GOING PLACES, NEAR & FAR.... Wellness & Travel, the Perfect Synergy

Continued from previous page ditional Arabic and Islamic medicine) treatments and hosted the German World Cup soccer team in 2022.

WELLNESS + WATER: Blue, Hot and Wild

By Jane Kitchen

The pandemic spurred a hunger for in-nature experiences that shows no signs of abating. But when we talk about the nature surge, we usually remain on terra firma. In 2023, people will jump into the world’s wild waters for some “blue wellness”— with an unprecedented global surge in new-look hot springs destinations and wild and cross-country swimming going global.

At the steamy end of the temperature spectrum, hot springs are now poised to be the next big thing in wellness. There are an unprecedented number of new and in-the-pipeline global destinations and new life is being breathed into long-forgotten facilities–from Australia to the US (where about 50 new projects are underway). A whole new social era in hot springs has arrived, where developers are combining live entertainment, watery wellness classes, restaurants and bars with traditional soaking. At Peninsula Hot Springs in Australia, take in live bands from its hot springs amphitheaters and do some hot springs yoga; at Sky Lagoon in Reykjavik, you soak in the midnight sun while sipping prosecco from a swim-up bar; you’ll soon be able to watch a baseball game while soaking in hot springs at Hokkaidos’ ESCON Field. This is social, affordable wellness and it’s pulling in a younger, diverse crowd.

On the cold side of the trend, there is surging interest in wild, cold and cross-country swimming, once the domain of serious athletes. Wild swimming groups like the Bluetits Chill Swimmers offer inclusive group swims that foster connection, and more global resorts are offering guided wild swimming programs—whether the Hotel J in Sweden or New York’s Mohonk Mountain House. Cross-country swim- ming is starting to take off, epic adventures where hiking and wild swimming are combined. People are even building wild swimming ponds instead of the old concrete swimming pools.

WELLNESS + CITIES: Urban Infrastructure Just Might Save Cities

By Robbie Hammond and Omar Toro-Vacay

The role of the city has been reimagined countless times over the centuries But the pandemic served as a wakeup call for just how unwell our cities are—sparking a new recognition of the inextricable relationship between the health of the cities and the health of city dwellers. There are so many powerful examples. Developed 20 years ago on an abandoned railway line in the heart of Manhattan, the Highline is a pioneering example of this trend—a wellness destination in its own right where people exercise, socialize and take in natural beauty in the heart of the city, which has become one of the most popular tourist sites in the city. The Highline has inspired over 60 such projects across America. The 11th Street Bridge Park in Washington, DC, a new public space project that connects neighborhoods and helps cross racial and economic divides, is an example of the new community-building urban wellness infrastructure.

In Singapore, the government is striving to become an “urban wellness haven,” creating a whole slate of programs and initiatives that showcase the city’s unique natural and wellness resources. In Monterrey, Mexico, a successful collaboration between private and public organizations, DistritoTec, is creating a thriving new community with wellness at its core—a model Mexico plans to replicate.

[Indeed, cities are making a comeback as top destinations for travelers after the pandemic steered people to wide-open spaces. But much of the adaptations that worked so well to keep people well during the pandemic – like advance purchase timed-ticket admissions to museums and attractions to control capacity - are being kept in place.]

WELLNESS + SENSES: Multisensory Integration

By Ari Peralta

Advances in neuroscience and neuroaesthetics confirm that, when combined, the senses elevate our human experience. Nature is multisensory and it turns out, so are we. The senses have always been present in wellnessspa is touch, wellness music is sound, chromotherapy is color, healthy food is taste and thermal is temperature. Now brands are accessing multiple senses simultaneously to better support wellbeing outcomes, amplify wellness experience and influence behavioral change. Some examples: In Saudi Arabia, the AIUIa Wellness Festival has curated a 360-degree multisensory event allowing visitors to stimulate and elevate all five senses amidst ancient and stunning surroundings; while Six Senses has teamed with mycoocoon to create synesthetic dining experiences, enabling guests to “taste” color and sound, while, in the metaverse, digital sense is becoming a reality, adding scent and touch to sight and sound.

WELLNESS + GATHERING: Wellness Comes for the Loneliness Epidemic

By Beth McGroarty

We know loneliness is skyrocketing, that it kills and that the #1 predictor of health and happiness is relationships. The pandemic has proven to be the breaking point. The biggest wellness trend is the development of new spaces and experiences that bring people together in real life—creatively and with intention where social connection is the burning center of the concept.

Social wellness clubs with different vibes and price-points will surge, where group bonding comes first and the (sometimes dizzying menus of) wellness experiences serve as social icebreakers from pioneer Remedy

Everyday Cheapskate

8 Painless Ways to Save Money and Grow a Cash Stash in 2023

BY MARY HUNT

The past 12 months have been tough on many people, and higher living costs have made it extremely difficult to build savings. So at this point, your best bet is to look ahead to 2023 and develop a plan that allows you to make great progress with your savings, no matter what that means for you.

How To Save Money

Saving money is a curious term with two meanings: 1) To spend less, as in, “I buy things on sale to save money,” and 2) To physically place money where it is safe from being spent, as in, “I save money in my secret savings place.”

OK, that’s fine. But here’s the problem. It’s easy to trick ourselves into thinking that 1 and 2 are the same. They are not unless you stop by the bank to deposit the difference between what you would have spent had the stuff not been on sale, right

Place to social bathhouse Othership to

Six Senses Place. With remote work, people need everyday places to be and belong and younger gens, who are ditching booze and bars, seek healthier social spaces.

[Travel is the antidote to loneliness, promoting social interactions. And while solo travel is one of the biggest new trends for 2023, but there are even apps that cater to solo travelers and that match people with travel buddies.]

Wellness + Workplace: Workplace Wellness Finally Starts to Mean Something

by Skyler Hubler and Cecelia Girr

Superficial wellness at work schemes are being replaced with more meaningful solutions. Better balance is being achieved through movements such as extended, company-wide vacations and the “right to disconnect” from emails after hours; employers making in-person time count with memorable offsites and gatherings at wellness resorts and social wellness clubs (meetings held in ice baths are officially a thing). The workplace wellness reform is well underway and it’s set to change everything, from how we connect with coworkers to what we look for in a job.

[Indeed, there is every indication that some variation of remote work will remain making it possible for people to live out their fantasy of nomadic living.]

The Future of Wellness 2023 Trends report just released by the Global Wellness Summit identifies 12 key wellness trends impacting the wellness economy in 2023 and beyond. More information or to purchase the report, www.globalwellnesssummit.com/2023global-wellness-trends

© 2023 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear. com

Crossword Answers

into your savings account or wherever you stash cash. Actually, that IS one clever way to boost your savings this year. Here are eight more:

NO. 1: TAX YOURSELF

This coming year, assess yourself a specific “tax” each time you make an ATM withdrawal. It might be $5 or $10; you decide. Whatever the amount, make sure

Continued on next page