Credit: Far Out
Mon 24 August 2026 5:00, UK
There was a time when travel meant doing as little as humanly possible, and people would plan their holiday to somewhere warm in order to lie on a sun lounger.
Personally, I was always a fan of hopping on a Wizz Air to some former-Soviet state and exploring their local culture through pints of cheap Euro lager.
Now there’s a rising subculture that’s going mainstream, with holidaymakers switching out cold drinks and hot beaches for sweaty runs and personal bests.
This is the rise and rise of fitness travel, where energetic pursuits are the name of the game, and Strava is as important as Skyscanner.
The fitness industry is booming right now, with our obsession with health and body image becoming integral to not only how we go about our daily lives, but also how we spend our free time on holiday. This is an era in which grindset culture is taking over, and the fear of being left behind if you don’t optimise your life is overwhelming.
Credit: Sergio Contreras
It’s been known for some time that the young are turning away from our old vices of booze and drugs for a healthier alternative, and that’s echoed in holiday data too. Strava surveyed over 30,000 people and found Gen Z felt fitness on holiday was a non-negotiable 23% more than their Gen X counterparts.
This isn’t the wellness travel trend that’s seen millennials flocking to Bali for yoga retreats and green juice detoxes; this is something more fun and more active. With a rising number of people heading abroad to run marathons, climb mountains, play racquet sports or take part in Hyrox events.
Padel, one of the fastest-growing sports in Europe and particularly in the UK, is one such example. In the UK, this is a sport still very much in its infancy, even if clubs are popping up left, right and centre. The best coaches and players on the continent are based in Spain, and there is a huge array of options to go, train, and learn there.
As a padel addict, I’ve seen plenty of people at the club I play at take a week or two off work and fly to Spain to get premier coaching. After all, this is the padel equivalent of doing a Muay Thai retreat in Thailand, or going to Paris for a patisserie course.
Then there’s running, which over the past few years has overtaken my social media timeline. Marathons, once seen as the peak of sporting achievement for the everyman, have now become genuine global tourist destinations, with keen runners looking to tick off countries and continents, as they chase their personal bests.
Berlin, with its flat terrain, is known as a PB-haven, while the US has some world-leading marathons, but it’s perhaps Tokyo that has become the ultimate marathon travel hotspot. In 2025, it was reported that 18,000 of the 38,000 runners came from overseas, representing 130 countries and regions worldwide.
Credit: Uri Tours
This isn’t just people visiting Japan; it’s people structuring their whole holiday around running through it. Indeed, one of the few ways to enter North Korea now is by competing in the Pyongyang Marathon. While foreign runners weren’t allowed in 2026 (the event was later cancelled for unspecified reasons), they’re expected to be allowed back in for 2027, in what is surely one of the most unusual running events on the planet. In the unlikely event that you’re reading this, Kim Jong Un, could you give me an invite for next year, please? Thanks.
Then there’s Hyrox, the fitness-race hybrid that’s become much loved by everyone from reality TV stars to the sesh heads who have switched a bag every Saturday for a night in watching Peaky Blinders and hikes on the following Sunday.
The reality is that people are taking their health more seriously than ever before. For the most part, that’s a big positive, although some people are mistaking an obsession for a fitness journey. We live in a world in which everything has been gamified and turned into data. Your Spotify spits your taste back at you at the end of every year with Wrapped; your personal style is defined by the likes on your Instagram posts, and Strava shares your fitness levels for everyone to see.
Now you can match a holiday with an achievement, beyond just getting a tan. You can get a PB, climb a mountain, become an Ironman or get just about good enough at padel to beat Joe from accounts when you get home from Mallorca.
Fitness travel isn’t just a fad; this feels like a fundamental reworking and rewiring of how we view holidays and our spare time. So expect this to continue over the next few years and for your feeds to be full of even more of your friends cycling through Italy or grappling in Dagestan.
