From riding trains through misty mountains, learning to cook pasta with a nonna in a Tuscan village, to stargazing under Namibia’s dark skies, experiences are what today’s travelers want, and this is where niche tourism comes in: turning specific interests into adventurous travel experiences.
What is niche tourism?
Niche tourism is your chance to stand out. Think of it this way: instead of trying to appeal to everyone, you’d focus your marketing and services on a specific segment, whether that’s a particular travel style, a customer profile, or an event.
Here are some examples for each:
Note that these are broad niches, which often have their own micro-niches. You can tailor your services even further by combining a travel type with a specific customer profile or interest. For example, if you have an adventure travel agency, you can dive into sub-niches like women-only trekking retreats or multi-generational adventure trips. The more tailored the experience, the more specific traveler segments you’re likely to attract and cater to.
How is niche tourism evolving for today’s traveler?
First things first: today’s travelers prioritize experiences. In American Express Travel’s 2024 Trends Report, 77% of respondents said experience mattered more than the price tag. In the 2025 edition of the same report, 60% of travelers said they would plan their trips around music entertainment or sporting events, showing that experiences still take centre stage.
With experiential travel, your clients can explore their niche interests during their trips, whether that’s chasing the Northern Lights in Norway or catching a live F1 Grand Prix in Singapore. And as travel agents, your power lies in turning niches into epic experiences. That Norway trip chasing natural phenomena? Combine it with the perfect glass igloo hotel, and your clients won’t just see the aurora — they’ll fall asleep beneath it.
Niche tourism suggestions
Based on this year’s travel trends, here are some niches to explore. They each have various sub-niches, so feel free to tailor them to your clients’ preferences!
Gastronomy tourism
Travelers love spending money on food, with dining experiences often being a traveler’s next budget priority after accommodation. The stats get even more interesting for luxury culinary tourism, as 60% of luxury travelers prioritize hotels known for exceptional restaurants! This offers a huge opportunity for you to get creative with your recommendations and let their appetites lead the way.
What can you suggest? Authentic food experiences for the win! Whether it’s local market tours, regional cooking classes in Italy, Spain or Mexico for example, where food is critical to culture, or a visit to a Michelin restaurant, foodies will always look for new, exciting places to eat. For luxury travelers, consider booking a hotel with a top-rated restaurant as well, such as the renowned Le Bristol Paris or Le Meurice in Paris, Atlantis the Palm in Dubai, or Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.
Gamification
‘Gamification’ itself is the application of game-like elements into real-world scenarios, such as points, challenges and leaderboards. For travel, this turns passive sightseeing into active, immersive, and purpose-driven exploration!
What can you suggest? Augmented reality experiences, such as in-destination treasure hunts, cultural heritage exploration, or immersive tours (such as the self-guided tour around the Colosseum and Roman Forum), interactive walking tours, gaming-inspired resort stays, in-destination activities (like driving through the streets of Tokyo in a real-world Mario Kart!) or even AI tour guides. You can even offer hotels with game consoles as a facility – a growing trend – and book their ideal stay in gaming-inspired hotels such as the upcoming Atari Hotels, which will blend retro gaming with modern facilities; there are even hotels with their own video game museums!
But gaming-inspired travel itself is set to be huge, as a recent report by SkyScanner indicated that 21% of UK and 35% of US travelers have booked trips to destinations based on their favorite games, and gaming conventions around the world are seeing increased searches by as much as 508% for 2024. While ‘set-jetting’ was a key motivator for yesterday’s traveler, today’s media-inspired traveler is increasingly all about going where their games are set.
Longevity & wellness travel
“‘Healthspan’ is the new buzzword in wellness tourism,” suggests industry leader Anna Bjurstam from Six Senses. Wellness travel may have become common, but it has growing sub-niches like longevity. Travelers who are interested in this niche will want to spend money on extending their lifespans and well-being.
What can you suggest? Look for hotels incorporating biohacking into their wellness programmes, such as treatments like red light therapy, cryotherapy, and sleep-enhancing technologies. Your clients might be interested in visiting the Blue Zones, specific areas around the world where locals are known to live long and healthy lives, which include Okinawa (Japan), Ikaria (Greece), Sardinia (Italy), Nicoya (Costa Rica), and Loma Linda (California, USA).
‘Horti-culture’
As today’s traveler is increasingly looking for nature-based experiences, ‘horti-culture’, where travelers plan a trip revolving around gardening or a return to nature, is ‘growing’ in demand. In fact, SkyScanner pinpointed botanical tourism as one of their 10 top travel trends for this year.
What can you suggest? Discover alternative destinations for cherry blossom season, or book the Netherlands with its iconic tulip fields and the Keukenhof Gardens. Plan an itinerary that treks through the Loire Valley and Normandy, forClaude Monet’s famous lily-pads, witnessing bamboo artistry in Kyoto or Singapore’s botanical gardens. Look for gardening workshops in-destination, or festivals and events such as the Madeira Flower Festival and Chelsea Flower Show.
For travelers looking to make eco-friendly choices, choose accommodations which are surrounded by nature, such as eco-lodges, or educational tours into the horticulture industry for a specialized trip. Farm stays and culinary experiences like farm-to-table allow travelers to really immerse themselves in nature!
Remote work travel & bleisure
In 2025, 1 in 4 business travelers plan to travel for team-building events. And Hilton’s travel trends suggest that there’s a new kid in town: 'frolleagues', or friends who are also colleagues, and vice versa. In the report, 29% of travelers said they have already taken leisure trips with colleagues. When colleagues become 'frolleagues', we get another blended word: bleisure, which is the combination of business and leisure.
What can you suggest? Besides recommending hotels with co-working spaces, use experiences and activities offered by local providers to organize exciting bleisure activities for frolleagues. Sunrise rooftop yoga before the morning meeting, after-work cocktail tastings, or wellness add-ons to de-stress, for example!
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How can niche tourism businesses adapt to diversifying needs?
How can you make sure you’re offering the experiences customers actually want? Here are four tips:
Do your research
As cliche as it may sound, every destination has something unique to offer. And their Unique Selling Points (USPs) sometimes indicate the niche travel experiences on offer to agents willing to do some research. Norway’s geographic location, for example, makes it ideal for chasing natural phenomena like the Northern Lights, as well as its majestic fjords you can view year-round. Of course, and then you need access to these destinations with the expansive global portfolio of travel products offered through Bedsonline.
Personalize the experience
Chances are, your clients will want to explore various activities during the same trip. Or maybe they’re traveling with a group of friends who all have different tastes. That’s where you come in! With your personalisation skills, you can craft an itinerary that makes everyone happy.
Partner with local communities
The best way to add a touch of authenticity to a trip? Partnering with the local community! No matter what kind of niche experiences you’re planning, look for ways of involving local guides, artisans, chefs, and small businesses.
Use digital marketing
Travelers with niche interests may seek out experiences online. Make sure they find you through social media, newsletters, and search-optimized content. For example, if you want to be known for longevity trips, consider collaborating with an influencer who shares tips on healthy ageing.
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Use B2B travel tech tools for niche experiences
You can use Bedsonline’s Booking Engine to discover niche experiences and Insights to keep up with the competition. Here’s how:
Global reach with a global portfolio
Our Bedsonline Booking Engine features over 23,000 activities, covering all kinds of niches, from luxury travel to arts and culture. You’ll also get to use our cross-selling tools to combine niche travel activities with hotel stays, car hire services, or transfers, which will help you save time and increase your revenue. It’s the recipe to create bespoke, personalized experiences quickly!
Not to mention, with the Bedsonline portfolio, you also get instant access to high-value properties offered through the luxury concierge service The Luxurist, which aims to connect agents with outstanding accommodation options and exclusive privileges. With thousands of exemplary hotels and experiences at your fingertips, you can cater to high-value customers with ease using the 'Luxury Hotels' filter in the Bedsonline Booking Engine. Broaden the scope of your offering to accommodate all traveler types, from budget-friendly to luxury experiences!
Real-time data with Insights
Insights is our smart search and recommendation tool designed to make your job easier. It learns from your behavior and suggests relevant destinations, so you can create more tailored proposals every time. For niche tourism, this means:
- Spotting booking trends early and aligning your offering.
- Discovering lesser-known destinations suited to specific interests.
- Seeing what other agents are booking, so you can analyse the market and stand out.
Sign up with Bedsonline to attract the right audience
Working with business travelers? Filter for hotels with meeting rooms, coworking spaces, or early check-in options. Niching down on adventure travel? Browse experiences from trusted local tour operators and book guided activities in just a few clicks.
You get it – Bedsonline provides you with instant access to thousands of travel partners across the globe, so that you can cater to specific interest-based travel needs!
Sign up today or log in to your account to start building bespoke itineraries in your target niches.
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For further insights into the top travel trends for this year and beyond, download our Travel Trends 2025 Report below to learn more about what other trends are making waves in the industry.
