How Hyatt is making 'racecations' a thing

Hyrox’s return to Singapore is putting a spotlight on how quickly sport and travel are converging in Asia Pacific.

It is the kind of high-intent, experience-led travel moment Hyatt has been building towards, explained Tammy Ng, vice president of brand and marketing, Hyatt Asia Pacific in conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE.

Held over the weekend from 3 to 5 April 2026, the Singapore National Stadium hosted a three-day HYROX takeover, with more than 14,000 athletes on the start line. The event featured additional races for men and women, a growing adaptive division for athletes with permanent functional impairments, and a slate of celebrity participants including Jay Park, SHINee’s Choi Min Ho and Gabe Heck.

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In fact, over the years, HYROX has already staged races in 10 Asia Pacific cities, drawing over 196,000 participants, and the profile of its Singapore event underlines how fitness, fandom and travel are increasingly intertwined.

According to Ng, in recent years, travellers across Asia Pacific are prioritising wellness and purpose in their journeys - rather than simply choosing destinations. Spotting this trend regionally, Hyatt has collaborated with HYROX as is its regional hotel partner in Asia Pacific and has positioned its stays as a full journey rather than a series of room nights.

Research from its competitor brand Hilton also indicated similar findings where nearly half of APAC travellers are planning trips around major sporting or music events, and a majority have already travelled for them. Meanwhile, Marriott International's Luxury Group found that 90% of high-net-worth travellers in APAC now consider wellness a key factor in their travel decisions.

Currently, Hyatt is HYROX's the only hotel partner of the race - and for Hyatt this means the group’s purpose, “Care for people so they can be their best”, has become the lens through which it is designing race and wellness experiences, explained Ng.

“Today’s guests want to challenge themselves and feel restored along the way. For many, the race is the reason for travel, not an add-on,” she added.

Wellness as a marketing pillar

Wellness and event related experiences remain key reasons as to why consumers choose Hyatt.

During their stay at Hyatt, guests receive destination guides with travel tips, curated city recommendations and clear information on getting to race locations. On property, pre- and post-race amenities are geared towards sleep, nutrition and hydration.

In-room ice buckets can be requested for recovery, while discounts on in-hotel dining, spa treatments and access to wellness facilities are designed to help athletes reset.

“Our goal is simple: Empower them to perform their best while feeling cared for every step of the way," said Ng, who added that Hyatt’s wellness strategy is not limited to race weekends.

Through its Wellbeing Collective and FIND experiences, the group is trying to embed wellbeing into everyday travel - whether guests come for business, leisure or events.

Ng explained that wellness as a concept is also shifting from the occasional spa visit to a fully integrated experience across the hotel where guests expect personalisation and experiences that feel authentic to the destination.

"Wellness or sport event-driven stays have the potential for even stronger engagement as we provide the comfort and care for them to restore balance or even achieve a personal milestone,” Ng said.

These changes also have direct implications for loyalty. Hyatt’s programme has surpassed 61 million members globally and is growing 20% year-on-year, but Ng said its differentiation lies less in the numbers and more in the type of engagement it aims for.

From 2026, loyalty members will be able to earn and redeem HYROX-related experiences through the FIND platform bringing the programme full circle.

These will include money-can’t-buy sessions guided by a HYROX Elite Ambassador, designed to motivate, activate and celebrate each member’s HYROX journey. For Hyatt, the aim is to make loyalty feel less like a points ledger and more like access to a set of experiences that matter to specific communities.

Sports and culture push growing regionally

Race-led travel is just one part of Hyatt’s broader push into experiential and culturally grounded hospitality.

In India, the group’s collaboration with the Mumbai Indians brought together Hyatt’s hotels with one of global cricket’s most recognisable franchise teams, offering fans tailored experiences around key fixtures.

In China, the recently opened Thompson Shanghai Expo, the first Thompson in the region, hosted an art exhibition with CASETiFY TRAVEL and four local artists, Chieri, Miki, Yiqu and Lao Yan, celebrating travel, self-expression and creativity.

The Standard hotels, another key lifestyle flag in Hyatt’s portfolio, continue to push into art, nightlife and immersive programming. The Not Your Standard Bingo series, for example, blends playful themes and design-led collaborations, from Jaime Hayon’s work at The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon to a Pride-focused collection developed with artist Trey Hurst.

Hyatt is not alone in spotting the opportunity at the intersection of fitness, travel and community, and this broader ecosystem is helping to normalise “racecation” behaviour.

AirAsia’s newly announced partnership with HYROX APAC spans co-branded flagship events in Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur, discounted fares for HYROX participants and collaborations with training gyms, alongside a “Keep moving, keep rising” aircraft livery. The airline will support races in key cities such as Osaka, Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong and Incheon, positioning travel as an enabler of active lifestyles and shared experiences.

For Ng, moves such as these validate the broader trend that Hyatt is building towards: a regional landscape where travel is a connector for wellness, sport and culture, rather than simply a way of getting from point A to point B.

“Through unique activations and brand experiences, we anticipate emerging trends and transform them into meaningful, memorable moments,” she said.

Be part of #Content360 Singapore, 22–23 April 2026, where creativity and culture collide. Explore how AI-driven storytelling is shaping the future of content, gain practical insights, discover new tactics, and learn how the best in Asia are creating campaigns that truly resonate. 

Photo courtesy of HYROX Singapore, Instagram.

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