Luxury travel agents are tuning into the global luxury travel network at Virtuoso® this week to see when, where and how the affluent are traveling for the remainder of 2023. Virtuoso gathers data and insights from its network of luxury travel advisors, preferrs partners and high net worth/ultra-high net worth clientele base on its data warehouse of more than $63.6 billion in transactions and an ongoing series of surveys.
The results were share at Virtuoso Travel Week 2023, happening now in Las Vegas, with a lead story that shows there are no signs of travel slowing down, despite inflation and global economic challenges. In the first half of 2023, Virtuoso reports a 69% uptick in sales versus 2019 numbers, with hotel and cruise segments leading the way, up 173% and 122% respectively.
Travelling Felt Wobbly? Luxury travel agents?
While there were times in 2025 when traveling felt wobbly, luxury passengers continued to lead the way despite covid variations, travel restrictions, and crowded airports. Due to the increase in flights and reservations brought on by the pent-up demand that many of us experienced over the past few years, major airports around the world continue to experience a chaotic “Airmageddon” as revenge travel remains strong. The cost of this year’s summer vacation was more than it was last year and even the years before that, which is not surprising given that tourists are eager to travel again and spend money, not just in Europe but also elsewhere in the world.
Booking windows have stabilized back to pre-pandemic numbers, which explains why it’s so difficult to find offers and discounts.
Both inbound and outbound leisure sales by luxury travel agents are flourishing, often surpassing 2019 levels. Despite these obstacles, the future is undeniably promising, with travel revenues projects to increase by 47% by 2025 compares to 2019.
Here are the full findings along with an overview of the data…
Luxury Travel Agents View and Review Travel for 2025
+ Upscale travelers have consistently led the way, even in uncertain times, and are prepares to resume their pre-pandemic travel lifestyles. 85% of people reports being in a travel-ready frame of mind in January 2022, and 86% intended to travel abroad. In the summer of 2022, even airports choke with travelers and misplaces luggage aren’t major obstacles to getting back on the road.
+ When it comes to recovery, luxury travel agents anticipate that spending on outbound leisure travel will exceed actual travel (i.e., the number of individuals traveling). According to Tourism Economics, the difference between the two is rather small in some markets, including Australia, the United Kingdom, and France.
Others, such as Mexico, China, and Brazil, anticipate spending to catch up to the number of people departing years sooner. Even in countries where borders have just recently opens, outbound leisure travel revenues have experiences a significant uptick.
For 2022, the U.S. has already surpasses 2019 figures by 122%, Australia by 113%, and Canada, at 80%, is quickly catching up. At 102%, we have surpasses 2019 globally for outbound travel book between January and July.
Booking Windows For Hotels
+ Booking windows for hotels are significantly larger than they were in 2019. Currently, the median window for domestic hotels is 58 days (up from 44 in 2019), and the median window for hotels abroad is 80 days (up from 60 in 2019). Naturally, this is wonderful news for hotels, but it makes it harder for tourists to locate sales and discounts.
+ A “new normal” has accept by 76% of travelers (up from 35% in January 2022). Many travelers have come to terms with all the turbulence and unpredictability. The proportion of travelers who were deterr from going in January 2022 has already decreases by 26 percentage points (from 38% to 12%).
+ Travel revenues are expects to increase by 47% in 2025 compares to 2019; this is excellent news for the cruise industry, which is expect to see high demand in 2025.
+ Tourism Economics predicts that until Q2 2024, global outbound leisure spending won’t fully recover, surpassing 2019 levels by 21%. From there, the numbers continue to rise, reaching a high of 55% of 2019 levels by 2026.
+ 74% of Virtuoso’s luxury travel agent clients believe that “having a travel experience that best meets my expectations is more important than price,” and they want to spend an additional $2,800 per person in the following year, up from $20,700 in the current year.
Who Is Traveling, Where They Are Going, and Why Now?
+ How are people getting around? Traveling with a partner or significant other is the most common method, followed by excursions with friends and families taking young children. Traveling with friends is still the second-most popular type of travel, despite a modest decline (from 46% in 2019 to 36% in 2022).
+ Solo travel is becoming more popular, but not for the reasons you would think. It’s interesting to see that the 65+ age group is showing the largest degree of interest among Virtuoso clients, with interest rising from 4% in 2019 to 18% in 2022.
+ Younger, wealthier travelers are traveling extensively, whereas interest among travelers ages 18 to 34 has decreased from 12% in 2019 to 6% in 2022. In the last year, the 18-34 age group traveled domestically 1.3 more times and abroad 2.2 more times than the 65+ age group. In the past year, DIY travelers and Virtuoso-luxury travel agent assisted travelers both made roughly the same number of trips, but the latter traveled further, stayed in hotels, rentals, and cruises for longer periods of time, and tended to travel abroad more frequently.
+ 78% of travelers claim to be prepared to depart right away. The parity of the dollar and the euro is important to 87% of those surveyed. And only 35% of respondents claim that this summer’s air travel issues have led them to reschedule or cancel plans.
What are the hottest summertime locations worldwide?
+ The top five are the US, UK, Spain, Mexico, Ireland, and Switzerland, followed by Italy, France, Canada, and Greece.
+ The top foreign travel destinations for September through December 2022 include the United States, Italy, France, Mexico, and Canada. Additionally, until July of this year, hotel reservations for fall and holiday travel (from September 1 to January 15) were 173% higher than they were at the same time in 2019.
+ While 45% of respondents claim to be prepared to travel right away or within the next three months, 38% think it will be 6–12 months before they do.
+ In 2022, the main motivations for traveling will be to disconnect from the monotony and stresses of home and to interact with other people, cultures, and ideas.
+ Travel with a purpose is still very important. The preservation of natural and cultural heritage, as well as environmentally friendly ideas and practices, are major issues, particularly among Gen Z and Millennials. For eco-friendly tourism practices, 56% of Gen Z and 46% of Millennials are willing to pay more, while 58% of Gen Z and 52% of Millennials are willing to pay more for travel that protects natural and cultural assets.
Luxury Travel Agents Reveal Trends in Autumn and Holiday Travel
+ Despite the unpredictability of traveling during a pandemic, many people are prepared to make plans when it comes to festive or holiday travel. Only 16% of people felt confident planning and making changes later if necessary in 2020; today, that number is increased to 28%. Additionally, 22% of travelers waited to make their reservations until nearer the time of their trip in 2020; now, that percentage constantly stands at 15%.
+ When asked why they are traveling over the holidays, 71% said they are going on vacation, while 21% said they are going to visit family and friends.
+ The top holiday travel destinations are islands and beaches, followed by vacations that include wellness activities, ocean cruises, and locations outside of the United States. 62% of travelers will visit many locations, compared to 38% who will only visit one. Notably, wellness-centered travel was the only category to experience growth from 2021 to 2022 (13% vs. 24%).
+ High-end travelers in the 18-to-34 age range look for (and are prepared to spend more for) travel companies and experiences that emphasize eco-friendly principles, give back to the community, and protect natural and cultural heritage.
+ Booking patterns point to a good fall season, when volume will stay higher than in 2019.
+ Through July, hotel and in-destination leisure booking volume was 157% higher than it was in 2019.Travel to the Caribbean islands seems to be increasing popularity during the rest of 2022 and into 2025, despite the fact that the United States still dominates all other nations by a wide margin in terms of overall hotel and on-site booking traffic.
Conclusion
Virtuoso® is the largest network of luxury and experiential travel agents in the world. This invitation-only association has more than 20,000 travel advisors spread over more than 50 countries in North America, Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa, and the Middle East with more than 1,200 travel agency sites. The network offers its affluent customers unique access, unusual experiences, and luxury facilities by leveraging its preferred partnerships with more than 2,200 of the world’s top cruise ships, airlines, tour operators, and premier destinations.
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