Health-conscious younger travellers are reshaping departure lounge habits, with sales of matcha green tea soaring at UK airports. Figures from Manchester Airport Group, which operates Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports, show matcha sales rose 165% this year compared to 2024, as TikTok influencers promoted it as the ultimate wellness drink.
Super smoothie sales increased by 650% and gut health shots by 102%, while onboard face mask sales surged 399% amid a social media trend for 'skincare in the sky'. Andrew MacMillan, chief strategy officer at Manchester Airport Group, said: 'This data shows the influence of our younger passengers. Generation Z are creating their airport experiences strongly influenced by AI and social media.'
Across the three airports, 61,500 more cups of matcha were sold this year than in 2024. Stansted alone recorded 70,000 sales of the Japanese super-tea—almost 200 a day. Meanwhile, more than 10,000 Stanley drinks holders, priced at £40 each, were sold, up six-fold since 2024.
The shift reflects broader travel trends among Gen Z, those born between 1997 and 2012. Fewer are choosing boozy 18-30 holidays; instead, city breaks to Barcelona, Amsterdam, Dublin and New York are more popular. Flights to Albania, Bulgaria and Romania doubled among under-25s, partly due to 'destination dupes' on social media.
Airbnb data shows Buenos Aires, Busan, João Pessoa and Nakano as top trending cities for Gen Z. National Geographic picked stargazing in Northumberland as its top trip for 2026, ahead of forest bathing in Japan. Experts note pre-flight pints are not disappearing, but younger travellers are less likely to fill airport pubs.
