotspots are being traded for cooler climate places such as Iceland, Scotland and Finland. Travel during the winter months also tends to coincide with the off-season, meaning it can be cheaper and you’re less likely to have to battle crowds.
As evidenced by Taylor Swift’s hugely popular Eras Tour, fans are prepared to travel far and wide to see their favourite musical act. Many tourists are now turning concerts into full-blown travel events, by planning a holiday to coincide with a gig in a far-flung destination. Some die-hard fans will even follow celebrities all around the world, while for others, it’s an opportunity to attend famed international music festivals such as Glastonbury or Coachella while also enjoying a holiday.
Similar to tour tourism, set-jetting sees fans flocking to the filming locations of their favourite movies and TV shows. According to a 2023 report by travel company Expedia, filming locations for shows such as The White Lotus, Emily In Paris, Outlander and Bridgerton have all seen an uptick in recent tourism. Sicily – the filming location for the second season of The White Lotus – even reported a 350 per cent increase in online searches after the show aired. Mamma mia!
After emerging from the pandemic, people are more focused on their health and wellness than ever before. Wellness retreats have seen a spike in recent bookings, with many travellers looking to rest, relax and reset on their holiday. With the last few years proving to be a challenge for most people, many are keen to get their health back on track, with some retreats offering high-tech treatments such as ozone therapy and hyperbaric oxygen chambers.
Another travel trend to emerge post-pandemic is private group travel. After months – if not years – of social distancing and lockdowns, many people are keen to make up for lost time by creating memorable experiences for themselves and their loved ones. Because of this, there’s been an increase in private group travel, which sees groups of families or friends embarking on holidays together, often booking out villas and organising private tours for their entourage.
Sirens, horns blasting, people shouting – this is unfortunately the soundtrack to our busy, modern lives. It’s little wonder then that people are keen to escape the stresses of their everyday lives when they holiday. Enter silent travel, which has seen people flock to meditation retreats, sleep retreats and quiet hotels, while also embarking on silent walking tours and enjoying silent discos. It’s the ultimate way to unwind, disconnect and restore some balance in your otherwise noisy life.
You’ve likely heard of inter-generational travel, but now there’s also skip-gen travel. This is when grandparents take their grandchildren on a holiday, leaving the parents at home, and essentially skipping a generation. It’s been so popular that some travel companies are even starting to curate tours that appeal to both the young and the young at heart. With grandparents helping with childrearing responsibilities more than ever before, it’s hardly surprising they’d want to travel with their grandkids after forging a special bond!
Chances are you follow a strict, time-sensitive schedule in your everyday life, so a day with nothing planned is the ultimate luxury. Some tourists are taking it a step further, booking plan-free holidays, which lean into total spontaneity. Travel company Black Tomato even offers a ‘Get Lost’ experience, which sends travellers to a mystery location. “All you’ll know is to show up at the airport and find out what’s next,” reads their website. Check out Black Tomato to find out more.
With overtourism proving to be a growing issue, many travellers are swapping traditionally popular destinations for similar locations, which are slightly off the beaten track. You might swap Sydney for Perth, Santorini for Paros, or Barcelona for Valencia. Quite often, the dupe is just as beautiful as the more popular destination (if not more), less crowded and substantially cheaper. An added bonus is that you’ll likely be one of the first to discover an under-the-radar location. Total bragging rights!
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