Guaranteed Sunshine, travelling to remote locations and reconnecting with the natural world are the three vital ingredients for a holiday that supports health and wellbeing in 2025, according to new research from InsureandGo
With 96% of UK adults rating the importance of health and wellbeing as a key consideration when booking holidays for the year ahead, InsureandGo asked a representative sample of 2,000 adults which choices they would make to ensure their holidays supported their mental health and wellbeing in 2025.
Topping the list was a desire to escape from the hectic routines of a busy world. Nationally, 35% said this year they would look to visit remote places far away from the stresses of everyday life. Furthermore, 11% would take things a step further and look for ‘off grid’ holidays, places offering a total switch off from the Internet and mobile phones. In terms of using holidays to re-balance the stresses of everyday life, 16% of survey respondents were also interested in the idea of ‘sleep holidays,’ or breaks that helped them fully switch off and get a good night’s sleep.
Linking into this, biophilia – a human desire or tendency to reconnect with nature – also featured prominently in the survey results. Three in ten respondents (30%) said they wanted a nature-based or wildlife-oriented holiday to get closer to the natural world. A further 12% said they would like to spend time with animals – whether horse riding, time on a farm or something more exotic, such as swimming with dolphins.
Guaranteed sunshine also rated highly for 32% of adults. At a time of year when some people suffer from seasonal affective disorder (SAD) with the short days and grey skies, the promise of a holiday destination where people could sunbathe and feel regenerated by the sun was seen to be core to health and wellbeing.
Mental relaxation was also seen as an essential aspect of a good wellbeing holiday. One in five people (20%) were drawn to the idea of a cruise holiday, whist 11% were interested in holidays that offered courses in Yoga, Pilates or meditation.
Although January is notorious for being a time of year when people resolve to join a gym, physical exercise was seen to be less important to a wellbeing holiday. Only 6% of respondents were interested in a keep-fit holiday and just 8% were drawn to a sports holiday.
Garry Nelson, Head of Corporate Affairs at InsureandGo commented: “Our research underlines that, for many people, holidays abroad are about more than just having fun. Given the stressful nature of everyday life – and the significant longer-term impact that the pandemic and cost of living crisis had on people financially and mentally – holidays are an opportunity for many people to reset, to reflect on life at home and restore a sense of balance.
“Our latest survey shows that more and more people want holidays to give them an escape from the humdrum of life – whether this involves trekking to remote locations, reconnecting with nature or even finding those far-flung places that have no WiFi. Whatever people’s choices, it is clear that mental health and wellbeing are becoming more important to more holidaymakers. And part of stress-free holidays is having good travel cover in place. At InsureandGo our aim is to make this easy, so nothing gets in the way of a much-needed mental switch-off when on holiday.”