#Trending This Week - Return To Base Travel, Wellness On The Go, Where To Travel In 2024, And A Silent Reading Party
Issue 166 • November 14, 2023
There are only about six weeks left to the year — can you believe it? — and some of those days are holidays. As you race to check off as much as you can from your “To Do” list, take a moment to see how you might leverage this week’s trends in your 2024 marketing plan. We are going to introduce you to a new breed of business traveler named “return to base.” The wellness trend isn’t slowing down anytime soon and now we are seeing airport lounges offering harried travelers an opportunity to check in, disconnect, and indulge in some wellness while they wait for a flight. Lonely Planet has released its 2024 recommendations on where to travel. And one hotel has come up with a creative idea for a weekly event — and interestingly enough, it’s a very quiet evening. Check it all out in our two-minute read below.
Meet The “Return To Base” Business Traveler
In a traditional corporate landscape, employees work mostly onsite and travel for company business, conferences, tradeshows, and meetings with clients, manufacturers, etc. to help bolster business. In our post-pandemic economy, much of that work is done remotely, so companies are finding more tangible touchpoints remain important to maintaining connections internally. As such, they’re increasingly allocating time and budget for “return-to-base travel,” where employees travel to the office or gather at a retreat to maintain a deeper connection within their company. Read more in Smart Brief here.
Wellness On The Go
Wellbeing is everywhere these days — including at airport lounges. Travelers are increasingly looking to incorporate wellness routines into their lives, and that includes those on the go. Believe it or not, at certain airports you can actually get a facial, work out, enjoy soothing scents and a relaxed ambiance, spend time in a “Reset Suite” with sound and vibration therapy, visit a bodylab, or catch some Zs in a nap room. Read more in The Robb Report here.
Where To Travel In 2024
Lonely Planet travel guides has released its trending hot list of where to travel in 2024. The “Best in Travel 2024” has expanded from the top 10 best cities, countries, and regions to include two new categories of best value and best sustainable destinations. Spain tops the sustainable travel list, the Portuguese Way hiking trail and the continued rise of night trains in Europe are favored ways of Slow Travel. Algeria, the U.S. Midwest, the Greek island of Ikaria, and Normandy are ideal for the cost-conscious traveler. And Nairobi, Kenya; Paris, France; and Montreal, Canada top the Best Cities category. Read more in Insider Travel Report here.
This Hotel Hosts A Silent Reading Party
As a hotelier, how do you bring in more locals to experience your F&B operations? This hotel hosts a Silent Reading Party. Every Wednesday night in the property’s bar, one will find it filled with intent faces bent over books and e-readers, all drinking and eating without speaking, eyes cast down on the page, while soothing piano music tinkles through the air. This is a paid event (there is an entry fee and a minimum food and drink expenditure). Read more in The Seattle Times here.