26 Meditative travel

Meditative travel

Meditative integrations are making every journey a mindful one.

Travel and navigation brands are incorporating apps for meditative practice to soothe consumers during their travels.

Waze and Headspace are collaborating to make commuting less stressful. Drive with Headspace, launched in October 2021, incorporates the meditative, relaxing Headspace experience into the navigation app with five mood selections: Aware, Bright, Joyful, Hopeful and Open. Users can change their in-app icons and car image to reflect their mood, change the navigation narrator to Headspace’s director of meditation, Eve Lewis Prieto, and listen to meditative music curated by Headspace on Spotify. Available in four languages, the integration is meant to help drivers “find more joy and meaning on the road,” according to Waze.

The Avanti West Coast train operator in the United Kingdom will offer app-based hypnotherapy for its passengers, to help them when feeling overwhelmed, tired and more. Announced in October 2021, the 20-minute sessions will guide listeners with tips for power napping, guidance for improving productivity, and tools for confidence building. The hypnotherapy app Clementine is free to riders on the West Coast Main Line services, because the “onboard journey experience is as important as getting to the destination itself,” according to an Avanti West Coast representative.

Delta Airlines will soon offer custom Peloton relaxation, meditation and stretching classes on planes with seatback screens. Announced in November 2021, the partnership aims to help passengers relax on their flights, with sessions lasting five to 20 minutes taught by some of the fitness app’s popular instructors.

Why it’s interesting Meditative apps for wellness are finding new space in the travel sector, giving stressed and anxious travelers access to therapeutic sessions to ease their minds during their journey.