One of the best things about global tourism is that it’s ever-changing, constantly throwing up new experiences – and sometimes recycling old ones, often in new ways.
With 2025 just around the corner, here are some of our top tips for tourism in the next year.
In our post-Covid world, people are travelling more than before – and two of the biggest focuses for tourists are music and sporting memories of a lifetime.
There’s a lot going on in 2025: for music, check out the United Kingdom’s Glastonbury Festival, Belgium’s Tomorrowland and Switzerland’s Montreux Jazz Festival, among many others; and in the sporting arena, how about Six Nations rugby from January to March, the UEFA Champions League final in Germany in May, or the Ashes series in Australia from November?
This is perhaps the most obvious one on this list, given how popular remote working and flexible schedules have become: the word is, of course, a portmanteau of “business” and “leisure”.
Nowadays, it’s so much easier to travel the world and still hold down a job; often, all you need is a laptop and decent connectivity.
So now your workstation can be wherever you like – and you can enjoy the holiday vibe by exploring local cuisine, attractions and activities.
We love this one just for its name, an old Scottish term that refers to … lying around in bed. But it’s a thing, and it’s counterintuitive.
Firstly, if you think holidays are about exploring, you’re likely wrong. More and more, people are picking relaxation and resting – like a good, old-fashioned lie-in – over activities.
Secondly, if you think that hurkle-durkling is for older travellers, you’re wrong again; it turns out Zillennials (born between 1990 and 2000) are three times more likely to hurkle-durkle than Baby Boomers.
With space tourism a tantalising near-future option, we’re increasingly looking to the sky – and not just for the sun. But reaching for the stars is expensive, so we’re going for the next best thing: darker-sky destinations, mostly in cooler places, where we can stargaze, spot constellations and enjoy cosmic events.
Many noctourism destinations are, predictably, in Scandinavia. But it is possible to spot the Northern Lights (aurora borealis) from the United Kingdom – even in southern England. And the Southern Lights (aurora australis) can be viewed in Australia, from Tasmania and along the southern coastline.
When we talk about SKI trips, they might include skiing, but not necessarily. SKI is actually an acronym for “Spending Kids’ Inheritance”, a growing trend among Baby Boomers.
Instead of putting away their savings and leaving them to their children, the post-war generation is increasingly blowing the money on trips of a lifetime – living their best lives while they still can, and not bothering to leave their children an inheritance.