Upskilling holidays – or ‘skillcations’ – are set to become one of 2026’s biggest travel trends with people using their annual leave to develop new skills.
Adventure travel company Much Better Adventures has reported a 200% increase in bookings for certain skills-based trips over the past year, including winter mountaineering, surf schools and off-road cycling adventures, highlighting a growing appetite for more purposeful travel.
A ‘skillcation’ is an emerging travel trend where holidays are centred around learning something new, from cooking and foraging to mastering hands-on outdoor skills. Blending travel with personal growth, curiosity and shared experiences, these trips offer a deeper and more rewarding alternative to traditional holidays.
Sam Bruce, co-founder of Much Better Adventures, said: “People are becoming far more intentional about how they spend their time. Travellers want to come home with more than just photos – they want memories they’ve earned. Learning a new skill, trying something completely different, and sharing that experience with others creates a deeper sense of fulfilment than simply lying on a beach.”
Learn to surf
You can’t check your phone in the water. Surfing demands complete focus – creating a rare mental reset and a true sense of flow for travellers who want to learn while properly switching off. Surf camps in the likes of Morocco and Portugal are naturally social experiences. You wipe out together, make progress together, and celebrate the small wins, whether that’s standing up for the first time or catching a clean wave. It’s what makes surfing ideal for solo travellers or groups of friends looking for a shared, memorable experience, rather than a holiday spent side-by-side on sun loungers.
Off-road cycling in the UK
You don’t need to leave the UK to experience a true skillcation. From weekend escapes in the Chiltern Hills to multi-day rides across ancient byways, off-road cycling trips offer the chance to build up mixed-terrain riding skills close to home, including bike handling and basic trail-side repairs, all while developing confidence on varied terrain while discovering parts of the landscape rarely seen from the road. Much Better Adventures has seen a big increase in bookings for UK-based skills trips, including a 64% rise in interest for the Chiltern Hills trip.
Learn mountaineering skills in the snow
Whether it’s Ben Nevis, or Mont Blanc, climbing a mountain in winter challenges you in ways that go beyond physical fitness. You also need to know avalanche safety tips, how to use crampons and ice axes and to be able to assess risk and navigate in the snow. There are so many reasons to climb a mountain in winter, but there’s also added risk too. Much Better Adventures has seen a 202% increase in bookings year-on-year for people who want to learn these skills, so they can explore a winter dreamland safely.
Develop snowshoe techniques for safe winter terrain
Exploring the Dolomites in winter turns a simple walk into a true skills experience. Using snowshoes or microspikes teaches you how to move efficiently across deep snow and icy ground, while adapting your pace and technique to changing alpine conditions. You’ll also gain essential winter safety awareness, including how avalanche equipment such as a transceiver, shovel and probe is used, and how to assess terrain more carefully in cold environments. Travelling with friends builds teamwork and communication too. From navigating snowy routes together to making shared decisions, you’ll develop practical winter mountain skills – giving you the confidence to explore safely and get more from future cold-weather adventures.
Rock climbing
Rock climbing isn’t just a mental workout, it’s a puzzle you actively solve with every move, that it will barely feel like exercise. Climbing hones technical skills like rope handling, belaying, anchor setting, and efficient movement on rock, which are all abilities you can’t pick up from a book or video, only through doing. In the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, for example, you can scale dramatic cliffs or the striking red rock while steadily gaining height, eventually overlooking the city below – a climb that builds skill, focus, and perspective all at once.
Bruce said: “People are no longer just looking for holidays – they want experiences that matter. Travelling to learn a skill inspires, motivates and connects you, not just to the place, but to yourself and your travel companions. You’ll learn new skills, connect with culture and nature, and ultimately return home with stories that last long after the holiday ends.”
For more information see muchbetteradventures.com