It dates back two centuries, but in 2026 mahjong is suddenly the next big thing.
For years, A-List Hollywood Celebrities and well-to-do fitness fans have flocked to the Ranch, one of the world's highest profile luxury wellness retreats. Now they may also be going for ... mahjong. Of course, if working out all day is not your idea of the perfect prelude to mahjong masterclasses, you can opt for several Forbes 4 and 5-Star luxury resorts that have jumped on the red hot mahjong trend and rolled out programs amidst a more decadent lifestyle. Or if you want to embrace the mahjong craze with your furry friend, the nation's most pet-friendly hotel brand offers its new "Mahjong & Mingle" program across nearly 20 different properties. They say everything old is new again, and this seems to be the case with mahjong, which dates back two centuries but has recently become a hot fast-growing fad as a home game, at local clubs, on college campuses, and most recently, mahjong is a hot travel trend.
Mahjong is a game from 19th century China played with special character tiles, similar in look and feel to tile games such as Rummikub. Tiles are played in certain combinations, and like poker you can make various 3,4 and 5 tile "hands." There are American and Traditional Hong Kong-style variants, but what makes the game extra interesting is that while you can play on a brand new set or a 100-year-old antique, a new scorecard is released every year (April) by the National Mah Jongg League Store, and the hands and layouts that can be played change with each annual rules release. Imagine if you played chess and the meaning of the pieces or board layout changed annually. That's a bit of an oversimplification, but part of the mahjong allure is equal footing, everyone gets to begin as a beginner again to a degree.
The current mahjong trend cuts across all ages.
But whatever the reason, there is no doubt that mahjong is having a major moment, and according to National Public Radio (NPR), the craze is sweeping through people from their 20s to super seniors, but especially among Gen Z and Millennials. Public radio also reported that Yelp searches for mahjong clubs were up 4500% in the past 12 months. That's big. NBC Channel 4 in Los Angeles ran a feature "Why is mahjong LA's hottest social trend?" noting it is hot on college campuses and sets have become wedding registry items. Good Housekeeping cited a 179% one-year increase in mahjong events nationwide listed on Eventbrite in an article titled "Why Everyone is Suddenly Playing Mahjong (Again)." Now the grassroots trend is quickly sweeping into travel.
The newest mahjong hotspot? The Ranch Hudson Valley, a wellness retreat in a J.P. Morgan mansion on a 200-acre waterfront estate.
The original Ranch Malibu has been ranked Number One Destination Spa in the country by Travel + Leisure Magazine's World's Best Awards, and became so popular among those seeking weight loss, longevity and fitness that they opened an east coast location in New York's Hudson Valley in 2024, which I profiled in detail here at Forbes (I loved it). Yesterday, The Ranch Hudson Valley announced its first ever wellness x mahjong retreat, a 4-night program partnered with Connecticut's Gold Coast Mahjong Club. The retreat, from January 31–February 4, 2027, pairs daily American mahjong instruction with The Ranch's signature immersive wellness and daily hiking programs.
At the beginning of this year, the double Forbes 5-Star Wequassett Resort and Golf Club (winning for the hotel and its twenty-eight Atlantic restaurant) on Cape Cod, MA introduced "Mahjong Social Gathers" every Thursday through the end of March. Winter is off season on the Cape, and mahjong will return in November.
Between lodging and its twenty-eight Atlantic restaurant, the Wequassett Resort and Golf Club is the only double Forbes 5-Star property on Cape Cod—and a luxurious place to try mahjong.
Another longtime multiple Forbes 5-Star property (in fact the longest running Forbes 5-star winning hotel on earth), The Broadmoor, in Colorado Springs, CO just hosted the latest in its ongoing series of mahjong camps last month, at its wilderness satellite Cloud Camp. Several other Forbes 5-Star hotels have jumped on the mahjong bandwagon.
Just before Christmas 2025, Kimpton, the most pet-friendly major hotel chain, introduced its "Mahjong & Mingle" program offering up loaner sets in its intentionally social lobby gathering spots, along with "limited-edition mahjong-inspired cocktails." The program launched at nearly a quarter of Kimpton properties worldwide, as far flung as Thailand. I've not played tiles at a Kimpton but I have repeatedly and for many years covered the best in dog and pet-friendly luxury travel, and brand-wide, Kimpton has consistently been at the top, as I wrote about here at Forbes.
Even if his parents are off playing mahjong, this furry guest at Kimpton's Hotel George in Washington, DC is living his best life.
Travel + Leisure magazine covered this trend and reported recurring mahjong camps at, among others, the Ace Hotel in New York City, the Bowie House, Auberge Collection in San Antonio, TX, the Thompson Hotel Dallas, TX, Lake Austin Spa Resort in Austin, TX and the venerable Forbes 4-Star Charleston Place in South Carolina. AFAR Magazine listed the Conrad Washington, DC, Jay, an Autograph Collection in San Francisco, CA, and Barnsley Resort in Georgia. USA Today10 Best cited the growth of mahjong on European river cruises as well as at the Forbes Recommended Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch in Beaver Creek, CO, Canyon Ranch in Tucson, AZ, Vermejo, a Ted Turner Reserve in New Mexico, and even the Ritz-Carlton Vienna in Austria, among others. AARP went luxe with its pick of the $500 mahjong package for four which includes two drinks per person and canapés at the Forbes 5-Star St. Regis New York, and the Vanderbilt, Auberge Collection in Newport, RI, along with the more accessible Harpeth Franklin Downtown, Curio Collection, in ultra-charming Franklin, TN.
Clearly, mahjong is a hot travel trend and the list of places is fast evolving. While some clinics like the Ranch retreats are one-offs, most are semi-regular, weekly, monthly or seasonal, and more are sure to be added frequently as mahjong continues to trend upwards. If you are interested in trying it, google hotels with mahjong before your next trip someplace and you may be surprised how widespread it is becoming. Compared to other participatory fads in the travel business such as pickle ball and padel, it lends itself to city hotels and is an extremely easy amenity for properties to add. All they need is some mahjong sets, a free table, optional instructors, and ideally "mahjong-inspired cocktails."
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
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