Is Strava Tourism the Next Big Thing? Here's How to Use the App While on Vacation

If you didn't record your explorations on Strava, did you even travel?

Stava, the app that launched in 2009, has become the fitness tracker du jour, booming in popularity as of late and now boasting more than 120 million global users who diligently log their every move, be it running, walking, or cycling, in the city, country, and everywhere in between — even on vacation. Or rather, we should say, especially on vacation.

According to the company's 2023 Global Report, last year was a record one for Strava athletes on the go. "They don’t put their feet up when they go on vacation, that’s for sure," the report stated. As it noted, bike rides uploaded to Strava by athletes outside their home state or country were 24 percent longer than at home, while "alpine skiing" and "snowboarding" are the most likely sports to be uploaded by Strava users while traveling, followed closely by hiking and stand-up paddle boarding.

It's become so important for people to track their routes that users are hiring "Strava Jockeys" to complete their workouts for them to ensure they don't lose their streak. But the real deal athletes are still putting in the miles no matter where they go as part of the "Strava tourism" trend, exploring the world one (well-tracked) mile at a time.

If you're new to the app or heading off on the first trip you want to track, Strava shared some advice.

"The Maps tab within the Strava app is the perfect place to start exploring – here, you can drop a pin on the dynamic, community-powered maps wherever you are or plan to go, and we'll show you the best routes to walk, run, hike, or ride from that location," Brain Bell, Strava's VP of global communications, shared with Travel + Leisure.

Want to plan an entire trip around a route? Bell explained that you should begin with the Global Heatmap: "It provides a snapshot of where people on Strava are recording their activities around you and can give you a pulse check on some of the best spots to run, ride, hike, walk, or even do snow sports."

And, if you want to dig even deeper into the athletic scene in your vacation destination, Strava also has its Night and Weekly Heatmaps, which show the popular activities recorded from sunset to sunrise. Then, you can visit the Points of Interest section, which shows popular start points, local hotspots, and useful stops like bathrooms, cafes, and viewpoints along the route, all of which are community-added, meaning locals and other travelers have all weighed in with their favorites.

"Finally, if you’re looking to take your walk onto the trails, Strava Routes are a helpful way to navigate and discover the best routes in any trail system, with recommendations based on where people go," Bell added. "Simply go to the Maps Tab on the Strava app to find or create your next Route, powered by the community data from the heatmap."

Though, if you're looking for ultra-popular routes, you'll certainly find them in Greece and Croatia, which saw the highest share of activities uploaded by athletes from other countries, according to the 2023 report, followed by Luxembourg and Austria.

And if you happen to be in your vacation destination for a while and want to make some local friends, there's one more thing you can do — join one of the nearly 900,000 clubs on the platform.

"Users can search for local clubs in their destination, which could be useful for finding a local run, walk, or hiking club or discovering fun activity-focused events in the area," Bell said.

To find them, just open the app, select “Groups” from the navigation menu at the bottom of the home screen, and find groups around you. Then, post about it on social media just so everyone knows it's really you and not your Stava Jockey. 

Related: The 10 Best Trail Running Shoes

Read the original article on Travel & Leisure