Tourism trends and traveller tribes: applying insights in service design

Whenever Haaga-Helia tourism professionals travel, we cannot help but observe and analyse the tourism and hospitality ecosystems around us. Keeping up with industry trends, tools, and traveller insights helps us inspire our peers and prepare our students for careers in tourism.

Travel trend reports (e.g. Skift, Skyscanner, Condé Nast Traveler, Hilton, Booking.com, Amadeus) highlight a shift towards highly personalised, identity-driven travel. Travellers increasingly choose trips with purpose or based on personal passions, heritage, wellness, and niche interests rather than generic sightseeing. This has led to the emergence of distinct ‘traveller tribes’, segments defined by shared behaviours, motivations, and lifestyles.

Based on professional observations, trend reports, and service design approaches within the ENRICHER hubs project, this article explores emerging traveller tribes and their potential relevance for tourism development in Georgia and Moldova.

The rise of new traveller tribes

Tourism students learn about the history of tourism and discover how key innovations transformed travel. For example, the invention of the steam engine enabled affluent travellers to journey by rail and sea, opening the world to a new era of exploration. The Grand Tour allowed the upper classes to experience the cultural treasures, art, and architecture of cities such as Venice and Florence. Mass tourism truly took off in the 1950s with the advent of passenger jet aircraft, which made it possible to fly people across continents and oceans to distant destinations to experience sun, sea and sand. More and more people were able to travel, and international tourist numbers grew from 25 million in 1950 to 1.5 billion in 2019. Before the pandemic, tourism accounted for 10 percent of jobs and economic output globally. (McClanahan 2024; World Tourism Organization 2025.)

Travellers are flying more than ever, contributing to overtourism and climate change. Technology is reshaping travel, making the world more accessible and bookings easier than ever. However, not everyone wants to follow the traditional tourist trail. Bucket lists with must-see destinations do not resonate with travellers seeking more meaningful and authentic experiences (Wakefield 15.10.2025; Hilton 2026). As travel preferences continue to evolve, less-visited destinations (Skyscanner 2026) have an opportunity to attract new groups of travellers.

Applying service design in the ENRICHER hubs project

Georgia and Moldova are the target countries of the ENRICHER hubs project. One aim of the project is to apply service design to better understand evolving tourist types and behaviours, helping Georgian and Moldovan tourism teachers, students, and industry gain clearer insight into what today’s and tomorrow’s tourists want to experience.

In our service design trainings for the project, we used Visit Finland’s (2023) customer segments as an example of how destinations can identify and better serve different visitor groups. Such personas serve as effective tools because tourism destinations rarely cater to a single audience. Instead, they typically appeal to a variety of traveller segments, each with distinct needs and expectations.

While Georgia and Moldova may not yet have fully realised their unique appeal to a diverse range of traveller tribes, the situation might soon change. Based on the latest trend reports and the Status quo and GAP Analysis report of the ENRICHER hubs project, there are emerging traveller tribes that may offer potential for both countries. Let’s have a look at them.

Urban explorers

Usually, Chisinau and Tbilisi are on globetrotters’ radar when they have first visited cities like New York and Dubai. However, now they have a better chance to be considered by the urban explorer tribe. For example, global travellers are opting out from the US due to the Trump effect and look for alternative and more affordable destinations, especially in Europe (Kopit 2026). Both cities offer good value for travellers, with Tbilisi listed among the best-value destinations by Skyscanner (2026a).

According to Skift (2026), locations that combine food, music, art and local culture have pulling power for today’s travellers. Cities epitomise that. Tbilisi’s modern buidlings and ancient architecture as well as its vibrant restaurant and cultural scenes are sure to please this type of traveller. Chisinau has its post-Soviet charms and Tbilisi rides on the Silk Road allure. Chic boutique hotels in Tbilisi’s Old Town and accommodation close to Chisinau’s vibrant restaurants and local markets can appeal strongly to urban explorers. Condé Nast Traveler (5.1.2026) observes that grocery shop tourism is on the rise and trending in TikTok. Chisinau and Tbilisi can act as stepping stones to other parts of the two countries, which are treasure troves for more traveller tribes.

Hands-on heritage hunters

Booking.com (Wakefield 15.10.2025) predicts success for destinations that allow travellers to get hands-on with hobbies, offer sensory experiences and connect them deeper to culture and nature.

Both Moldova and Georgia are known for their countryside, cultural traditions and village life. Rural destinations captivate this type of travellers. They crave for artisan adventures, learning about skills and stories of traditional crafts. They yearn to add novel patterns and yarn to their handicraft portfolios. They can be attracted with knitting and weaving courses as well as cooking classes. They seek to return home with both cherished memories and tangible mementos of their experiences, such as herbs and recipes to recreate.

Heritage hunters become happy with village homestays and farm retreats. Visiting village fairs and festivals is high on their agenda. Combining traditional arts and crafts with visits to local museums and concerts are attractive to them. Both Moldova (Moldova Travel 2026) and Georgia (Georgia Travel 2026) have a lot to offer to this traveller tribe. For example, in Georgia travellers can indulge in the first civilization in Europe and get to know its 8,000-year old viticulture (Georgia Travel 2026a).

Sip & soak seekers

According to Euromonitor (5.11.2025), brands can help create a sense of comfort and stability to support customer wellbeing. Pampering, wellness and spa experiences coupled with good food and wine attract tourists to agricultural destinations. Many premium travellers flock to destinations for their cuisine and spa experiences. Georgia and Moldova may not compete with the likes of Tuscany, Bali and Hawaii with their spas yet, but they have their fair share of spa and wine tourism appeal nevertheless.

As wine lovers know, some of the most exotic European wines come from Moldova and Georgia. For example, the art of winemaking is the focus in the underground city of wine cellars in Cricova, Moldova. The Schuhmann Wines in the rural Kakheti region of Georgia has both a vineyard and a hotel with a spa on the premises. It is possible to have a trendy glowcation – including body and wellness treatments on holidays and coming back home with a holiday glow (Booking.com 25.10.2025) – in Georgia enjoying vinotherapy spa treatments and facials amidst vineyards. Soaking in the Caucasus mountains and delighting in the local cuisine and wines is certainly unique and soothing even for world-weary and battle-scarred travellers.

Macabre wanderers

According to Amadeus (2026) and Euromonitor (5.11.2025), companies should target specific customer profiles, go for hyper-segmentation and hyper-personalisation as niche markets can be profitable.

These turbulent times have boosted dark tourism — travel motivated by death, suffering, terror, and tragedy. Dark tourism spots linked to conflict, urban decay, and abandoned places tempt those with a taste for the macabre. Dark tourists are the ultimate glomads (global nomads as coined by Skyscanner 2026) and usually very mindful and interested in the history of the destinations they visit, attracted by authentic storytelling and possibilities of cultural immersion.

In Georgia and Moldova, the appeal often centers on Soviet-era relics and ‘frozen conflicts’ in occupied territories. Highlights include Stalin’s birthplace in Gori, Georgia, and the still-standing Lenin statues in Moldova. Dark tourists are often on a whycation (Hilton 2026), where they seek a deeper purpose for their holiday. Confronting dark history can inspire a renewed commitment to building a better world upon returning home. After all, tourism is a powerful force for peace and understanding.

Enhancing skills for creating impactful tourism experiences

Success in the tourism industry depends on identifying the right target groups and understanding their motivations, which is exactly what the ENRICHER hubs project supports through capacity building in service design tools and methods.

By introducing students to inspiring trend sources and tools of service design, we equip the next generation of tourism professionals with the skills to identify visitor needs, develop targeted solutions, and create more impactful tourism experiences.

Picture: Shutterstock