8 Wellness trends to watch in 2025

There’s something elemental about sinking into a mineral-rich thermal pool. Maybe it’s the way your muscles relax on contact, or how time seems to slow as steam curls into the air. Natural hot springs have long been cherished for their healing properties and in 2025, they’re more popular than ever.

Australia is right on trend, with new developments from Metung to Mornington putting hot springs in Australia firmly on the global wellness map. Expect restorative soaks, stargazing pools and immersive spa experiences that go well beyond the dip.

We love The Salts Experience at Alba Thermal Springs and Spa in the Mornington Peninsula. This signature bathing ritual layers minerals and temperature therapy with a focus on deep relaxation – a beautifully curated experience set within Alba’s sleek, sanctuary-like surroundings.

Wellness travel in 2025 'tastes' good. Very good. Travellers are hungry for food that feeds both body and soul – and they want to know where it comes from.

Whether it’s cooking classes that spotlight Indigenous ingredients, foraging walks, or slow lunches at a regenerative farm, nourishment is the new luxury. Think paddock-to-plate dining, gut-health menus and food that tells a story. Because feeling well starts from within.

For a true taste of nourishing travel, we can’t go past the Organic & Biodynamic Dining experience at The Zin House in Mudgee. Set on a working farm and surrounded by vines, this long lunch showcases the best of seasonal produce grown on site or sourced locally. The dishes are simple, elegant and designed to restore – a slow food experience that feeds body and soul.

Wellness retreats focused on women’s health are no longer a niche offering – they’re becoming a mainstay. From hormone health and fertility support to the rising popularity of menopause retreats, women are seeking out spaces tailored to their unique health journeys.

Programs now offer everything from nutrition consultations to strength-building, pelvic floor workshops and emotional wellbeing sessions. It’s personalised wellness that truly supports every phase of womanhood.

In this arena, Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat in Queensland is a true leader, having championed women’s health retreats for over 20 years. Their Women’s Empowerment retreat is designed specifically for perimenopausal and menopausal women and blends expert guidance with nurturing support. Expect sessions on hormonal health, adrenal restoration, strength training and emotional resilience, all delivered in a serene setting designed for deep rest and recalibration. It's a chance to pause, learn and return home with practical tools – and a lot more energy.

Keen for an overseas wellness trip? You can't go past the luxurious Chiva Som in Thailand. Each of their immersive retreats offers a gentle blend of spa treatments, holistic healing, physiotherapy, fitness sessions, nutritious meals, and beauty therapies. Plus, they have specialists that offer Hormone Harmony Consultations and can provide nutritional and lifestyle advice to help you bring your hormones back into balance.

Picture this: you’re soaking in a cedar tub filled with warm beer ingredients – hops, malt and brewer’s yeast – while sipping a chilled pint. Welcome to the beer spa experience.

Once the domain of quirky Prague travel guides, this sudsy self-care ritual is gaining global traction. The best part? The ingredients are rich in antioxidants and B vitamins, so you leave relaxed, with glowing skin to boot. It’s wellness with a wink – and we’re raising our glass to it.

While you’ll need to head to the northern hemisphere to dive in for now, we have a hunch this brew-based bathing trend will be frothing closer to home very soon.

As conversations around mental health become more open, travel is following suit. In 2025, wellness retreats are stepping up, offering serious support for those navigating anxiety, burnout, trauma and depression.

The new wave of wellness retreat combines evidence-based psychology with gentle modalities like mindfulness, trauma-informed yoga and nervous system healing. It’s personal, transformative and deeply needed.

One standout is The Dawn Wellness Centre in Chiang Mai, Thailand. This holistic mental health retreat blends clinical care with Eastern healing traditions. Their programs integrate cognitive behavioural therapy, group counselling, trauma resolution and mindfulness practices – all in a peaceful riverside setting that feels both nurturing and restorative.

Some of the most powerful wellness experiences grow from hardship. In regions recovering from bushfires, floods or other natural disasters, wellness infrastructure is helping locals and visitors alike heal.

New forest trails, meditative garden walks and quiet spaces are being created where devastation once stood. These destinations remind us that wellness isn’t just about luxury – it’s about resilience, restoration and community.

We have fallen in love with the Pilot Hill Wellness Walk in the NSW Snowy Valleys. Developed after the region’s devastating bushfires, this immersive trail invites visitors to move mindfully through the regenerating landscape, guided by gentle interpretive signage that honours both nature and recovery. It’s a walk of reflection, connection and hope.

In 2025, travellers are getting serious about what’s happening inside their heads. Retreats dedicated to brain health and cognitive performance are booming – blending neuroscience with nutrition, sleep science, movement and mental training.

Whether it’s slowing down ageing, boosting focus or managing stress, these experiences are smart wellness at its finest.

Clinique La Prairie’s Brain Potential Program is leading the charge. Set in the Swiss Alps and developed in collaboration with neuroscientists from the University of Lausanne, this seven-day program combines advanced diagnostics, neuro-enhancing nutrition, cognitive therapies and targeted movement to support optimal mental performance and long-term brain health. It’s science-backed self-care, delivered with signature Swiss luxury.

We’re entering the era of give-back travel. Today’s wellness travellers aren’t just looking for a good massage – they want to leave a place better than they found it. That might mean helping with bush regeneration, learning land care from Traditional Owners, or simply supporting locally owned businesses.

Voluntourism and regenerative travel are shifting the focus from self-care to shared care – a trend that’s equal parts heart-led and future-facing.

A beautiful example is Refettorio at OzHarvest Sydney – a community dining space in the heart of the city that transforms rescued ingredients into gourmet meals for people in need. Travellers can support the project through donations, volunteer shifts or curated experiences that celebrate food, dignity and connection. It’s wellness with heart and a reminder that travel can nourish more than just ourselves.