The Quiet Travel Trends I'm Eyeing for 2025

In 2018, my now-husband and I booked one of my “bucket list” trips to Greece. I alluded in earlier issues to why this was actually a disaster (see also: Mediterranean hurricane), but there was one stop in particular I felt disappointed by. I’m sure you could’ve guessed it, but it was Santorini.

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Years of seeing the white-washed villas along the cliffside left me dreaming of seaside dinners and romantic sunsets. Instead, upon landing on the dirt land on the other side of the island, I remember thinking, “Wait…Is this it?” When we finally made it to Oia—the panoramic village you see splashed on postcards—I believed maybe this was the place I’d long envisioned, and everything would be picturesque. Well, there were a lot of pictures…but not in the way I wanted.

Because of the narrow paths, all of the tourists—ourselves of course included—were packed together like sardines (even during shoulder season in mid-September!). Every few steps, we were immediately stopped by couples holding up the “line” for drawn-out intimate photoshoots—and each progressively fancier photo left me wondering if I, too, should have hired a Flytographer to pair with a flowy red dress.

There is, to be clear, no shade intended, but it left a sour taste in my mouth that the destination I had waited so long to see was just so busy. So overcrowded with chaos. And so… #MadeForInstagram.

This was, indeed, years before the term “quiet travel” came onto my radar, but I found myself wanting something simpler, more serene. Funny enough, the short time afterwards that we spent in Naxos (below), a lesser-visited Greek island, was far more gratifying and enjoyable.

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As we enter 2025, I imagine a lot of us are still itching for the same; well, I assume that you are, dear reader, as that’s the name ‘n the game of this here Substack.

But the “quiet travel” trends are getting bigger than ever: A new CNBC piece from October using reports from Expedia and Booking.com found that travelers are likely to go off the beaten path for their next destination to quieter locales, and writer

Angelina villa-clarke

published a Forbes article dubbing “silent travel” as a major travel trend in 2025.

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While there is no shortage of suggestions for ashrams overlooking rolling hills and overwater bungalows in remote islands, here are a few other quiet travel ideas on my radar for the next year (and beyond):

• Train travel: To me, train travel represents the chance to soak it all in while also allowing yourself to take breaks (like reading a book, napping, etc.), and it can be energizing or calming—whatever your preference!
  
  CN Traveler shared a new overnight European Sleeper route from Brussels to Venice, with stops in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and Austria over a 20-hour trip. There are select departure dates, but it seems like a great way to see the sights without the (overwhelming) sounds—and it’s fairly affordable.
  
  Another dream train journey I’m hoping to check out one day: The Amtrak Coast Starlight which goes from Seattle to Los Angeles (and vice versa) over 35 hours, passing through Santa Barbara, the Bay Area, Sacramento, and Portland. One way will swing you between $100 for a coach seat to $900+ for a bedroom. (There’s also a 6-day vacation version for $699.)
  

• Short-term cruises: For some reason, I am not a fan of regular 4-9 night cruises but overnight/short-term cruises or boat rides feel very appealing, cozy, and just what I need for a break. On our 2022 adventure to Vietnam, Maddie and I stayed on the Scarlet Pearl Cruise ($300 for 2 days) in Ha Long Bay (named "one of the “25 Trips to Take in 2025” by Chase Travel). There was enough down time for us to sunbathe, relax, and unwind (the Instagram below is a Reel—it’s well-worth the 5 second watch!)—and it was breathtaking.

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  On our upcoming visit to India, my family will be doing a backwater cruise in Kerala for the day—you can book these for just a few hours or an entire week, but cruising on a traditional houseboat in Alleppey feels like an authentic, grounding experience (especially as my family returns to my mother’s ancestral roots).
  

• Not another yoga retreat (and apprenticeships): Like I said, there are plenty of yoga and meditation retreats out there, but there are also other, more fitting options for people like me (aka where getting up at 5am to stretch myself into a pretzel isn’t my jam).
  
  Consider VAWAA which I had shared earlier, where you can vacation with (and shadow!) an artist to learn via mini-apprenticeship. Henna dyeing and rug weaving in Morocco, Japanese ceramics in Kyoto, Indigenous basketry and pine fiber arts in North Carolina, the list goes on. There are also more traditional wellness retreats, writer’s retreats, summer camp-inspired retreats…you get the idea. All of them tailored to what rejuvenates you.
  
  One tip here would be: If you’re already traveling somewhere and know that you’ll need some space to yourself, check these out! For example, I’m adding on a day in Jaipur for my husband and I try to try local block-printing.
  
  My other hot tip: If you can’t afford a full-on getaway, try looking at Airbnb Experiences, TripAdvisor, or a local guide for something within driving distance that you can do even for a day—just getting out and about might be the mini-reset you need.

Ultimately, I’d love to one day be able to “visit rural Guyana and meet the Macushi people,” or try the Silent Travel package at Nantucket’s Greydon House (both shared in the Forbes piece). But I think it’s important to stay reasonable with my costs and flexibility—and since I’m not at that point where I can book too much bespoke travel, these alternative ways of immersing myself in quiet travel feel like enough for me.

After all, simple, serene, and still are the words I’m hoping to experience.

• 🎰 Chase is giving 10 lucky winners one million points—enter here for your chance to win. (If you do, can you send me some? 😉)

• 💳 Bilt, the popular rewards program, shared some 2024 insights and what’s to come in 2025 including potential points for mortgage payments. What I’ve personally been eyeing: Getting 1x points for every $2 spent on a home: Buy a home for $500,000? Get 250,000 points! Think of all the free flights! If you’re interested in applying, I have a referral—now’s the time whether you rent or own.

• 👀 Some of these Travel Tuesday deals might still be valid.

• 🎁 We hoped to do a giveaway when we hit 1,000 followers but now we’re already past 1,500+! (Thank you so much.) I’d still love to do a little holiday giveaway; let me know what you prefer:

• 🌎 A final note: I’ve never been to South America, and that’s my 2025 goal. Where should we head for a few days? Suggestions welcome (and humbly requested!).

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That’s all for this week—see ya next week when I’ll have another itinerary to share. 👀

—Henah xx

weekend mood // the Kerala backwaters (credit)