How Traveling Promotes Healing and Wellness
Photo by Bicho_raro
The pandemic has brought the future closer in an accelerated way. An obvious aspect of this future is the travel wellness trend. Travel styles are changing and what people want out of a vacation is shifting.
While travel has always been a reset, during the pandemic, the travel experience transformed and became a place to heal — from mental, physical, spiritual stress. People travel for answers now about how to feel better. If you've read the book Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, you will by now see travel as not just a means to relax and curate Instagrammable moments but an outward journey as a passageway for an inward one — growing, healing, and taking a spiritual path to become your best self. This book has subtly urged millions of people to use travel as a balm for healing and as a powerful tool of transformation.
But this post is not about a book but how you can harness the innate power of traveling to heal. Sometimes pain is so strong and so deep that the only way to heal it is to travel, just leave everything behind and give yourself the space to get over the hump so you can begin to move forward. Traveling is indeed a form of self-care. How you approach it determines how rejuvenated you will feel at the end of it.
Physically, traveling improves our fitness level — in terms of stamina and physique — from exploring the wonderful places in the trip. For example, a trip to the ocean with means to escape densely populated, smoke-filled and frequently unsanitary conditions in exchange for air fresh off the open ocean.
Emotionally, traveling can serve as a source of inspiration as it opens up the possibility such as meeting new people and seeing great art. Traveling can be a way for you to distance yourself from stressful life events to reflect and find solace from them.
Spiritually, traveling to certain places can really touch our spirit and soul by its beauty. Many travelers find considerable comfort and inspiration when visiting significant religious landmarks, to meditate or do pilgrimage. These high-energy places have the power to expand our senses and connect us deeper into our inner self.
How traveling can foster healing and wellness
It forces you to be present — Traveling to a foreign environment takes you out of your comfort zone and forces you to focus on what’s happening at the moment instead of what happened in the past.
It shifts your mood — snaps you out of negative energy, depression, and stress.
It forces you to look within and face your fears — Solo traveling has an awakening power as being on your own can greatly help with self-reflection.
It cultivates gratitude — Being out of your comfort zone often can be an eye-opener to how lucky we really are with our lives.
Types of wellness trips you can take
Solo trips — For the individual seeking opportunities for self-reflection, self-care, discovery, or adventure.
Couple retreats — To improve connection & communication. Celebrate a wedding anniversary and reconnect with your original purpose as a couple.
Reconnection getaways — Reconnect with friends & family to celebrate milestone events such as bachelorette retreats, anniversaries, reunions.
Family-friendly wellness breaks — For people with spouses, parents or children, planning a family wellness trip could help relieve some of that domestic stress built up from living at close quarters throughout the year.
Digital detox holidays — Digital detox holidays will provide environments where guests can choose to surround themselves with books and the sounds of nature rather than scrolling through social media. Letting go temporarily of digital trappings calms the mind, gives the eyes a break and helps people take better control of their time.
Breaking away from routine, getting completely away — even through a trip as short as a week — and being ready, inviting healing in, can be that vital catalyst that sets you back on the road to wholeness. Now is as good a time as ever to get out of our own little corners and on the road. Let's help you plan trips that will kick-start your wellness journey. Check out our travel planning service here.
