How Wellness in Hotels is going to propel gross revenues in the next 5 years
With the growing awareness among people regarding their health and wellbeing, the spa market is gaining popularity across India. Moreover, growing mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, and stress, which are becoming more common among people is driving the demand for Spa services. Tiredness being a factor, people prefer to have services that help them rejuvenate and relax, in order to keep themselves fit and healthy. services, which is expected to help the market to record more revenue transactions. We are seeing a strong recovery at our Seven Seas Spa at Jaypee Palace Hotel, Agra and Sansha Spa at ITC Welcome, Pahalgam based on a heightened interest in wellness driven in part by the pandemic. We are achieving 80% revenues which we did pre-pandemic. What is clear is that there is widespread pent-up demand to get back to wellness and spas as long as they open safely. The market has really changed from spreading awareness about the benefits of treatments to guests now being enthusiastic to know about natural and organic ingredients used in the products is a sign of industry growth.
After all, a recent survey conducted by McKinsey & Company showed that consumers’ interest in wellness is growing. A total number of 7.500 consumers from six countries were interviewed. The importance of wellness was stated by 79% of respondents while 42% of them considered it as a top priority. In general, consumers reported a substantial increase in the prioritisation of wellness over the past two to three years. According to the survey, the global wellness market is estimated at more than 1.5 trillion dollars, with an annual growth of 5 to 10%.
Pre-pandemic, wellness was already emerging as the biggest consumer spending opportunity in decades, the hotels are using wellness as a key driver to increase revenue with ADR’s increasing by 30%-40%. I have been seeing this growth since 2014 what we call the move from ‘sick care’ to ‘well care’. The rise of preventative care has the effect of making “well-care” more accessible to all. Going forward, opportunities will continue to emerge around online wellness integrated with hotels putting people in increased control of their one wellbeing.
The top vacation travel preferences in 2021-2026 – that will also help the recovery of the hotel industry – are summarised as follows
Wellness and immersive travel options are the “new normal”
Vipul Prakash, Chief Operating Officer, MakeMyTrip told India Today, “Be it a work-cation, staycation or a weekend getaway, travellers are gravitating towards fuller, healthy and richer immersive experiences that allow them to connect, learn, explore and unwind. More and more people, therefore, will prefer travel that helps them learn better ways to have a quality mindful life while eliminating the stress of rushing around many places to tick the boxes.”
Luxurious vacays
Important factors, that are driving people for luxury in travel – safety health and hygiene! MMT COO Prakash told the news site, “Post-Covid, travellers are looking for more control over their journeys. This is leading many to opt for higher category hotels, premium home-stays, independent villas and non-hotels that promise the comfort of a vacation while meeting additional requirements.” Meanwhile, speaking about travellers looking for meaningful experiences, Bajaj added, “they would like to stay in unique accommodations when they travel and explore formats such as heritage homes, Havelis and villas which also offers wellness options.
Sustainable Travel choices
Recent data suggests that about 94 per cent of respondents who took the Airbnb and YouGov survey said that they would look at sustainable travel options in 2021. Sustainable travel choices that are closer to remote communities and nature not only provide a boost to these communities but are accessible and affordable and are a transformative choice contributing to unique and individual travel experiences.”The research by Booking.com indicates that this trend has accelerated over the past year and they expect to see a more sustainable approach to travel in 2021. Luxury hotel brands like Aman Hotels “Amanbagh” has been marketing their properties in India as sustainable hotels for the past 5 years.
The Travel preferences are changing and the hotels need to adopt soon to stay relevant and to stay at top of their game. Wellness is not just about spa services but from room services, room amenities to food choices at the hotel. It’s time to enhance wellness at the hotel and leverage it for maximum success and results.
