Luxury travellers are increasingly moving trips into the northern hemisphere autumn, extending itineraries across multiple cities and spending more on premium accommodation.
The findings were released during Virtuoso Travel Week in Las Vegas.
The network is pacing towards a nearly 21% year on year increase in sales, with hotels leading growth at 25%, followed by cruise at 22%. Bookings at hotels charging $US1,500 or more per night are up 37%.
September is emerging as a particularly strong travel month, with sales up 77% and bookings rising 55%. Across the northern autumn, bookings are up 59% and sales have increased 69%.
Europe is at the centre of the shift. Autumn bookings are up 49% despite hotel rates increasing more than 7%, suggesting travellers are choosing the period for conditions and lower crowd levels rather than simply seeking cheaper prices.
Longer, multi-city itineraries are also gaining ground. Virtuoso has dubbed the trend “city-maxxing”, with France and Italy the most common pairing, followed by France and the UK and Italy and Switzerland.
Travellers are also booking further ahead. Future leisure sales one and two years out are up 50%, while bookings worth $US50,000 or more have increased 47%.
Wellness continues to outperform the wider hotel market, with bookings at wellness focused properties up 28%, sales rising 44% and average daily rates increasing 23%.
Artificial intelligence is also changing the role of travel advisors. Virtuoso said 74% of its advisors now use AI in their businesses, but clients continue to place significant value on human destination knowledge and personalised recommendations.
Three quarters of Virtuoso clients cited their advisor’s accommodation and destination expertise as an important benefit, while 79% of luxury travellers said they were open to using an advisor for future trips.
Multigenerational and family travel led the categories generating increased client enquiries, cited by 69% of advisors surveyed in July. Premium and luxury ocean cruising followed at 63%, with celebration travel at 60%.
The findings also point towards more deliberate spending, with 60% of clients prioritising major aspirational trips, 42% booking earlier to secure preferred options and 30% choosing fewer but longer, higher quality holidays.
