Luxury Travel & Lifestyle Trends

The rise of medical tourism to glittering hospitals in places like Singapore and Thailand has turned coddling and elegance into marketing necessities. As mentioned in the Herald Tribune: “It’s not just competing on medical grounds and specialties, but competing for customers who can go just about anywhere.”

The Pink Dollar, an expression used to signify the above-average earnings of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community has long been the object of attention for luxury marketers. Travel operators trying to shrug off hard times are waking up to the vast potential of gay and lesbian tourism, including the new and burgeoning market for same-sex weddings and honeymoons as more states/countries allow gay marriage.

Kids have become a significant new revenue stream that’s growing with a vengeance. It seems that kids (as with pets) are recession proof and parents are forking out the big bucks on everything from designer clothing and six figure playhouses, to private jet travel to summer camp.

In terms of the economy, we’re all waiting for the other shoe to drop. Whether they’ve been actually battered or it’s merely self-inflicted, the affluent are weary. Such uncertain times mean at least temporary comfort can be found in looking back to fond memories of happy days-gone-by. Not only will “nostalgia marketing” drive trends in 2011, but for years to come until the deep effects of global recession subside.

Are you ready for the next food trend? First it was organic, then local. Now, a new culinary movement is sprouting: urban foraging. As expected, this trend has been hot among foodies in California and New York City for years.

The trend of hotel alternatives continues as home-swapping and the vacation rentals continue to grow. Many services cropped up to meet demand. TradetoTravel is one luxury vacation home exchange service with a portfolio of 400 vacation properties valued between $1 million and $20 million. Uniquely, they meet any preferences in houses, designs or themes.

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:

With the continuing desire to save the planet individuals and companies are working toward going greener in the next decade. Because if you haven’t already heard, green is gold in our industry. Paperless ticketing will become even more popular, not only from an ecological standpoint, but creates an ability to avoid long lines, eliminates printing and reduces distribution costs. The newest technology in paperless ticketing will be mobile ticketing, where consumer is given a barcode via email or SMS to be scanned at the venue with their mobile.

Restaurant and food pop-ups are flourishing in every shape and size. Intimacy and hipness is the attraction: the ‘I-know-something-or-somebody-you-don’t-know’ feeling. We’ve seen numerous examples of pop-up restaurants in recent years, including those with strictly three-month seasonal menus. Others use guerrilla gourmet dining clubs: strictly word-of-mouth, unlicensed, underground restaurants in unmarked buildings, blind alleys and urban caverns.

Sure, having Wifi on hand is convenient, but what’s the point of a vacation if it’s constantly being interrupted by email? To provide the most relaxing experience, expect to see more hotels and resorts that force (or allow) guests to unplug whilst they unwind, stowing away all electronics upon check in.