Luxury Travel & Lifestyle Trends

USA Today just reported that ‘disaster tourists’ are beginning to swarm to Costa Concordia island. Barely a week after the cruise ship ran aground and keeled over just off the tiny Italian island of Giglio, ferries from the mainland are jammed with day-trippers trying to get a ringside view. More than 1,000 visitors arrived on Giglio from Tuscany’s Porto Santo Stefano Saturday, almost 10 times the normal number for a weekend in the off season. So close in the wake of the disaster, Giglio tourism officials are naturally aghast at the unwanted notoriety.

In today’s age of information overload, the battle for companies, brands and PR professionals to get their ‘messages’ noticed, understood and retained is greater than ever before. And we’ve always been a strong advocate of using pictures to enhance reports, articles, news releases and presentations. When words, images and color are used together correctly – they can be a very persuasive communication mix.

As the economy limps along, luxury brands and marketers should be concerned that consumer confidence among the affluent has dropped 18 percent, reaching rates that have not been this low since the middle of the recession in 2007 and 2008, according to a study from Unity Marketing.

Move over beaches, Berlin is knocking. Berlin has always been a city rich in night life—its vibrant cabaret clubs in the 1920s and 1930s helped inspire an award-winning Broadway play and movie—and the current club scene can trace its roots back to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, which left East Berlin littered with empty buildings.

This smart phone software extends a brand’s personality and creates new touch points with customers, giving them anytime/anywhere access. It also reaches a younger more tech-savvy audience, in the hopes of building brand loyalty at a younger age. High-end players are offering innovative touches…..

In an effort to distinguish themselves from other short-term rentals and capture a share of the $100 billion hotel market, many vacation rentals are trying to stand out by essentially posing as hotels — offering everything from regular maid service to miniature toiletries to concierges who can arrange restaurant reservations.

Be proactive with positive news. There is always something positive to say, even in a time of crisis. New tourism appointments, new flight service, new attractions, increased cruise ship arrivals, festivals, events, hotel packages and hotel developments generate positive news that helps rebuild an image in the eyes of overseas visitors, namely, potential tourists. Social media is a ripe avenue to share your positive news with a large audience, and it’s recommended to set up a news feed on your website to ease browsers search for updates.

Apple has already revolutionized how we use technology in our daily lives. And there is no doubt that Apple’s iPad has the same potential to revolutionize the dining and hospitality industry. Here’s a list of ten that are laying the foundation for a new generation of hotels and restaurants outfitting their traditional services with the iPad. These early-adopter pioneers can potentially get a valuable lead in the industry’s competitive landscape.

Taking the rooftop pools and other facilities to extreme levels, companies vie to launch ‘can-you-top-this?’ experiences and attractions to lure tourists. Here are a few, which caught our eye:

The key card could become a thing of the past after a hotel chain announced it would allow guests to access their rooms using their smartphones. Instead of a key card, guests could download an application to their mobile device that would enable them to open their door simply by holding their phone to a sensor. If successful, this would mean that guests could choose to avoid the hassle of checking in at the front desk.