An Interview with the Founder of Destination Fitcations, Gabrielle (Gabi) Mazar

Hi, Gabi! Tell us a bit about yourself.

I am a Fitness Trainer, Travel Guide & the Founder of Destination Fitcations.

Overall, living a healthy lifestyle is pretty important to me. I love to cook, garden, and love my Pilates, Yoga and exercise even if I don’t always have time to do it. I try to eat pretty clean and almost everything I cook is from scratch but… I do love wine, I love pizza, and of course, I have a few lazy days. Traveling feeds my soul and mental health is a huge priority in my life. Running two businesses can be crazy, so making sure I am healthy is super important.

Tell us about this new craze sweeping across the travel industry, Destination Fitcations, and the inspiration behind it.

The travel industry is seeing a HUGE boom after 2020 and being shut down but what being isolated really revealed to many of us is that our mental and physical health is too important to neglect, and life is too short to just be working all the time. Wellness retreats have been around for a while, but what we are seeing now is a big shift to healthier and more active vacations, “fitcations.” People want to prioritize their health and are choosing the type of vacation before the destination. What does it include? Yoga? Hiking? Mental health or silent retreats? There are so many options.

Destination Fitcations offers all-inclusive luxury vacations to locations around the world that are fitness-centered.

Photo credit to Casey Olsen Designs

What differentiates Destination Fitcations to other travel companies?

Destination Fitcations differs because the premise behind it is to seamlessly meld your vacation with fitness. Each day will have some form of activity or active excursion, be it hiking, biking, kayaking, sailing, etc., and each day will have fitness whether it is yoga, a circuit workout, or a stretch class. You are taking your trainer on vacation with you who is also your tour guide and your travel planner. However, each day will also have time to relax, get a massage, or maybe even take a nap. My goal is to create a fun, active, yet relaxing vacation that you don’t feel you need a vacation from when you come home. You should feel rejuvenated and renewed.

Photo credit to Casey Olsen Designs

What can one expect of a Fitcation Vacation?

On a fitcation, you can expect a relaxed itinerary that will include excursions, yoga, fitness, but also food and drinks, relaxation days, and lots of delicious food. A typical day would be breakfast, a morning/mid-morning/ or evening workout, a daily excursion, time to relax by the pool/ beach/ in the trees depending on location, and dinner and drinks with games, music and time to just be. This is a vacation!

Tell us why incorporating fitness is an important element of one’s travel/vacation plans.

So many times, I have heard I have to get back to my workouts or lose weight or I need a vacation from my vacation. I have even felt it myself. You go on vacation, eat and drink and maybe you have the intention of exercising but don’t, but with someone to actually hold you accountable you will. There is no guilt. There is no feeling gross or tired when you come home. You keep up or even start a new routine and see that fitness can be a part of a vacation and you don’t need to take a vacation from it. It is such an important element because it should be a part of your everyday life as well and not something you skip just because you are on vacation.

Photo credit to Casey Olsen Designs

How can our readers connect with you?

You can follow me on Instagram @gabriellemazar and @destination_fitcations or go to www.destinationfitcations.com or email me directly at gabi@pilatestempe.com