Travel: In a world of noise, silence becomes the ultimate luxury journey

Copyright © HT Digital Streams Limit all rights reserved. Teja Lele 6 min Read May 11, 2025, 08:00 IST research shows that time in quiet nature reduces the tension, anxiety and repetitive thoughts and restores attention. (IStockphoto) Summary A new travel trend sees people looking for quietly through tranquil natural refugees, mindfulness breaks and quiet walking noise. It was the first thing that hit me when I walked a morning step after returning from a two -month break in a small British city to India. Screaming brakes, hard horns, sellers calls, lazy phones, barking dogs, interrupted chatter … A hard litany sounds threatened to drown my mind. It made me think that in a world moving at a frenetic pace, there was a quiet casualty: quiet. A relentless soundtrack for us always-to-life means that opportunities to find silence are rare. Perhaps this is why the desire for silent journey in a year is characterized by unprecedented temperatures and increasing awareness of environmental damage. Also read: Sri Lanka Travel: Skip Touristy Galle and Bentota, go to the Kalutara-based non-profit Global Wellness Institute in 2017, in a report, identified ‘sharp new desires: for real silence, quiet thinking, to leave the shouting world’, and to hear the silence of nature. Last year, Pinterest’s travel report “Quiet Life Travel” quoted as one of the most popular trends. ‘The search for a calmer, more calm lifestyle is increasing, with searching for’ quiet life ‘rising by 530%. This longing for simplicity has extended to travel – since last year the search for ‘quiet places’ and “quiet places” increased by 50% and 42% respectively, “the report observed. “Peaceful journey is about choosing destinations and experiences that promote calm. Rather than following crowds to typical tourist hubs, people are now turning to quieter, lesser-known places for more tranquil refugees,” says Himani Arora, who manages an Ahmedabad-based social travel agency. With people looking for options and destinations that offer the ongoing buzz of connectivity and digital distractions, quiet accommodation, tranquil meditation haven and the quiet walking trend, which has a huge impact on tapping, is growing worldwide. Expedia’s Pack Pack 25 Travel Trend report reveals that 63% travelers were eager to visit a destination outside the tracks on their next trip, indicating a ‘growing desire for quieter, more meaningful holidays’. Also read: Get into Peek-a-Boo, crawl out of ghostly Gulch: A Utah Canyoning story Hari Ganapathy, co-founder of online travel business PickyourTrail, in Chennai, says the increase in quiet journey is a direct response to the growing need for introspection and escape from the continuous drunk of modern life. “Destinations are increasingly chosen by travelers seeking calm, recreation, nature and culture,” he says. The study by PickyourTrail underlines that “quiet journey is strongly echoed with those who seek quality time with loved ones, without the deductions of typical tourist places”. Hotels, resorts and tour operators have launched tranquil resorts and silent experiences as demand for sincere silence rises. Hotels that offer unlimited silence have become popular, whether Sitara Himalaya, near Mount Meru and in Kullu Valley, who invite visitors to interrupt, reflect and re -rejoin the natural world; Taj Madikeri Resort and Spa, located in the western Ghats at the crossroads of Coorg’s game reserves; Ahilya by the Sea, a tranquil escape over three villas in Goa; House of Rohet, who runs boutique hotels in Rajasthan; Or the Kumaon, on a reef in the shade of the Nanda Devi series. The international options are many. Dark Retreats in Oregon offers a five -day stay in Tidewater, Oregon, as “an excellent space for self -care” by living in darkness, digital detox and a healthy diet. Bookretreats have silent meditation havoc on Bali, Portugal, Mexico, the Netherlands, North Carolina, Quebec and California. In Finland, Utula Nature offers a quiet stay amid the pine trees to the Lake Saimaa, while Rusty & Rusty Hotel in Jokkmok, Sweden, located amid sparweds and surrounded by the wilderness of the Lule River, is not easy to reach. But that doesn’t mean people who are looking for silence do not stand up. Vikram Chauhan, co-founder and President, Custy Parks International (QPI), a non-profit organization committed to saving silence for the benefit of all life through “quiet areas” all over the world, believes that silence is a rapidly demarcated resource and that the growing desire for quiet journey “is directly related to us.” QPI has named four national parks, in the US, Ecuador and Namibia, as ‘quiet’ destinations. More than ten urban parks have the silent designation, including Hampstead Heath in London and Hansta Nature Reserve, Stockholm. Also read: Travel: Celebrate the failed love story of an evil giant in Cornwall “If you listen to silence (and sounds of a place), especially in nature – really listen with all your attention – your mind gets quiet. In those quiet thoughts, you realize who you really are. It’s such a revelation, such a freedom,” he says. In addition to affecting our world and environment, rising noise levels worldwide affect our quality of life. According to the World Health Organization, excessive noise “can disturb the sleep; adverse cardiovascular, metabolic, psychophysiological and birth outcomes; results in cognitive and hearing impairment; reducing performance; and exploiting irritation and changes in social behavior”. Gurugram-based Samir Parikh, director, mental health and behavioral sciences, Fortis Healthcare, says the effects of noise pollution can be physical and psychological, including “stress, anxiety, sleep disorder, cardiovascular problems and reduced cognitive function”. Research also shows that spending time in quiet nature reduces tension, anxiety, depression, repetitive thoughts and restores attention. “Our brains and bodies respond to silence as it does meditation: with a fall in stress hormones and breathing rates, and an increase in concentration levels and a feeling of calm,” says Dr Parikh. This makes it essential for everyone to find daily doses calm and quiet, such as and where possible, he adds. Also read: Travel: Finding a sense of belonging in Haa Valley According to the research firm Allied Market Research, the Global Wellness Retreat Market (which includes Mindfulness Retreats) has doubled by 2032, which reaches $ 364 billion, with the demand powered by increased tension, growing awareness and “desire for digital detox. The search for silence is likely to drive the question as well. Shefali Nautiyal, author in Dehradun, focuses on finding silence, to “escape the sound of everyday life, whether it works, other people, the overload of information, even my own thoughts”, to find the space to write. Nautiyal says she regularly goes on tranquil walks and traits in the mountains to interrupt and enjoy natural beauty in peace. “Silent Travel works as an antidote … A silence is the best way to relax and recalibrate in a chaotic world,” says Arora. In a book of silence, British author Sara Maitland writes that “in our noise-obsessive culture is very easy to forget how many of the most important physical forces we depend on, silent grainness, electricity, light, tides, the unseen and unheard turn of the entire cosmos”. The search for silence may serve as a quiet memory. Teja Lele writes about travel and lifestyle. Also read: Travel: Relax with a cascade from Hot Stones in Bhutan, catch all the business news, market news, news events and latest news updates on Live Mint. 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