The One Type Of Vacation That's Best For Your Wellbeing According To Science

Whether you’re a person who likes camping in the mountains or one who prefers to plop down on the beach, mojito in hand, vacations are designed to make you feel good. But if you really want to enhance your wellbeing, with effects that last long after you’ve returned home, there’s one very specific type you should be booking—a cruise.

Researchers at the University of China gave 317 tourists a psychological questionnaire just after they disembarked from a cruise, as well as a further 295 people who had been on one six months earlier. Their answers revealed that the nature of a cruise—stopping off in multiple destinations to experience local culture—boosted their life satisfaction and emotional state of mind, even half a year after the trip had ended.

There are three reasons a cruise appears to be an especially efficient way of enhancing wellbeing. Firstly, the relaxation factor. On a cruise, everything is taken care of, from the itinerary to the on-board entertainment, so tourists are able to unwind and de-stress really quickly. Secondly, the way it facilitates new friendships. On a cruise you’re in close quarters with the same group of people for weeks at a time, which inevitably leads to bonding. Thirdly, multiple stops mean more mind-broadening experiences. Exploring several cities and even several countries on one trip provides an opportunity to learn and grow in a way that a single-destination vacation can’t compete with.

The sheer variety of experiences innate to a cruise can also make it feel longer than it actually is. According to Neuroscientist David Eagleman, a professor at Stanford University, greater experiential diversity has the ability to slow down time in our brains. This is because humans are hardwired to commit new and potentially useful information to memory, and more stand-out memories create the illusion that time has passed more slowly. On a cruise, where your itinerary exposes you to a huge miscellany of cuisines, scenery, scents and languages, everything is fresh and unfamiliar. By the time you return home, it could feel like you’ve been away for months instead of days.

Fortuitously, wellness cruises have been trending recently, with large cruise companies offering on-board spa and fitness facilities, and boutique ones specializing in yoga-centric trips, which supercharge your wellbeing with downward-facing dogs on deck.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.