It’s no secret that we are working harder and longer than ever before. North America is among the countries that offers its workers the least annual leave and the rate of stress, suicide and sick leave is very high. Thus, the luxury travel market is an incredibly important part of modern life, giving it a CAGR of 6.4% despite economic and political uncertainty.
Global Luxury Travel Market
Our culture has a ‘work hard, play hard’ ethos and so it should come as no surprise that there is growing interest in the luxury travel market as high-flying executives and other business men and women see fit to treat themselves and their families a few times a year. In fact, one of the many rewards that companies bestow upon top workers is often air miles.
Meanwhile, luxury travel is becoming more popular among newly-weds too. The wedding industry in general has seen massive growth and it is now a cultural norm to spend huge amounts on not only the perfect day, but also the perfect holiday to immediately follow that day. For these reasons, the global luxury travel market is enjoying a CAGR of 6.4% and is predicted to reach a stunning $1,154 billion by 2022.
This growth is all occurring in-spite of a number of current challenges. For instance, the economy means that many destinations are now more expensive than they previously were. At the same time, global terror threats are on the rise, making many destinations a risk that were previously top choices for holidays. Two forms of travel help to make this growth possible despite the challenges: all inclusive and villa holidays.
All Inclusive Trips
An all-inclusive holiday is a great way to enjoy real luxury while saving money and for those who enjoy relaxing by the pool it can provide the perfect experience. ‘All inclusive’ basically means that for the price of your hotel you also get all of your food and drink included and don’t have to pay any extra – and yes that often includes alcoholic beverages.
For most hotels this means that in the afternoon, evening and morning a large buffet will be laid out that you can enjoy which will include a lot of foods from both the region and more Western ideas (so for the less adventurous among you there’s always going to be fish and chips and pizza). Normally, there will also be multiple bars and restaurants around the place with the pool bar serving more Western snack foods and the larger restaurants serving the more native foods. The bars for beverages will then be open all day and guests will be served for free (those over 18 are provided with a wrist band as proof of age).
For evenings when you fancy something a little different there will usually be restaurants that require bookings too and that have a slightly different décor and range of foods (fish restaurants for example or Italian or Indian). These then become your ‘nights out’ and ensure you don’t get bored of the same thing every night.
This has obvious benefits. Firstly, it means you’ll save a lot of money on the holiday – while you’ll pay more upfront for the hotel you won’t need to pay any extra for food or drink when you stay in. For large families this means a massive saving. At the same time though it means you never need to leave your hotel and you can simply walk a few metres to get yourself a drink or some food and can then enjoy them while you continue to sunbathe or keep an eye on your kids. And better yet you can have as much of everything as you like without ever feeling guilty or stressing about money meaning it becomes even more of a relaxing holiday.
The fact that you’ll be spending more time in these hotels means that they also offer more in terms of games and activities. Most all-inclusive hotels will have live shows most if not every night and games around the pool to join in with if you want to.
In short, all-inclusive hotels create a highly ‘luxury experience’ that combines the sunny climate and interesting locales of a foreign country, but with huge amounts of luxury and convenience. Often there are health spas where you can receive massages, sports facilities where you can play games and more. Day trips meanwhile offer the opportunity to visit the sites but in a structured, safe and highly convenient manner.
There are many locations that offer fantastic all-inclusive experiences, thanks to the perfect combination of weather, cheap labor and land. These include Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, Mexico, Dominican Republic and more.
Find more statistics at Statista
Renting a Villa
An alternative form of luxury travel involved renting a villa. The first bonus about finding a villa for rent is that it gives you space. A villa is of course much larger for the price than you would get with a hotel and you will likely get a garden and rooms as well to spread out into. This means that you can fit all your luggage in comfortably and that you'll feel more like you're living in a home rather than having to make do with a very small space that stays cluttered and claustrophobic. This also means you can get out of each other’s' hair and be in different rooms for some privacy and means that you can play games that require space. The overall experience is far more luxurious than renting a hotel room for the equivalent price.
Likewise, when you find a villa for rent you also get more privacy and freedom. The fact that you're not sharing a hotel with anyone means that you can come and go as you please and means that you can be quite noisy without worrying that you might disturb other people staying there. Of course, the flip side of that is that it also means you won't get disturbed by other people coming and going noisily at night, or screaming around the pool. You also get a pool all to yourself which means you can use it for whatever you want to and won't get splashed by other kids playing – or told off for bombing into the water or running. Your pool is also open all night meaning you can swim under the stars rather than being cleared out.
On top of all this, you will also get better value for money and you can save on many aspects of the holiday. For instance, when you stay in a villa for rent you will be able to cook and prepare your own food and have self-catering facilities. This gives you a lot of freedom and means you save a lot of money on eating out every night. Likewise, if you are travelling with other adults it means you can split the price several ways and make considerable savings that way. You will also get free parking and it is always a good idea to travel by car or rent a car when you stay in a villa as it gives you more freedom and will help with transporting shopping etc.
Renting a villa allows you to enjoy a much more luxury experience, often in a secluded location and without noisy children. The growth of the sharing economy and options like Air B’n’B however, threatens to challenge this market or at least change the shape of the industry.
Package Holidays
Both villa holidays and all-inclusive trips are often sold by companies like TUI, Sandals (which specializes in Honeymoons) and Virgin. These are sold as package holidays which will usually include the hotel, travel to the airport, day trips and more. This lets a traveller ‘design’ their perfect holiday and not only enjoy travelling but also being treated like royalty for one to two weeks.
