Why exotic experiences led by hard-to-get experts is new travel trend
Travel agents design packages for high-end tourists that avoid the usual destinations in favour of more exotic trips, led by specialists or plugged-in locals, that are as much about learning as leisure
Luxury travel, like other industries, has had to adjust to the times. Retail-driven travel has waxed and waned, following the vagaries of the world economy; lately, post-Brexit Britain has enjoyed a boom as the value of the pound has plunged, making luxury products bought in the UK the cheapest in the world.
More well-to-do travellers are seeking safer countries as well as more exotic and curated experiential holidays.
Terrorism in Europe, unsurprisingly, has put many travellers off visiting tourist magnets such as Paris. The Paris region’s tourist board revealed in August that tourism revenues had dropped €750 million (HK$6.3 billion) year-on-year since January, with much of the drop-off coming from the high-end travel sector. Luxury travellers are staying away, and high-end hotels are suffering with revenues down by 30 to 40 per cent.
“Safety, for wealthier travellers, has gone from a low consideration five or six years ago to one of the most important now,” says Alex Malcolm, founder and managing director of travel specialists Jacada Travel. But safety alone isn’t keeping tourists away from Paris, Rome and other typical holiday hotspots. Malcolm believes that high-end holidaymakers are increasingly interested in seeking out experiences.