Six Travel Trends To Watch For In 2019
Insider tips to inspire your year of travel
Longer weekend city breaks, more bespoke wellness trips overlooking the Greek sea, or more frequent train trips ranging from Tibet to Latin American jungles – have a read of six travel trends to watch out for in 2019...because you can never have too much of a good thing, right?
The year fo the retreat
Wellness and the desire for self reconnection has become rife in an increasingly technology-driven world. And so has the pastime of going abroad as a means of actually looking inward – because why not mindfully unwind and gaze out at the Himalayan mountains? Sometimes the ultimate antidote to a bit too much modernity can be an Ayurvedic spa treatment in Bali, Osho meditation resort in India or yoga and wine retreat in the Italian countryside, to name only a few.
Home away from home
It goes without saying that Airbnb marked the birth of a whole new world of travel possibilities. Cut to 2018 and with the help of Home Away, One Fine Stay, among other home rental marketplaces, the trend of finding a more unique accommodation experience continues. Conventional hotel rooms sometimes fall short when you have the chance to live like a royal for the day sleeping in a castle in France for a week or two. And we predict 2018 as the year this trend will keep going; whether you’re looking for a night spent in a transparent bubble house in the forest of Fermanagh, a trip to a writer’s cabin in Sweden or simply a stay in a loft apartment in Berlin – home is where the new Airbnb digs are.
Going digital
The nine-to-five career path isn’t what it used to be: chances are you’ve got yourself a freelance or startup job where office hours are treated more as flexible benchmarks and office space becomes more a mobile concept than fixed working environment. It’s this remote lifestyle that made many a café nomad in 2017. And we’re betting on 2018 as the year to step up the freelance game to a more global field; whether that means you’re heading to a coffee shop in Chiang Mai or a coworking space in Stockholm.
Riding on rail
Meet the new road trips. While flying may very well save travel time, and road trips hold a great sense of adventure, we like to think that train trips around the world are the happy and scenic in-between. Zipping across new territory lends a compelling dose of wanderlust that can be underestimated. Embrace your inner Wes Anderson and journey along in the plush Deccan Odyssey from Mumbai to Delhi for 10 days or hop on a train through the Andes in Quito, Ecuador to witness the Cotopaxi up close, one of the highest volcanoes in the world. The world is yours for the looking, all from the view of your train seat.
Flying solo
There’s a special kind of freedom when you’re flying solo. Your trip trajectory becomes your own, your memories solely seen through your eyes – even when living in an age of being able to share moments with friends no matter where you are in the world. Nowadays, the solo traveller is equipped with far more tools at their disposal. There are apps to meet up with other travellers or ones which offer endless recommendations and reviews for activities – even apps which show you how to travel like a local. Modern travel is often synonymous with solo travel, meaning far more solo travellers to meet along the way in 2018, too.
The great (Weekend) escape
We’re definitely buying into a little respite in the form of a long weekend trip. Whether that means a city trip away during the bank holiday seasons or a weekend where Monday might involve working remotely in your city of choice. Whatever the circumstance, 2018 is definitely the time for more and longer cityscape weekends. Catch a flight to Copenhagen, get lost in London or take the train to Prague – and get back to your everyday routine in just a few days.