LUXE City Guides is proud to be a media partner of the Destination Deluxe Awards & Wellness Summit 2026, which will take place at Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok on 22-23 September 2026, bringing together leaders from wellness, hospitality, travel, beauty and longevity from around the world.
Ahead of the Summit, we chatted with Destination Deluxe founder and CEO, Vivienne Tang about how the wellness industry has changed over the years, fads to watch out for, and the wellness rituals she swears by.
You’ve been in wellness way before it became mainstream. What are the biggest changes in the industry that you’ve seen so far?
When I first started working in wellness more than 17 years ago, it was still considered quite niche. Spas were largely associated with beauty and pampering, while practices such as meditation, breathwork and alternative healing sat firmly outside the mainstream.
Today, wellness has evolved into a much broader and more sophisticated industry. It is no longer simply about feeling relaxed or looking better. People are thinking about how they sleep, eat, move, manage stress, age and ultimately live. Wellness has also become far more evidence-based, with greater integration between traditional healing practices, preventative medicine and advanced technology.
The biggest shift, however, is that wellness has moved from being an occasional luxury to becoming a lifestyle and, increasingly, a necessity. People are taking greater responsibility for their own health and are much more informed about what they want. They are also asking tougher questions, which is a good thing.
What are the three biggest trends these days in wellness?
The first is longevity, although I think the conversation is beginning to move beyond simply extending lifespan. The real focus should be health span: remaining strong, mentally sharp, mobile and engaged for as long as possible.
The second is nervous system regulation, extending far beyond cold plunges, breathwork challenges or simply increasing our tolerance for stress. The deeper work involves understanding how our nervous system has been shaped by early developmental experiences, relationships and learned survival patterns. These patterns can influence how we respond to stress, how safe we feel in relationships and even how we function physically. It is imperative that we approach wellness through this lens and work with the nervous system at its roots, rather than continually managing symptoms. The process may not be glamorous or offer instant gratification, but it can be profoundly transformative.
The third is personalisation. The one-size-fits-all approach to wellness is becoming obsolete. Whether through diagnostics, biomarker testing, wearable technology or more intuitive, human-led assessments, people increasingly expect programmes to be tailored to their individual bodies, lifestyles and goals.
Are there any fads we should watch out for or avoid?
Anything promising a dramatic transformation with very little effort should immediately raise a red flag. Wellness has become a highly profitable industry, and clever marketing can make almost anything sound scientific.
I am particularly sceptical of excessive biohacking, unnecessary supplementation and extreme protocols that encourage people to obsess over every measurement. Data can be incredibly useful, but constantly monitoring your body can also become another source of stress. I am also very cautious about injecting substances such as peptides without a genuine medical need, proper testing and qualified supervision.
What are your wellness rituals?
Every day, I do a lymphatic and fascia flow, which has completely changed how I feel in my body. I also try to get my steps in, and during the Swiss winter I use a walking pad at home. Beyond that, I practise Pilates and Lagree, go running, do martial arts from time to time and use a red-light blanket.
Nervous system regulation is another important part of my wellbeing, particularly when something comes up emotionally or I am going through a stressful period. Rather than pushing through and pretending it is not affecting me, I try to address it. I work with a therapist and also belong to a circle that meets once a week for practise. This work has profoundly changed my life.
Dance is equally essential. I’ve been practising Ecstatic Dance and 5Rhythms regularly for the past four years, usually once or twice a week. It allows me to express myself fully, release what I am carrying and reconnect with parts of myself that are not always accessible through words. It has become one of the most profound and transformative practices in my life.
When I am in Zurich, sauna and cold plunges are imperative, and during summer I swim in the lake. I value having both physical practices and deeper emotional work in my life, because one supports the other.
Sleep is also extremely important to me. For a long time, I never turned off my phone at night, but I have recently started switching it off completely, and I sleep so much better. I also avoid scheduling very early calls wherever possible and generally try to wake naturally without an alarm. These relatively simple changes have made a remarkable difference to the quality of my sleep and how I feel throughout the day.
You’re living between Bangkok and Switzerland these days. What are your favourite wellness hot spots in the city?
Bangkok has developed an incredibly diverse wellness scene, and there are still so many places I want to explore. I love Carve House for my Lagree workout fix. It is intense, efficient and incredibly effective, which is perfect when I have a demanding schedule. BDMS Wellness Clinic is another favourite. Bangkok has become a major destination for preventative and medical wellness, and I appreciate having access to sophisticated diagnostics alongside more holistic approaches. The city also has a growing number of recovery studios, ice-bath spaces and holistic wellness centres that I am looking forward to trying.
In Zurich, my wellness world looks quite different. Ecstatic Dance and 5Rhythms are central to my routine, and I regularly use the sauna and cold plunge. During summer, swimming in the lake is one of life’s great pleasures. What I love about moving between Bangkok and Switzerland is that the two cities offer completely different but complementary approaches to wellbeing.
What can we look forward to at the Destination Deluxe Awards and Wellness Summit?
Through a series of keynote presentations, panel discussions and intimate lunchtime roundtables, we will explore some of the most important developments shaping the industry, including: human performance, longevity, purpose-led travel, technology and robotics, social wellness and the next era of wellness hospitality.
The roundtables give participants the opportunity to move beyond simply listening and have meaningful conversations directly with industry leaders.
The experience begins with a floating sound bath, alongside aerial yoga, movement on the riverfront, a mindful mandala workshop and The Great Gate, a powerful self-inquiry experience. The Summit will be followed by the Destination Deluxe Awards Ceremony, where we celebrate the people, properties, treatments and innovations raising standards across the global wellness and travel industries.
What I am most excited about is the calibre of people coming together. The event is deliberately intimate at 150 people, which creates opportunities for genuine connections and honest conversations. That is where the most interesting ideas and relationships tend to begin.
Finally, what is your personal definition of wellness?
For me, wellness is about being genuinely happy in your life. Community is a huge part of that. In fact, I increasingly believe it may be the most important pillar of wellness, perhaps even before the physical element, because our relationships and sense of belonging have such a profound effect on our physical and emotional health.
Of course, we still need to move our bodies, nourish ourselves, sleep well and take responsibility for our health. But wellness is not something we create entirely on our own. It is also shaped by whether we feel safe, supported, connected and free to be ourselves. Ultimately, wellness is having the physical vitality, emotional resilience, meaningful relationships and sense of purpose that allow you to feel fully alive.
Learn more about the Destination Deluxe Awards & Wellness Summit 2026
All photos courtesy of Vivienne Tang
