Travel is changing: the new souvenir is no longer an object, but an experience that is remembered
Travel is increasingly less about classic sightseeing, a short stop for a photograph and buying a magnet at the exit from the historic center. More and more travelers want to do something with their own hands at the destination, learn a skill, meet local people and return home with a story that no object from a souvenir shop can replace. Workshops in cooking, ceramics, dance, weaving, jewelry making, olive picking, painting or preparing local desserts are therefore becoming one of the most visible forms of contemporary experience tourism. Such programs offer the tourist a different rhythm: less passive observation, more participation, conversation and the feeling that, at least briefly, he has become part of the place he is visiting.
This shift fits into the broader picture of the recovery and change of world tourism. According to UN Tourism data, international tourist arrivals in 2025 reached about 1.52 billion, which shows that global travel has not only returned after pandemic restrictions, but has once again entered a phase of growth. At the same time, the OECD warns in its analyses that the growth of tourism increasingly raises questions of sustainability, pressure on infrastructure, the labor market, housing and the everyday life of local communities. That is exactly why destinations are no longer looking only for a greater number of arrivals, but for a better-quality relationship between visitors and the space they enter.
From sightseeing toward participation
For decades, the classic tourist itinerary was easily recognizable: the main street, the cathedral, the museum, the viewpoint, several photographs and dinner in a restaurant with local dishes. That model has not disappeared, nor will it disappear, but it is no longer enough for an increasing number of travelers. In the reports and trends of tourism platforms, demand is increasingly emphasized for activities that offer a more personal touch with the destination. Viator highlighted in its 2025 trend report that travelers are increasingly seeking more meaningful and immersive experiences, including learning a new skill from a local expert. GetYourGuide stated in its analysis of experiences that user behavior is increasingly measured through reviews, quality of execution and the real value of the experience, and not only through the number of attractions visited.
A cooking workshop in a small kitchen, a ceramics class in an artisan studio or a dance workshop in a cultural center are therefore not just an addition to a trip. They become a way to understand a destination through practice. When a visitor kneads dough for local bread, shapes clay according to traditional vessels or learns the basic steps of a dance connected with a particular region, the encounter with culture stops being superficial. At that moment the tourist is no longer only an observer passing through a space, but a participant who invests time, attention and his own effort.
This form of tourism is especially important in cities and regions that want to reduce their dependence on several of the most famous locations. Instead of all the pressure being concentrated on the historic center, a popular square or a coastal promenade, creative workshops can direct visitors toward neighborhoods, smaller places, rural areas and family workshops that would otherwise not be part of the standard route. In this way, tourist spending spreads to a larger number of local actors, and the visitor receives content that cannot simply be copied from one destination to another.
Cooking as the fastest path to understanding a place
Culinary tourism is one of the strongest examples of the change in travel habits. Food is often the first and most accessible contact with local culture, but the difference between ordering a dish in a restaurant and participating in its preparation is increasingly important. The World Food Travel Association defines food tourism as travel for the “taste of place”, that is, for a deeper understanding of space through food and drink. This definition describes well why cooking workshops are increasingly offered as a separate tourism product: they do not sell only a meal, but a story about ingredients, habits, the season, family, the market and local identity.
In practice, this can mean a morning trip to the market with a chef, meeting producers of cheese or olive oil, learning the difference between industrial and handmade pasta preparation, a conversation about spices or a shared lunch after the workshop. In such a format, food becomes an entry point into the economy and everyday life of a destination. The visitor finds out what is grown in the surrounding area, why a particular dish is prepared precisely at a certain time of year and how recipes have changed under the influence of history, migration or the availability of ingredients.
Booking.com stated in its 2025 predictions an increased desire for authentic experiences outside the usual routes, which fits well with the growth in popularity of gastronomic tours and workshops. Airbnb highlighted in its summer 2025 trends that some guests chose accommodation precisely because of the desire for a local experience, while in public announcements about the platform’s new direction it additionally emphasized the expansion of the offer toward experiences and services in the destination. Although such data are related to individual platforms and their users, they show a broader market signal: the traveler wants practical contact with a place, and not only a catalogue of attractions.
Ceramics, crafts and handmade work as a response to digital fatigue
Workshops in ceramics, textiles, woodcarving, calligraphy, making natural cosmetics or local decorations have another important reason for their popularity: they offer an experience of slowness in a time in which travel is often accelerated, digitized and optimized in advance. Many itineraries today are created through applications, algorithmic recommendations and short videos that turn destinations into a series of visually attractive points. In contrast, a creative workshop requires concentration and physical presence. Clay cannot be shaped superficially, a dance step cannot be learned without repetition, and a recipe does not succeed if the procedure is skipped.
UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network shows how creativity and cultural industries can be part of sustainable urban development. That network brings together hundreds of cities that recognize culture, design, gastronomy, crafts, music, film or literature as a strategically important part of local identity. Tourism workshops do not have to be an official part of such programs to have a similar logic: they connect the visitor with local knowledge and give economic value to skills that might otherwise remain closed within a narrow circle of the community.
For destinations this is especially important because the souvenir is changing from an object into a process. A handmade bowl that the visitor shaped himself, a notebook bound at a workshop or learned dance steps are not a mass product. Even when the final object is not technically perfect, its value lies in the memory of the encounter, the space and the person who passed on the knowledge. Such a souvenir has a personal dimension, and at the same time it can help small crafts, artists and educators create a sustainable source of income from their own knowledge.
Dance and performance workshops create a different connection with culture
Dance and music workshops show that experience tourism does not always have to end with an object that is carried home. Sometimes the most important result is the feeling of rhythm, understanding a gesture or a shared moment with a group of people. In many destinations, classes in traditional dance, contemporary urban dances or local musical forms are becoming part of the tourism offer because they enable an encounter with culture through the body, and not only through text, an exhibition or a lecture.
Such programs are especially attractive to travelers who want a more active vacation, but also to those seeking a social element of travel. A workshop gathers people who do not know one another, but share the same activity, mistakes and laughter. It is precisely this informality that often creates a feeling of closeness that a classic tour cannot produce. In that sense, dance, cooking or ceramics are not only “activities”, but small social spaces within tourism.
Examples from the industry show that experiences are increasingly connected with events, concerts, festivals and popular culture. In reporting on new travel formats, fan activities, dance classes and creative workshops connected with major music events are mentioned, which confirms that tourism no longer follows only a place, but also a community of interest. Travel is increasingly planned around what can be experienced, learned and with whom the experience can be shared.
Why destinations encourage small, local and authentic programs
For local communities, the most important question is not only how many tourists arrive, but what kind of trace they leave behind. The OECD warns that tourism in many destinations can cross socially acceptable limits if pressure on infrastructure, the environment and housing becomes too great. Experience and creative tourism does not automatically solve all problems, but it can be part of a smarter model of visitor management. When spending is distributed among small workshops, local guides, family producers and creative spaces, a wider circle of people benefits from tourism.
Such programs can also extend the season. A cooking, ceramics or dance workshop does not necessarily depend on ideal weather, a beach or a major festival. It can be held indoors, in smaller groups and outside the main season. This is important for destinations that want to reduce dependence on several summer months or on peaks in visits around major events. Instead of the tourism economy being concentrated in a short period, experiences can encourage arrivals throughout the whole year.
There is also an important cultural aspect. When a local craftsperson, cook, dancer, artist or producer becomes the host of a workshop, knowledge that is often informal and generational gains visibility. But this also opens the question of the boundary between presenting culture and commercializing it. If tradition is simplified only so that it can be sold more quickly to tourists, the experience can lose credibility. That is why quality programs usually clearly explain the context, respect local bearers of knowledge and avoid turning culture into superficial scenography.
The tourist wants a story he can repeat, not just a photograph he can publish
Social networks have long encouraged visual tourism: destinations were chosen according to photographs, viewpoints and recognizable frames. But saturation with the same scenes has created demand for something more personal. A photograph of a famous landmark is often similar to thousands of others, while the story of how someone learned to prepare a local dish or shape an object in a small workshop is harder to replace. That is exactly why the new value of travel increasingly lies in an experience that can be retold, and not only shown.
This does not mean that travelers no longer want beautiful scenes, museums or historic locations. It means that alongside them, an additional layer is increasingly sought. A city is seen with the eyes, but it is also remembered through the smell of spices, the texture of clay, the voice of an instructor, conversation at a shared table or the feeling of clumsiness while the first dance steps are being learned. Such details create the emotional memory of travel, and it is often more lasting than a classic tour.
For the tourism industry, this is both a market opportunity and a responsibility. A poorly organized workshop, an overly large group, an unclear price or a program that only pretends to be authentic can quickly undermine trust. On the other hand, well-led experiences have strong potential for good reviews, recommendations and repeat arrivals. At a time when travelers increasingly compare offers and read the experiences of other users, credibility becomes as important as attractiveness.
The boundary between authenticity and a tourist performance
The growth in popularity of creative workshops also brings risks. Not every “local” activity is truly local, nor is every “authentic” offer credible. Some programs can be designed exclusively for quick sale, without a real connection with the space, people or tradition they represent. In such cases, the tourist receives a product that only uses the language of authenticity, while the local community gains little benefit from it. This is especially sensitive with cultural practices that have deep meaning for a particular community.
That is why responsible design of experiences is increasingly discussed. Workshop hosts should be fairly paid, the number of participants must be reasonable, and cultural content should be presented without caricature. Visitors, on the other hand, need to understand that a workshop is not a private performance, but an encounter with someone’s knowledge and time. Such a relationship creates better-quality tourism because it is not based only on consumption, but also on respect.
This is precisely where the difference between an ordinary attraction and a well-designed experience can be seen. An attraction can often be visited without any contact with the local population. An experience, especially one that includes learning, requires two-way communication. The traveler asks questions, the host explains, and the result is not only a completed activity but also an understanding of why it exists precisely in that place. This is the reason why cooking, ceramics and dance workshops have increasing importance in contemporary tourism.
A trend that changes both the offer and travelers’ expectations
Experience tourism should not be viewed as a passing fashion. It is part of a broader change in which travelers seek more meaning, flexibility and a personal relationship with the destination. The global growth of travel, the development of digital platforms and increasing competition among destinations have encouraged the search for content that cannot easily be copied. Landmarks can be similar in the way they are presented, but a local recipe, a craft technique, a dance style or a conversation with a host carry the specificity of a place.
For destinations that want to develop tourism in the long term, such content can be an important tool. It creates reasons for arrival outside the most burdened zones, helps small entrepreneurs, gives new value to cultural heritage and offers visitors an experience that lasts longer than the activity itself. The new souvenir is therefore increasingly not what is bought on a shelf, but what is learned, made or experienced in direct contact with a place. In a world in which almost everyone can photograph the same landmark, a personal skill and an authentic story become the most recognizable trace of travel.
Sources:- UN Tourism – data on international tourist arrivals and the global recovery of tourism (link)- OECD – Tourism Trends and Policies 2024, analysis of tourism recovery, sustainability and pressure on destinations (link)- UNESCO – Creative Cities Network, data on the role of creativity and cultural industries in local development (link)- World Food Travel Association – definition and context of the food tourism concept (link)- Booking.com – Travel Predictions 2025, trends in authentic and different travel experiences (link)- Airbnb Newsroom – Summer Travel Trends 2025, data on demand for local experiences (link)- GetYourGuide – Travel Experience Trend Tracker 2025, analysis of reviews and the tourism experiences market (link)- Viator – Travel Trends Report 2025, the trend of meaningful and practical experiences in the destination (link)
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