The rise in online travel companies such as TripAdvisor, Expedia and Orbitz has changed the face of travel, now all one requires is an internet connection at the click of a button we can search the internet for that perfect holiday or city break, research it, book it and pay for it all in a matter of seconds and from the comfort of our living rooms.
But has removing the travel agent really made our holiday experiences better? Some would say no, and this is why today vacation planning is changing and travel advisers are once again in high demand. Sick of reading about other people’s experiences and hang up’s travellers today want trusted and reliable resources to curate extraordinary vacations, plus in most cases travel advisers are privy to the hottest new properties, up-and-coming destinations around the globe and the latest travel trends. In short travel adviser is not a thing of the past, but rather a facilitator to unique and rewarding travel experiences.
With this in mind, we highlight the hottest new travel trends to watch out for in 2018, according to some of the world’s leading luxury travel experts
Millennial Cruises
Years ago taking a cruise was what people of retirement age anyone under the age of 60 wouldn’t have been seen dead on a cruise ship, but today the millennial pound is strong and cruise companies are falling over themselves to attract this young group of people – after all from a financial point of view this makes complete sense hook um whilst their young and benefit from years of repeat business!
U by Uniworld (www.ubyuniworld.com) has announced it will be launching the “first all-millennial cruise line”with amenities and services geared strictly toward 21- to 45-year-olds. Focused on experiential travel, Uniworld has modernised two l20- passenger ships aptly named A and B and described as boutique hotels on water, with craft coffees, rooftop lounges, yoga studios, nightclubs, and of course free wifi is set to cruise some of Europe’s most hip waterways with destination trips through Paris, Germany the Danube and Amsterdam.
Multigenerational Vacations
Traveling around the world with parents, siblings, kids, grandkids, and assorted family members is a way of enriching a shared travel experience and reconnecting with one another. “Skip-gen” another industry term being buffeted around is also set to be a holiday trend for the coming years it involves grandparents, the baby boomers taking grandchildren on epic holidays often to mark milestones in life whilst leaving parents behind.
Sustainable Tourism
Sustainability has been a buzzword across all industries for a few years now. When people think about sustainability in travel they often only think about the green footprint aspect, but actually it goes much deeper than that it is exploration supporting the protection of cultural and natural heritage, along with natural wonders of the world
Endangered destinations are also seeing a surge. The polar regions of Antarctica and the Arctic are facing climate change threats as are Australia’s Great Barrier Reef - yet their fragile shift means more people want to visit before it is too late - highlighting the catch-22 of this particular tourism trend.
Breakup breaks
Celebrations such as honeymoons, weddings and anniversaries have traditionally been times that people have marked with travel.
Now, more travel agencies and resorts are seeing people planning trips, especially wellness breaks, during times of grief, after a divorce, or when children leave home. “At least a third of our guests visit when they are going through a difficult situation,” says Alejandro Bataller Pineda, vice president of SHA Wellness Clinic in Alicante (shawellnessclinic.com). “It might be due to a breakup or a situation that creates stress or anxiety.” More, it seems, are tapping into the transformative power of travel to help them through difficult times.
Extreme Trips
Bored with lying on a beach soaking up the sun’s rays, todays travellers is seeking adventure and adrenaline fuelled experiences ones that preferably will also look good on the pages of Instagram! Think Scad diving into a cooling water tower in Soweto, South Africa, Bungee jumping into an active volcano in Chile or kayaking on the White Nile.
One of the fastest growing segments of the travel industry today, extreme tourism analyst forecast the global adventure tourism market to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 45.99% until 2020. There are several travel companies leading the way in this industry G Adventures one of the top adventure travel companies for more than 25 years (www.gadventures.com ) offers many unique and affordable trips with over 1200 itineraries to all seven continents. Geographic Expedition (www.geoex.com) offers a portfolio of adventurous overland tours, treks, walks, and expeditionary voyages to the world's most astonishing places and Intrepid Travel (www.intrepidtravel.com) who focus on taking small groups of travellers off the beaten track to more than 90 destinations around the globe.
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