Can a getaway be better than an age-defying moisturizer? As a women’s group travel curator, I’ve seen how exploring new destinations strengthens bonds and empowers women to embrace adventure, create lasting memories, and foster personal growth. Witnessing how a lack of culturally appropriate self-care resources has impacted Black women, was one of the many reasons why I started the Pink Girls Run The World travel movement.
Group travel fosters social connections, boosting our mood and reducing stress.
Travel helps us escape daily routines, enhancing sleep quality through relaxation & reduced anxiety.
A travel itinerary with restorative downtime is the rejuvenating break women who are juggling multiple responsibilities at home and work need.
With the travel industry seeing increased demand for wellness experiences, many are seeking transformative journeys for a balanced life. A recent Australian University study suggests that travel can counteract entropy – the slow, inevitable decline, promoting health and happiness while strengthening bonds in group settings.
We’ve always emphasized that it’s about more than just flights or money and now this study reinforces the vital role travel plays in everyone’s health and well-being. For many Black women it’s about embracing abundance and leisure—things we’ve historically had limited access to but continue to actively create opportunities for.
Self-care led me to Gellert Thermal Bath in Budapest. Nestled along the banks of the Danube River, Budapest boasts a secret treasure trove of public thermal baths for relaxation and holistic well-being. The city is home to over 100 natural geothermal springs, which feed more than 160 bathhouses across the country. Széchenyi, Lukács and Gellert are a few of the spas that are included in this Hungarian bathing tradition.
It has been a tradition for centuries in Budapest to take thermal water baths for their medicinal properties. Budapest lies on a geological fault line where the Buda hills collide with the great plain, resulting in more than 100 springs to jet skyward. Bubbling up from deep below the earth's surface, the natural thermal springs have an abundance of trace elements including zinc, calcium, and magnesium — ingredients known for their healing properties.
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Gellert offers several thermal pools, each with its unique temperature and mineral composition. High temperatures in water present in recreational thermal spas can help increase hydrostatic pressure and blood circulation and, as a result, can also increase tissue oxygenation. Accelerates metabolism and digestive benefits. Tissue oxygenation reduces gastrointestinal inconveniences.
The healing effects of natural mineral springs, or balneotherapy, is a common medical treatment for arthritis in many parts of the world. I was eager to soak in the misty thermal pools and experience the thermal water’s therapeutic properties. Sulphur plays a role in controlling the complex process of building and degrading the cartilage cells found in our joints. Sulphur-containing water is absorbed through the skin and is incorporated into the tissue that forms our joints.
I love how travel destinations worldwide channel the healing power of nature to soothe the body and soul. The Blue Lagoon in Grindavik, Iceland, is the ultimate outdoor therapy destination leading as a must-try wellness travel trend. While the landscape is natural, with lava shaping the pool, the hot water comes from runoff from the nearby geothermal power plant.
The geothermal plant uses Iceland’s volcanic landscape to produce heat power. The runoff is filtered straight into the Blue Lagoon, which is what heats the water. That doesn’t mean it’s dangerous or toxic — far from it! It’s still a geothermal pool with mineral-rich water.
Guests can float in the mineral-rich waters while wearing a buoyancy suit and accompanied by a float therapist. Floating in highly buoyant water rich in magnesium sulfate significantly reduces stress and blood pressure, inducing a relaxed and often euphoric state.
The therapeutic properties of the thermal waters in both experiences play a crucial role in revitalizing the body and mind.