Dear WuBookers, in 2025 the number of international tourists reached 1.52 billion worldwide, the highest figure ever recorded and 4 per cent higher than the previous year, according to the latest World Tourism Barometer from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).

This figure confirms that travelling remains, wherever you are in the world, one of the most popular and sought-after activities. But these figures summarise a much more complex reality: people do not all travel for the same reason, and understanding the different types of tourism is a competitive advantage for any property, regardless of the country in which it is located. Let’s explore this topic together.

What are the most common types of tourism?

The most common reasons for travelling globally include cultural interests, seaside and mountain tourism, rural tourism, forms of conscious tourism (slow, sustainable, regenerative), wellness tourism in its various forms, and food and wine tourism; but also business travel (MICE and bleisure), religious, school and study trips; sports tourism and, last but not least, luxury tourism. Many of these categories fall under what is now increasingly referred to as ‘experiential tourism’, which is not limited to simply visiting a place, but prioritises the direct experiences that travellers can enjoy during their stay.

It should be borne in mind, however, that the boundaries between these types are never entirely clear-cut. Mountain tourism and sports tourism, for example, often overlap. Similarly, food and wine tourism can act as a common driver for almost all other forms of travel. Let us therefore examine them one by one.

Cultural tourism

Cultural tourism, as the name suggests, involves visiting places of particular historical or artistic value and accounts for around 30 per cent of global tourists (UN data, 2018). According to the definition adopted by the UNWTO, it is a type of tourism in which the visitor’s primary motivation is “to learn about, discover, experience and engage with a destination’s tangible and intangible cultural attractions” . Art, architecture, historical heritage, culinary traditions, music, literature and local lifestyles are therefore at the heart of travellers’ interests.

Generally, those who engage in cultural tourism prefer carefully planned itineraries, combining visits to museums and archaeological sites with the discovery of traditional products and crafts.

The target audience has expanded significantly in recent years: whilst culture was once associated primarily with a mature audience of medium-to-high socio-economic status, today the younger generations are also taking an interest in this type of travel, often driven by social media content and film and television productions set in historical or artistic locations.

Seaside, mountain and rural tourism: the call of nature

Nature, too, can be a very powerful reason to travel, taking various forms depending on one’s preferences or the kind of experience, whether more relaxing, active or adventurous, one wishes to have. The main types are: seaside, mountain and rural.

Seaside tourism

Seaside tourism remains one of the most popular forms of holiday in the world thanks to the extraordinary variety of coastlines, beaches and microclimates available across different destinations. It is traditionally a highly seasonal form of tourism, concentrated in the summer months, although in recent years the trend towards deseasonalisation (aided in part by climate change, which is shifting some demand towards the low season) is altering the peak occupancy periods for coastal properties.

Mountain tourism

Mountain ranges offer busy ski resorts in winter, but the mountains do not rely solely on snow: in summer, they attract a diverse range of visitors, including older people and families seeking respite from the sweltering heat of the cities (a phenomenon known as ‘coolcation’, holidays in cool places). Walking, trekking, climbing, mountain biking and other outdoor sports are also reasons to travel in every season. It is no coincidence that mountain tourism and sports tourism have so many points in common, given that many sports are practised at high altitudes.

Rural tourism

Among the types of travel on the rise, rural tourism occupies a prominent place, not least because its benefits extend beyond the boundaries of individual properties to encompass the entire local area. In the European Union, for example, rural development is an essential part of the Common Agricultural Policy, precisely because it promotes the social, environmental and economic sustainability of non-urban areas, which are often affected by depopulation and a lack of employment opportunities.

But what exactly does it involve? Rural tourism is characterised by its close proximity to agricultural settings or small villages with low population density. What guests are really seeking in these settings is contact with nature and local traditions, through guided tours and excursions, experiences of rural life (cooking classes, fruit and vegetable picking, and so on), low-impact sporting activities such as hiking or cycle touring, but also through dining featuring local produce and the sale of food, wine and craft products.

Conscious travel: slow, sustainable and regenerative tourism

Concern for the environment, its protection and enhancement, does not only apply to daily life but is increasingly extending to travel as well. Consequently, new ways of travelling and new tourism offerings are emerging, which reward conscious and respectful consumer choices.

Slow tourism

Slow tourism, or slow tourism, is based on the philosophy of travelling at a leisurely pace: visitors take the time needed to explore a place at their own pace, without being subject to the tight schedules typical of mass tourism. The movement originated conceptually in the 1990s, in parallel with the Slow Food philosophy, and has since expanded beyond the realm of food to encompass ‘slow’ medicine and journalism as well.

Those who opt for slow tourism choose low-impact modes of transport, family-run properties and activities such as walking or cycling excursions, interactions with the local population, local markets and scenic train journeys. The main benefit for property providers is that this model of tourism favours independent businesses, which are able to offer an authentic and non-standardised welcome.

Sustainable tourism

The United Nations defines sustainable tourism as that which “takes full account of the current and future economic, social and environmental impacts of travel, meeting the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities”. It is an approach that protects local environmental resources, generates tangible economic benefits for local communities and ensures visitors enjoy a high-quality experience. These are values that WuBook has always held dear, as demonstrated by some of our operational and organisational choices, such as green coding.

For a property, becoming more sustainable means working on several fronts: from green-building construction to voluntary certifications, from reducing energy and water consumption to replacing single-use plastic with biodegradable alternatives.

Regenerative tourism

But sustainability is not the only way to travel mindfully. Regenerative tourism, for example, goes further: it does not merely minimise the impact of travel, but involves the visitor actively participating in improving the environmental and social conditions of the destination. It is a paradigm shift that places nature at the centre, to be protected and restored, and local communities, whose identity and long-term well-being must be safeguarded. The benefits of this approach are twofold: on the one hand, economic, cultural and social benefits linked to supporting small local businesses; on the other, environmental benefits, such as the regeneration of damaged natural habitats.

Wellness tourism: wellness tourism, health tourism and sleep tourism

Everyone wants to feel good on holiday, but there is a particular type of tourist for whom personal wellbeing and health are the primary objectives of their trip, and who builds the entire experience around this.

Wellness tourism

Wellness tourism encompasses all travel associated with the pursuit or maintenance of personal wellbeing, understood in a holistic sense: physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, social and environmental. According to the Global Wellness Institute, the leading non-profit organisation in this field, the entire wellbeing economy reached 6,800 billion dollars in 2024, with the travel-related segment being one of the most dynamic in the entire sector.

The institute distinguishes between two types of traveller: ‘primary wellness tourists’, who choose their destination specifically for its wellness offerings (spas, yoga retreats, dedicated resorts), and ‘secondary wellness tourists’, who incorporate wellness activities into leisure or business trips already planned for other reasons.

Medical tourism

Distinct from wellness tourism in the strict sense, medical tourism refers to travel motivated by the search for actual medical treatment. It is a growing segment because, generally speaking, it offers patients certain advantages, such as costs that are often lower than in their country of origin, a wider choice of specialisms and properties, and shorter waiting times for access to treatment.

Sleep tourism

A more recent trend is that of so-called sleep tourism, the primary aim of which is quality rest.

A study published by the *Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine* in 2021 showed that 40 per cent of a sample of 2,500 adults experienced sleep-related difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic: a problem that has contributed to making sleep a genuine travel objective for many people, even after the end of the pandemic. Soundproofed rooms, high-end mattresses and bed linen, aromatherapy treatments and, in some cases, the presence on staff of genuine sleep medicine experts are distinctive features of this type of offering.

Food and wine tourism

The link between food and travel is growing ever closer, and food and wine tourism often acts as a catalyst for other forms of tourism, from seaside and mountain holidays to slow tourism. Food and wine travellers are, in fact, seeking authentic, non-standardised experiences: from visits to wineries, breweries and cheese dairies to more original activities such as wine trekking, foraging or local cookery classes, with a growing focus on the origin and seasonality of ingredients. For a property, developing a food and wine offering does not necessarily require an in-house restaurant: even a network of partnerships with local producers, restaurateurs and wineries can be turned into holiday packages capable of meeting demand all year round.

Business travel: MICE and bleisure travel

One particular form of tourism relates to work, namely travellers who travel for professional reasons. This category includes both employees sent on business trips by their companies and professionals who travel to attend training courses or events. Two segments in particular deserve attention from those working in the hospitality sector: MICE, comparable to conference tourism, and so-called ‘bleisure’ travel.

The MICE segment

MICE stands for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions: corporate meetings, incentive trips for employees or clients, multi-day conferences and trade fairs that can attract hundreds of participants from all over the world. For hotels, MICE tourism represents a significant revenue opportunity: in addition to room bookings, it generates opportunities for upselling and cross-selling linked to meeting spaces and ancillary services, helps to fill the low season (as events are held all year round) and, if guests are satisfied, generates word-of-mouth that translates into increased visibility for the destination.

Bleisure travel

Bleisure travel, a portmanteau of the English words ‘business’ and ‘leisure’, refers to trips that combine professional commitments with leisure time: the traveller travels for work but extends their stay, often until the weekend, to visit the destination, sometimes accompanied by friends or family. According to the GBTA 2025 Business Travel Index Outlook by the Global Business Travel Association, 68 per cent of corporate travellers now extend at least one business trip a year, with an average extension of 2.3 nights.

Group tourism: the SMERF segment

Another strategic category for hotels is that of the so-called SMERF groups, an acronym for Social, Military, Educational, Religious and Fraternal. The term, which originated in the North American hospitality sector and has spread internationally, refers to all groups travelling for personal reasons (family reunions, weddings, etc.), association or club meetings, school or sporting events, spiritual ceremonies and gatherings of fraternities or similar organisations.

Unlike business groups, SMERF participants often pay out of their own pockets and are therefore more price-sensitive, but they nevertheless represent a valuable segment: they guarantee a more stable revenue stream that is independent of market trends, generate reservations even in the low season (following their own calendar, unrelated to the tourist season), are easier to manage than individual guests and, if satisfied, tend to repeat the experience in subsequent years, building a lasting relationship of loyalty.

Religious or spiritual tourism

A long-standing staple of the sector, religious tourism involves journeys driven by a desire to be close to sacred sites and places of worship. It constitutes a significant component of both domestic and international travel flows. The best-known destinations range from major pilgrimage routes, such as the one to Santiago de Compostela, to the sacred sites of Islam during the Hajj and Umrah, as well as European Marian shrines and sacred Hindu and Buddhist sites in Asia. Those who travel for spiritual reasons tend to prefer destinations linked to specific rituals or festivals, often combining the religious aspect with the cultural and natural features of the area.

School and study tourism

Major cities of art and places of historical interest remain the preferred destinations for educational trips organised by schools around the world. In recent years, this more traditional form has been joined by study tourism proper, linked in particular to the learning of foreign languages. This market combines university courses and language schools (concentrated mainly in English-speaking destinations), and is one of the types of tourism favoured by young people, who can thus make the most of their school holidays to ‘combine business with pleasure’ and learn whilst travelling.

Sports tourism

Sports tourism can be divided into three broad categories: general sports tourism, which involves a wide audience of amateur participants of all ages and levels, with considerable organisational flexibility; elite sports tourism, linked to those who practise sport at a professional or near-professional level, generally young people with a healthy budget and seeking exclusive environments in which to train; and finally mass sports tourism, concentrated in destinations that attract huge numbers of people to practise a specific physical activity, such as ski resorts.

This is one of the fastest-growing segments of the entire tourism sector: the World Economic Forum’s report “Sports for People and Planet 2026” reveals that in 2025, sports tourism accounted for around 10 per cent of global tourism expenditure, with a compound annual growth rate of 28 per cent since 2020, higher than that recorded by tourism as a whole.

Luxury tourism: an evolving segment

Luxury tourism is nothing new, but the expectations of those who engage in it have changed significantly in recent years. Travellers in this segment are no longer satisfied with mere aesthetic opulence: they seek extreme exclusivity, privacy and personalisation, alongside total comfort. According to data compiled by the IMARC Group in a report on the luxury tourism market, the global value of the sector exceeded 2 billion dollars in 2025, with growth expected in the coming years driven primarily by travellers’ increased spending power and the demand for ever more personalised experiences.

Types of tourism and hotel offerings

The different types of tourism reveal an industry that is increasingly segmented, yet also increasingly interconnected: the same traveller may, in the space of a single year, be a bleisure traveller in March, a SMERF guest in June for a relative’s wedding, and a slow or regenerative traveller during the summer holidays. Understanding these nuances is essential for those working in the hospitality sector, as it enables them to develop an offering that is truly in line with the needs of different target audiences and to communicate it effectively.

A region’s specialisation in cultural, seaside and sports tourism, as well as conference tourism, can also provide an excellent starting point for planning and testing one’s activities.