Vacation or therapy? : demographics, motivations, and experiences of wellness retreat guests around the world

Background: Wellness retreats are a global phenomenon [Patterson & Balderas-Cejudo (2016. Identification of altered metabolomic profiles following a panchakarma-based ayurvedic intervention in healthy subjects: The self-directed biological transformation initiative (SBTI). Scientific Reports, 6(1), 32609. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep32609)] and growing segment of the $563USD billion wellness tourism industry [GWI (2021. The global wellness economy: Looking beyond COVID)]. Yet, despite retreats being promoted as transformational experiences to promote lifestyle change and wellbeing, only a small number of published studies have scientifically explored health outcomes. Our previously published systematic review includes 23 studies on the health impact of retreats until February 2017 [Naidoo et al. (2018. The health impact of residential retreats: A systematic review. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 18(1), 8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-017-2078-4)] and found no previous research has investigated the main drivers of attendance. This study aims to explore the demographics, motivations and experiences of retreat guests in different locations around the world. Methods: The global retreat study was an anonymous online survey available in nine languages (English, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, German, Russian, Hungarian, Slovak and Czech). Participants were eligible to participate if they had attended one or more residential retreats within the previous 12 months. Results: 3708 respondents started the survey, of which 71.7% (n = 2661) were eligible. Most respondents 60% (n = 1299) were female and the mean age was 58y/o (SD = 21, n = 2182). The most important factors for attendance were relaxation and holiday, to improve general health and learn coping mechanisms, and to reduce stress and improve mental health. The majority of retreat guests reported feeling better and happier after their retreat experience. A total of 41.0% had one or more medical conditions with the most common being back pain, arthritis, high blood pressure, overweight, fatigue, stress and chronic pain. Most guests reported improvement in their health after their retreat experience. Conclusions: People attend retreats to relax and regain wellbeing and retreat experiences appear to improve overall health and provide relief from chronic diseases. Further research including longitudinal and randomised controlled studies is required to determine the extent and longevity of wellbeing benefits and the populations most likely to benefit from specific programs.