Wellness and ecommerce combine to boost hotel revenue

Travellers tap into their penchant for online shopping to drive health and wellbeing bookings at hotels and resorts.

Society’s spotlight is firmly on health – from mental to physical, people’s desire to be healthy, relaxed and rejuvenated is set to shape the travel and hospitality industry over the next decade.

A September 2022 study by Accenture found 39% of high-income respondents had booked a luxury trip or wellness retreat for the next year, alongside 21% of millennials. With services such as alcohol-free retreats and animal therapy to ‘mindful movement’ (everything from hiking to pottery) and the Scandi-inspired ‘socialise and steam’, it’s no wonder wellness has such a broad appeal.

What is wellness and how does it fit hospitality?

Wellness is more than simply a spa – it is a holistic approach to physical, mental and spiritual well being. Whether a rural resort hosting a ‘Back to Nature’ farm stay or a city hotel providing an intensive detox weekend, the definition of wellness within hospitality is increasingly diverse.

Avison Young’s report ‘The Future of Wellness in Hospitality’ classifies wellness into two categories – Hard and Soft. The former includes spa facilities such as pool and sauna and treatment rooms, while the latter is rooted in experiences – yoga classes, running groups and surroundings or the physical environment (such as softening interiors with plants and mood music).

Whether you have a dedicated spa – complete with treatment rooms, relaxation room, and water facilities – or are offering healthy cooking classes and digital detoxes for your guests, wellness is a trend that hoteliers need to channel as it’s here to stay.

How important is wellness to travel and hospitality companies? 

The wellness economy is booming – but there’s still room for even more growth. The Global Wellness Institute predicts global ‘wellness tourism’ will reach $1.3 trillion by 2025, up from $817 billion in 2022.

From 2017 to 2019, the average revenue per hotel or resort spa in the UK increased from $954,345 to $1.075 million – despite there being 13.3% more venues offering relevant services.

In the UK, international wellness visitors made almost 4 million trips in, spending an average of $1,525 per trip in 2019, while domestic trips exceeded 22.1 million with an average spend of $407.

Spa days are also booming, with annual revenues of $151 billion forecast by 2025. Hotel and resort spas are the largest driver of this, with high street salons and independent day spas also contributing.

How ecommerce is helping hotel and resort spas 

In an increasingly digital-first world, even spas that offer digital detox as a USP need to be online. Customers want to book what they want at a time that is convenient to them – whether that be reserving a last minute massage for later that day or booking a spa weekend months in advance as they scroll the internet at 11.45pm on a Friday night. They also want to customise their experience with add-ons and experiences that are relevant to them.

Hoteliers dedicated to delivering the best customer experience for their guests offer the flexibility for guests to curate their own visit with our ecommerce platform, integrating with our experience management system for the smoothest spa booking experience.

John Pette, GM at Fairlawns Hotel and Spa, is delighted at the enhanced customer experience Journey's ecommerce platform delivers, with the hotel able to offer “the customer a very easy, simple way to buy our products in a way that stands up against our largest OTA competitors.” Spa Manager Liz Andrews highlighted an increase in add-ons such as “additional drinks, slippers, flip flops and additional treatments.”

By offering guests a simplified and unified booking experience, they are able to feel positive about their booking experience and are increasingly tempted to expand their orders.

Zoe Merriman, Spa Director at The Elms, noted: “Customers find it easier to add on, and progress their stay into something even bigger and better.” Managing Director Mark Bevan reported that over a third of orders are multi-product since using the ecommerce platform" “We’ve improved our online conversion and increased our average order value. The platform has been a game changer for us.”

Providing an all-in-one booking experience is a must for hoteliers keen to appeal to digitally-savvy guests. Whether a property is simply room only or provides extra facilities and services such as spa and restaurant, the future of hotel revenue is ecommerce.