Persons are ‘mermaiding’ all around the world

From fantasy photoshoots within the Maldives, to kelp forest “strolls” alongside California’s Catalina Island and Taiwan’s luxe lodge swims, swimming in a tail is completely different wherever you do it.

I’m struggling to keep up my dignity – and my buoyancy –  in Nagoya, Japan. My legs are encased in a violet-hued mermaid tail, and what I believed can be a swish glide feels extra like a splash.

“Good,” says Shellina Mermaid, my teacher at Mermaid Academy Japan. “But you swim like an American, late for a meeting. Swim slower, like a Japanese mermaid.” This helps; quickly, I’m swimming gracefully alongside two different native merfolk.

My international mermaiding journey could also be pure whimsy, however as international tensions rise, I’m not the one one craving escape. From fantasy balls to LARPing weekends, “romantasy” journey (selecting immersive holidays impressed by fantasy literature) is considered one of 2026’s fastest-growing journey developments, in keeping with Booking.com. Mermaiding – swimming in pure water our bodies and swimming pools whereas carrying a mermaid tail – is as immersive as you will get.

“For me, [it’s] about getting in the water and escaping from life for a little bit,” says blogger James Barrett. “Pretending that you live in the ocean and all your problems aren’t around.”