Luxury Travel—A New Promising SegmentToday Luxury Travel is the first preference of most travelers around the world. More disposable income and new life style has prompted luxury travel industry to boom in last few years. More and more companies behind hotels, tours and travels along with cruise lines are entering into this lucrative business segment to reap the real benefits. There seems to be a tug of war between the companies to push themselves ahead of their competitors. New Luxury is affecting and disrupting just about every category. Each consumer has her own personal calculator to help her trade up in a few categories and trade down in others. Everyone does it in her or his own way. According to Boston Consulting Group Research, new luxury segment of the U.S. consumer economy hit $525 billion in sales in 2004 up from $450 billion in 2003, and will probably reach $1 trillion by 2010 . Virtually all growth in consumer economy will be in the premium, affordable luxury end or in the low-price end, as traditional mass market hollows out according to this report. The phenomenon is, in part, a result of middle-market consumers' increasing, and now entrenched, pattern of "trading up" and "trading down" in order to acquire and enjoy New Luxury goods that matter to them. A consumer might buy grocery staples at Wal-Mart and sports clothes at Target in order to afford other goods that cost 200% more than average ones but have real technical benefits that satisfy emotional needs. These New Luxury items range from entry-level BMW cars, esoteric teas and Coach bags to spa vacations. Travel, Expenditures on the Home, Cars and Dining Were the Leading New Luxury Categories in 2004. The more than half a trillion dollars that Americans spent on New Luxury goods last year were spread among a continuum of categories. This research cited the following estimated breakdowns of spending:
Source: The Boston Consulting Group
It is evident from the above study as well as facts that new Luxury Travel (hotels, cruises, airlines, international travel) tops every category and stands at $130 billion. So the current market is all-time high and even future seems to be quite bright in Luxury Travel. On the demand side, the driving factors are higher real incomes, rising home values and the fact that investing in the home pays off more for consumers than investing in the capital markets, extra cash because of discounters -- the trading down "windfall", increasing economic, buying and decision-making power of women, mounting levels of education, taste and experience and last but not the least the emotional pressures of modern life which make people feel the need and give them the permission to spend. Let’s see some more useful resources and leaders in Luxury Travel: Whistler: Readers of Australia's Luxury Travel Magazine have rated Whistler as #1 in the "Best Overseas Ski Resort" category in its first ever GOLD LIST. Luxury Magazine's prestigious GOLD LIST covers 22 major categories from luxury hotels, resorts, spas and islands to airlines, cruise ships, ski resorts, cities and countries, and has been called the most comprehensive survey of Australian travelers ever conducted by an Australian magazine. Making the trip to Whistler faster, Air Canada is operating direct flights to Vancouver from Sydney throughout Canada's winter season. With a flight-time of 14 hours and 40 minutes, this new daily non-stop service has reduced northbound flying time by two hours and fifteen minutes, compared to the carrier's second daily one-stop service, and is almost five hours faster than other carriers' alternate routings. For more details, please visit: http://www.whistler.com CECTA is the Central European Countries Travel Association. It is an umbrella organisation, at the heart of New Europe, bringing together the collective interests of Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland and the travel industry servicing them. The objective is to encourage people to visit www.visitcentraleurope.com, build sustainable traffic and help grow the global business and leisure travel market. For more details, please visit: http://www.cecta.org Conde Nast Traveler is the leading luxury travel lifestyle magazine published in the UK today. It has achieved sales in excess of 82,514 copies and has the highest level of subscribers in the glossy market (28,740). Acclaimed by readers, advertisers, and indeed the industry, the magazine has won lifestyle of the Year for 2 years running (2001 & 2002). Its unique readership split almost equally between men and women is up market (83% AB 1) with an average age of 42. The Readership is affluent, discerning and dedicated to the pursuit of the very best things in life. For more details, please visit: http://www.cntraveller.com Schweizer Touristik is the renowned trade magazine for the Swiss travel and tourist industry. Exclusive, thoroughly researched first hand information, professional, well-founded analysis and very carefully considered articles provide the reader with the necessary guidance and help to recognize trends and to take advantage of the daily news inundation. Target group is the decision maker in the tourist industry as well as in related industry branches. Publication every two weeks ensures topicality. For more details, please visit: www.schweizertouristik.ch There is another well-known company called Literary Traveler. You should know about what other travel authorities think that it is the best Luxury Travel newsletter in America. Passport Luxury Travel Newsletter has been serving since 1965, publishing unbiased luxury travel reviews, luxury travel reports and tips on upscale places to stay, restaurants, shopping, cruises and tours -- luxury travel information that helps its subscribers avoid making the kinds of mistakes that can ruin a luxury vacation or business trip. Many of North America's top luxury travel agencies and the world's most discriminating luxury travelers are among its subscribers. Information about the best luxury travel hotels, and other luxury travel resources such as luxury travel car rental, and luxury hotel. Great suggestions for small luxury hotels in the US but also small luxury hotels of the world. If there are luxury resorts that you are considering for a luxury travel holiday then Passport Luxury Travel Newsletter will give you the best advice on Luxury Travel. Visit passport for more Luxury Travel resources at: http://www.literarytraveler.com
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