Why Memories Matter - Luxury Travel and Hospitality Trends

By Anne Marie Brown

According to the Economist, luxury goods are out and luxury travel is in.

Economic uncertainty brought on by tariffs, trade wars, inflation, geopolitical flux, and an unpredictable presidency has brought the luxury goods market down by 2-5% in personal spending this year, according to Bain.

Meanwhile, the luxury hospitality and leisure market has continued to grow exponentially as people seek out experiences and memories over goods.

There’s a trend on social media currently in which parents ask their children to “name one gift you received at Christmas last year.” Most of the kids can’t recall any on the spot. Then they ask them, “What trips did we take last year?” And kids are able to rattle off the places they went and things they experienced.

Increased Spend

McKinsey forecasts that spending on luxury hospitality on the global scale will exceed $390 billion in 2028, up from $239 billion in 2023.

While less expensive rooms have maintained rate parity to last year, RevPAR, (revenue per available hotel room), in the luxury sector has been higher every month than in 2024, (according to CoStar, a real-estate date firm).

High Pricing

The pandemic created a travel frenzy as people emerged from lockdown with their bucket lists and pent up cash to spend on travel. CoStar notes that while occupancy rates in luxury rooms of $1,000 per night or more are slightly lower than 2024, rates have continued to rise.

• Globally: The number of hotels with an ADR (average daily rate) over $1,000 jumped from approximately 150 in 2019 to around 460 by 2024.

  
  

• In the United States: This number increased even more dramatically, from just 22 hotels in 2019 to roughly 80 by 2024, an almost four-fold increase.

New Luxury Hotels

We are also seeing the supply side of the luxury hotel market increasing - which normally would forecast a pullback as supply outpaces demand. However, I think in this current market we are seeing the industry respond to continued forecasted growth as Boomers, the wealthiest generation to date, retire and spend big on travel.

In London, Rosewood, Auberge, and Six Senses all added new glitzy hotels this year. Savills estimates there are 1,618 luxury hotel rooms still indoor development.

Luxury Goods Crossover

Luxury fashion houses have seen the writing on the wall, and have decided to get in on the travel boom, with labels like Armani and Bulgari opening name-brand hotels. LVMH partnered with Belmond to launch a luxury sleeper train in Britain, which has been plagued with issues on its first few departures, and its 54-suite Orient Express yacht will sail its inaugural voyage next year.

Pop-up beach clubs and ski lounges by Dolce & Gabbana and Burberry, spas by Dior, and other partnerships have continued to show the bleed between luxury goods and the hospitality sector.

What I’m Seeing

From my own clients at Alpenglow Travel, I’m seeing the following trends:

1. Boomers are traveling like never before - With trips to Japan and Egypt, my Boomer clients have told me they are trying to travel while their bodies can still handle these more intense trips.

   
   

2. More last minute planning - Clients are booking closer and closer in to their departure dates, and are shocked at the rise in rates across airfares and hotels. There seems to be more reticence to commit to travel plans far out across the board.

   
   

3. Demand for help with points - As credit card companies gamify the points system and make it more difficult to redeem points for travel, clients are searching for more assistance in utilizing their points.

   
   

4. Bucket list destinations - There’s been a general uneasiness in my client base centering around the geopolitical and domestic political climate, increase in prices, and health concerns even for younger Millennial clients. There’s a sense of “running out of time” that seems to be pushing people to take more bucket list trips, like seeing the Northern Lights or experiencing a safari.

   
   

5. Women traveling in groups - I’m seeing more and more demand between Millennials and Boomers in particular for women to travel with friends instead of their partners.

   
   

What Does This Mean for Travel Advisors?

As people grow disillusioned with social media serving them more and more AI-generated content, there becomes a greater need for verified human judgement, experience, and expertise.

The meteoric rise of Fora - a mass-market host agency that will certify just about anyone to be a travel agent - has made the job more accessible than ever. If you are seeing a flood of “travel advisors” across your feed, this why. On its surface, travel is a sexy industry with flexible hours and low barrier to entry. However, the margins are low and it’s a constant hustle to grow and maintain a client book.

The jury is still out as to whether Fora will hold its own against the heavy hitters like Brownell and Coastline, as it onboards scores of inexperienced agents. It’s reminding me a lot of MLM boom currently.

While Fora has great technology, the training, vetting, and support system for new agents just isn’t up to snuff yet, and there’s no replacement for a seasoned advisor with years of first-hand luxury travel experience and industry connections with vendors formed around the world.

On one hand, I’m loving the increased interest and visibility that the travel advisor industry is receiving. On the other, I’m concerned about the backlash we are bound to see as too many inexperienced agents make big dollar mistakes and people lose trust in working with advisors.

It feels a bit like the Wild West out there right now.

What I’m Watching

As we head into 2026, I’m encouraging my clients to book airfare and hotels as early as possible. Right now, you should be booking spring break and your summer travel plans. I’m already seeing hotels and flights sell out in Hawaii for March.

I’m also strongly advising that clients purchase travel insurance. I’ve had several clients this year with last minute emergencies where either travel insurance has saved the day, or I’ve had to really call in some favors at the upper levels of major companies to try to recoup big dollar trips.

To work with me, email AnneMarie@alpenglowtravel.com