Luxury travel is shifting from marble bathrooms and Michelin-starred meals to something more authentic: total disconnection. Known as ‘dead zoning’, the trend involves travelling somewhere remote enough to be completely cut off from the digital world – no signal, no WiFi, no inbox, no scrolling.
The shift is driven by burnout, algorithm addiction, the pressure to optimise every aspect of life, and the erosion of work-life boundaries. Google searches for ‘digital detox’ have risen by 100% in the past year, and nine in ten UK adults report high levels of stress, according to the Mental Health UK Burnout Report 2025.
Why travellers are choosing to unplug
‘I think the appeal of being somewhere really wild and remote isn’t just about whether you can get online. It’s about what happens when you stop wanting to be on your phone,’ Jools Sampson, founder of British travel company Reclaim Yourself Retreats, tells Metro. ‘You become so absorbed in what’s around you that you’re not constantly being pulled into your feed and all the noise that comes with it. There’s something really freeing about that. And I think that’s the reset people are looking for. Not just a holiday, but a chance to properly switch off for a while.’
A study into traveller happiness by global tour operator G Adventures found that time to relax and de-stress, and wanting to disconnect from the pressures of work and everyday life, were the top drivers for booking holidays. Among younger travellers, the trend is even more pronounced: over a quarter of those aged 25 to 30 said that having the ability to switch off from their phone was what made them happiest on a trip.
Retreats selling out in weeks
The proof is in the bookings. Reclaim Yourself Retreats has seen retreats to places like Kyrgyzstan sell out in just three weeks, a trend Jools believes is driven by rising screen time and ‘always on’ culture. Next year she will run off-grid packages to Mongolia, Finland, India and more, places where you ‘don’t have to worry about everything going on in the world for a while’.
‘When you’re somewhere epic, swimming, walking, doing yoga, watching wildlife, eating together, looking at the stars, you’re properly immersed in what’s happening around you, and your feed just becomes a lot less interesting,’ she says.
Health benefits of disconnecting
Medical experts say that disconnecting from social media and digital devices can reduce stress, improve sleep, help the nervous system to reset, and strengthen our connections with the places and people around us. ‘Digital notifications take up brain capacity, even when they’re fun and benign,’ says Dr Anna Batho, NHS Clinical Psychologist. ‘Getting away from a blinking red light or a pop-up on your screen means your brain gets to relax and you can be present, without distraction.’
When we disconnect from phones or laptops while travelling, Anna says we create a positive separation between our daily lives that can help us to feel more grounded. ‘There’s no point worrying about a delivery if we can’t see the Ring App,’ she says. ‘You won’t feel bad comparing yourself to your mate if you can’t see her bikini pics. You will stop feeling guilty about not calling your aunt if your phone is locked away. You won’t be able to check your bank balance either!’
Closer-to-home options
If the wilds of Kyrgyzstan are a step too far for a first ‘dead zone’ adventure, there are plenty of places to try it closer to home. Jools’ recommendation is Campwell, an eco-village on a working farm in Wiltshire, near Bath. ‘It’s completely off-grid, tucked away in beautiful woodland, with cabins and yurts, campfires, a wood-fired sauna and lots of time spent outside,’ says Jools. ‘It’s one of those places where it becomes very easy to forget about your phone. The whole ethos fits so well with what we’re talking about here: getting off screens, spending time outside and connecting with the people you’re actually with.’
