Grief Travel Is Growing Fast — Here’s Why More Travelers Are Booking Healing Retreats
Grief travel — structured trips designed to help people process loss, heartbreak and major life transitions — is emerging as one of the fastest-growing corners of wellness tourism in 2025. Here’s what readers are asking as bereavement retreats spread from Greece to Portugal to Sweden.
What Is Grief Travel and Why Is It Becoming a Major Wellness Trend?
Grief travel refers to trips and retreats specifically designed to help people process bereavement, heartbreak or major life transitions through a combination of counseling, ritual, movement and community support outside of traditional therapy settings. Travelers are increasingly seeking these structured experiences as an alternative — or supplement — to clinical grief counseling.
The trend is being fueled by sharp growth in the broader emotional-wellness market. A 2025 Global Wellness Institute report projects the global grief-counseling market will grow from an estimated $3.67 billion in 2025 to roughly $4.52 billion by 2029, driven by rising demand for support around loss, burnout and emotional healing.
Lynn Zakeri, LCSW, a licensed therapist based in Chicago, told Forbes in 2025 that the phenomenon has earned its own informal name in her practice. “Griefcation isn’t a clinical term, but it captures something I’ve seen again and again, with clients and also in my own life,” she said.
Zakeri described the approach as intentionally stepping away from everyday responsibilities to process emotions more openly. “To cry without feeling like you have to pull it together…to have feelings and not apologize for them — that’s powerful,” she told Forbes.
Experts say a major part of the appeal is the environmental shift itself. Zakeri noted that many people do not have the opportunity to fully process grief between work, caregiving and daily responsibilities. A different setting can create enough emotional distance for feelings to surface in a more manageable way.
The retreats reflect a broader cultural willingness to talk about death, mourning and emotional recovery — subjects that have traditionally been treated as private. Programs marketed under the grief travel umbrella now include everything from week-long bereavement intensives to surf-therapy stays designed for people working through breakups, divorce or burnout. As demand grows, retreat centers across Europe in particular are positioning themselves as destinations for travelers who want their time away from home to do real emotional work — not just provide a break from it.
How Does Grief Travel Actually Help People Cope With Loss?
Grief travel works primarily by interrupting the routines and environments tied to a person’s loss, giving them space and structure to feel emotions they’ve been pushing down at home. The approach blends therapeutic practices with nature, ritual and community — a combination experts say can be powerful when used intentionally.
Dr. Gail Saltz, associate professor of psychiatry at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell School of Medicine, told Forbes that travel can help interrupt the patterns that keep people stuck in grief. “For some individuals, travel based in grief recovery can have benefits, but it is not a one size fits all and it is not prescribed as a treatment for grief,” she said.
That caveat matters. Saltz warned that grief travel can become counterproductive if it’s used as avoidance rather than reflection. “If travel is used to deny death or to pretend the person is waiting at home, then it’s not really processing the grief,” she told Forbes.
Zakeri said the most effective grief trips give people permission to feel without the social pressure to “be okay.” Stepping out of familiar surroundings — and away from coworkers, neighbors and family members who may expect a certain version of you — can be the unlock that lets grief actually move.
Personalized rituals are a recurring theme. Zakeri told Forbes she often recommends practices like journaling, creating playlists, lighting candles or speaking aloud to loved ones while walking. Retreat programs frequently build on these small acts and add structured ceremonies, group sharing and somatic work designed to release stored emotion from the body.
Lien De Coster, a mentor at the Tears of Amber & Gold retreat in Sweden, described how nature itself becomes part of the healing. “The retreat centre is a five-minute walk from the ocean,” she told National Geographic, explaining that nearby waterways are incorporated into the retreat’s rituals and healing practices. “As a closing ritual, we return the harvested water, now salty with our tears, back to the ocean,” she added.
The takeaway from clinicians is consistent: grief travel can be a meaningful complement to grief work, but it’s not a replacement for ongoing care — and travelers should be honest with themselves about whether they’re going to face their loss or escape it.
For more information: The Best Wellness and Recovery Retreats in the U.S. for Healing and Burnout Recovery Right Now
What Happens At a Grief Retreat and What Activities Are Included?
Most grief-focused retreats combine therapeutic practices with wellness activities and time in nature, typically running between three and seven days. Programs are structured to move guests through emotional release, reflection and integration — often building toward a closing ritual on the final day.
Common elements across grief retreats include:
- Group therapy and sharing circles
- Meditation and breathwork
- Yoga and movement therapy
- Journaling and letter-writing exercises
- Cold-water therapy or ocean immersion
- Nature-based healing and hiking
- Somatic therapy and emotional processing workshops
- Rituals or ceremonies focused on release and renewal
Many programs also encourage personalized rituals that guests can take home. Zakeri told Forbes she often recommends practices like journaling, creating playlists, lighting candles or speaking aloud to loved ones while walking — small acts that keep the emotional work going after the retreat ends.
Other retreats lean into mythology, ceremony or specific cultural traditions. The Tears of Amber & Gold program in Sweden blends grief rituals with cold-water immersion and Norse mythology-inspired ceremonies, using the surrounding fjords as part of the emotional landscape. Programs in Greece incorporate energy work and counseling against the backdrop of ancient ruins, while French retreats often emphasize quiet, private settings with one-on-one therapy.
The daily rhythm at most retreats is intentionally slower than a typical vacation. Mornings might begin with movement or breathwork, midday is often reserved for therapy sessions or group work, and afternoons are kept open for rest, reading, walks or solo reflection. Evenings frequently include shared meals and optional group conversation.
What sets grief retreats apart from standard wellness travel is the explicit invitation to feel difficult emotions rather than escape them. Tears in yoga class, breakdowns during sharing circles and quiet weeping during nature walks aren’t disruptions — they’re the point. Facilitators are typically licensed therapists, grief specialists or trained mentors who can hold space for that level of emotional intensity.
Where Are the Best Grief Travel Retreats Around the World?
A growing number of grief travel retreats now operate across Europe, with standout programs in Greece, France, Sweden and Portugal. Each offers a different approach — from energy work and counseling to surf therapy and Norse-inspired ceremony — but all are designed for travelers navigating loss, heartbreak or major life transitions.
Euphoria Retreat — Mystras, Greece
Located beneath the UNESCO-listed ruins of Mystras in Greece, Euphoria Retreat focuses on holistic healing through nature therapy, counseling and energy work. Programs such as its “emotional harmony” experience are designed for guests recovering from trauma, heartbreak or major life transitions.
The Therapy Haven — Île de Ré, France
The Therapy Haven offers private cottage stays focused on grief recovery, anxiety and emotional burnout. Retreats are designed for individuals, couples and executives, combining intensive therapy with organic vegan meals, beach access and cycling around the island. The setting is intentionally quiet and contained, aimed at travelers who want privacy rather than group immersion.
Tears of Amber & Gold — Bohuslän, Sweden
Held at Kärlingesund Retreat Center in Sweden, this six-day retreat blends grief rituals with cold-water immersion and Norse mythology-inspired ceremonies. Mentor Lien De Coster told National Geographic that proximity to the ocean shapes the entire program. “The retreat centre is a five-minute walk from the ocean,” she said, noting that nearby waterways are woven into rituals throughout the week. “As a closing ritual, we return the harvested water, now salty with our tears, back to the ocean,” she added.
Soul Surfers Retreat — Algarve, Portugal
Founded by therapist Sabine Wensink, Soul Surfers Retreat combines surf therapy, yoga and group reflection along Portugal’s Algarve coast. Wensink told National Geographic the ocean does much of the work. “It’s about harnessing the ocean’s natural rhythm as a mirror for life’s challenges and inviting participants to move through stress, grief or disconnection with presence and embodied awareness,” she said.
Before booking, prospective travelers should review each program’s clinical credentials and confirm that licensed therapists or trained grief specialists are leading the work. Saltz cautioned in her Forbes interview that grief travel isn’t a substitute for treatment, so travelers managing complicated grief, trauma or mental health conditions should consult their own clinician before signing up — and ideally continue care after returning home.
This article was created by content specialists using various tools, including AI.
