#Trending This Week - Nostalgia Travel, Luxury Hotel Services For Kids, Weekend Travel Surge, Live Tourism, And In-Room Coffee Service
Issue 226 • December 10, 2024
There’s a lot to unpack about changing travel behaviors for 2025. It’s something you really need to pay attention to as if you keep operating and marketing in the same old way, you may just miss the opportunity to grab a larger share of the travel pie. For example, there are a number of new CONSUMER INTERESTS SHAPING 2025 TRAVEL. This includes travel defined by nostalgia and personalization. LUXURY HOTEL SERVICES FOR KIDS are on the rise. That milk and cookies at turndown and a coloring book needs to be replaced with something more curated, whether it be gourmet baby purees and baby butlers or children’s amenities taken to entirely new levels. The word out of ILTM in Cannes is about SHIFTING TRAVEL HABITS including the surge in weekend travel getaways, the proclamation that Saturday is the busiest travel day of the week, and more. LIVE TOURISM CONTINUES TO GROW as consumers disconnected by remote work and social media seek to reconnect through the joy of shared in-the-moment human experiences. And finally, there’s something percolating with IN-ROOM HOTEL COFFEE. It’s getting so much better than that stale Keurig cup and dehydrated milk. Check it all out in our three-minute read below.
Consumer Interests Shaping 2025 Travel
The new year will bring in a new era of travel, defined by nostalgia, personalization, and the rise of destination hotels. Change-fatigued travelers will be eager to return to simpler, happier times of the past inspiring people to replay the vacations of their youth. As an example, adult summer camps are witnessing a surge in the US. Airlines are combining algorithmic entertainment with hyper-personalized in-flight systems to deliver fresh content based on a passenger’s historic preferences. And travelers are increasingly exploring trailblazer hotels which have their own unique identity, and in most cases, are putting destinations on the map. Read more in Hotels here.
The Rise Of Luxury Hotel Services For Kids
As luxury travel continues to grow and high net worth travelers bring the kids along, the evolution of children’s services has begun. Hotels and resorts are setting a new standard for their tiniest guests ranging from Sesame Street turndown service and gourmet baby purees to customized smoothies, kids’ movies screened on pool decks with free popcorn, candy, and soda, and much more. Read more in Thrillist here.
Shifting Travel Habits Explored At ILTM
Reports from last week’s ILTM in Cannes included the announcement of Chase Travel’s booking trends. In a nutshell: weekend trips are surging in popularity, with Saturdays now the busiest travel day. Labor Day weekend remains the crown jewel of peak travel periods, and bookings for both the holiday season and 2025 are already soaring, reflecting a renewed enthusiasm for exploration. Read more in Luxury Travel Advisor here.
Live Tourism Continues To Grow
The inherent fragmentation of our society caused by remote work and social media is coming back together in new ways. Live Tourism, the form of travel for major events and experiences, has emerged as a powerful force for reconnection. Live Tourism is about reclaiming the joy of shared, in-the-moment human experiences, which is redefining travel not as a solitary escape, but instead as a communal celebration. Read more in Skift here.
Something Is Percolating With In-Room Coffee
From artisan beans to personalized pour-overs, a geek-worthy in-room coffee station is the hot new luxury hotel perk. For many travelers staying at a luxury hotel, the in-room coffee makers became a disconnect in the luxury experience as most setups favor stale coffee, dehydrated milk, and noisy, dated machines. Many hoteliers are now stepping up to offer eco-friendly coffee experiences or ones which focus on immersion into the local culture by utilizing local coffee, as well as upgrading the equipment to something as simple as a pour-over service. Read more in The Wall Street Journal here.