People used to travel for beaches, food, or iconic landmarks. These days, plenty of travelers are booking flights to other cities or countries chasing something entirely different: a Hyrox finish line.
This shift reflects how fitness has become a legitimate new reason to travel. Running tourism built around global marathons has been a well-established trend for years, but a newer wave is now emerging around a fitness racing event called Hyrox, popular enough to earn its own nickname: the “Hyrox race-cation.”
A Fitness Series Built Around Travel
Hyrox links together a global series of competitions, effectively turning each race into an opportunity to explore cities across different countries. Throughout 2025, more than 80 Hyrox races were held worldwide, drawing over 550,000 participants and 350,000 spectators combined.
“Traveling for Hyrox reflects a broader shift in how people travel today. More people are now choosing destinations based on their interests, communities, and personal goals, rather than just sightseeing,” said Tammy Ng, Vice President of Brand and Marketing at Hyatt Asia Pacific, the official hotel partner for Hyrox in the region, as quoted by the South China Morning Post on Saturday, September 12, 2026.
According to Ng, this trend shows that fitness tourism is no longer synonymous with spas or wellness retreats. Travelers are increasingly seeking experiences built around physical activity, athletic performance, recovery, and social connection.
Hyrox Is Booming in Indonesia Too
Hyrox has been gaining serious traction recently, including among Indonesian fitness enthusiasts, especially following the event’s Jakarta edition held June 27-28.
Its growing popularity is also reflected in the number of public figures taking part. Names like Luna Maya, Marianne Rumantir, Cinta Laura, Irfan Bachdim, and Jennifer Bachdim have repeatedly shared their training routines and race-day experiences on social media.
A significant number of participants are willing to fly to other cities or countries specifically to compete in Hyrox events, a pattern that’s turned the competition into more than just a fitness race, positioning it as part of the broader sports tourism trend growing across multiple countries.
“It combines running and strength training. I love both,” said Jennifer Bachdim on the sidelines of Ionation 2026, held recently at NICE PIK 2, as quoted by Wolipop.
Andres Becerra, a Bali-based chef and restaurant owner, has taken a different path with Hyrox, competing in Bangkok, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Perth, using each race as both a reunion with friends and an introduction to a new city.
“We train together, travel together, then explore new cities around the race location,” he said.
Where Hyrox Came From
According to its official website, Hyrox was first launched in Hamburg, Germany, in 2017 by Christian Toetzke and Moritz Fürste. Since then, the competition has expanded rapidly, now held across dozens of cities throughout Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia.
Cities including Hamburg, Paris, Manchester, Singapore, Sydney, Brisbane, Bilbao, and Poznan have all hosted Hyrox events, while the season’s peak competition takes place through the Hyrox World Championships, held in a different host city each year.
So, What Exactly Is Hyrox?
Hyrox is a fitness racing competition that combines running and functional training into a single standardized race format used identically around the world. The format is simple, but genuinely demanding.
Participants must complete eight 1-kilometer runs. After each running segment, they must complete one functional training station before heading back out for the next run.
Because the format is identical in every country, participants can directly compare their finishing times against competitors anywhere else in the world, a feature that gives Hyrox a distinct appeal within the global fitness community.
Hyrox is also known for its slogan, “fitness racing for every body,” meaning the competition is designed to be accessible across all skill levels, from complete beginners to seasoned athletes.
The 8 Stations That Define a Hyrox Race
Throughout the race, participants tackle eight functional training stations that define the Hyrox format:
- SkiErg, Rowing on a ski ergometer machine for 1,000 meters, testing upper body endurance and core strength
- Sled Push, Pushing a weighted sled 50 meters
- Sled Pull, Pulling a sled using a rope, relying on arm and back strength
- Burpee Broad Jumps, A grueling combination of burpees and forward jumps covering 80 meters
- Rowing, 1,000 meters on a rowing machine
- Farmer’s Carry, Walking 200 meters while carrying weights in both hands
- Sandbag Lunges, 100 meters of lunges while carrying a sandbag on the shoulders
- Wall Balls, Closing the race with 100 squats paired with medicine ball throws at a target
Categories for Every Fitness Level
Despite how demanding it looks, Hyrox isn’t reserved for professional athletes. The Open category is the most popular choice, welcoming beginners who want to experience Hyrox for the first time.
For more competitive participants, there’s the Pro category, featuring heavier loads and tighter competition. There’s also Doubles, where two participants work together to complete the entire race, and Relay, which allows a team, typically four people, to divide up the running and station work among themselves.
This range of categories makes Hyrox accessible to a wide spectrum of participants, from fitness enthusiasts trying something new to athletes chasing competitive results.
When Hyrox Becomes a Reason to Travel
Hyrox’s expansion across countries has led many participants to treat the competition itself as a reason to travel. Similar to the running tourism trend built around global marathons, Hyrox participants typically arrive a few days before race day, pick up their race pack, get to know the host city, compete, and then continue on with their trip.
Plenty of participants deliberately choose specific cities simply to experience Hyrox’s atmosphere there. Some are drawn to Singapore, others target Bangkok, while some choose European cities that double as vacation destinations in their own right.
One such traveler is Alan Cheung, an orthopedic surgeon from Singapore, for whom traveling for Hyrox has become part of his lifestyle. So far, he’s completed nine Hyrox races, six of them held in other countries, including Seoul, Sydney, Melbourne, Hong Kong, Taipei, and Bangkok.
“I love traveling, and I love sports. Hyrox gives me the chance to combine both,” Alan said, as quoted by Channel News Asia.
According to him, traveling to different cities for Hyrox has also become a new way to reconnect with friends and family living abroad.
“I have friends and family in various countries who also enjoy sports. We can compete together, and it’s become a unique way to meet up and reconnect,” he said.
Alan rarely travels alone, often competing in the Doubles category alongside friends from Singapore or Australia.
“It’s more fun because we share the same experience. The Doubles category is also more enjoyable since we can help each other, split the workload, and cheer each other on throughout the race,” he said.
According to Alan, Hyrox’s appeal doesn’t end at the finish line. Since most events are held in major cities, participants also get to enjoy sightseeing, local food, and meeting new communities throughout the trip.
“I usually combine it with visiting friends or family. Since the races are held in big cities, there’s always a chance to explore afterward,” he said.
During his trip to Taipei for Hyrox, for example, Alan made time to visit the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, one of the city’s most famous landmarks.
Turning a Race Into a Vacation
Angus Tan, a Singapore-based Hyrox participant and fitness influencer, experienced a similar shift in perspective. Angus and his partner flew to Jakarta for his first-ever international Hyrox race.
Jakarta was initially chosen for practical reasons, its proximity to Singapore meant minimal time off work was needed. But once he arrived, the race itself became the central focus of the entire trip.
For Angus, what makes the race-cation concept so appealing is having a clear purpose behind every trip.
“There’s a real satisfaction in a vacation that feels like something you’ve earned through effort. You show up to compete, give it your best in the arena, then enjoy the rest of the trip as a reward for yourself,” he said.
The combination of physical challenge, competitive atmosphere, and the chance to explore new destinations is what’s making Hyrox increasingly appealing to the global fitness community. For a growing number of people, a vacation no longer just means lounging at a hotel or hunting down local food. Instead, it means spending a weekend running, pushing sleds, and lifting weights, then heading home with a medal and a story from a city they might never have visited otherwise. You get the vacation, and the sore muscles to prove it.
