For some, a luxury vacation is about private jets and personalized pajamas, for others it’s spotting rare wild animals in far-flung destinations or eating in the world’s most difficult-to-book restaurants. But a luxury travel experience can also be as simple as a seaside villa with handcrafted furnishings and timber flooring or a remote glamping tent that offers perfect seclusion to authors and songwriters searching for inspiration.
Increasingly, travellers are seeking accommodation that reflects their sense of style and individuality. They want to wake up feeling that the hotel they’re staying in is unique, rather than one of many cookie cutter hotels trying to appeal to the broadest market possible. And they’re also seeking flexible itineraries and a can-do attitude from their luxury tour operators.
In the past, many luxury travelers were driven by the desire to flaunt their wealth and status. But this is no longer the case, with millennials now taking over as the largest demographic of luxury travelers. They’re a generation raised on individualism and Instagram and for them, travelling is about breaking away from the everyday to see the world.
The luxury travel market is segmented by types of tours, age group, and type of travellers. It is further divided by regions, with North America having the largest share of the global market owing to serene winter destinations in Canada and glittering white Caribbean beaches and luxurious resorts in Mexico. The emergence of luxury cruising is also driving the growth of this sector, as cruises offer a relaxing and glorious mode of traveling.