Young Affluent Travelers Don't See Luxury Like Boomers

(Dive Travel Business News - January 3, 2012) -- A new generation of travel buyers is embracing definitions of luxury that pose significant challenges to how luxury has been viewed and presented.  But simply knowing the values and preferences of this new generation of high-end traveler is not making it easy to actually accommodate them. 

Suppliers and buyers alike are beginning to realize that travelers younger than the 45- to 55-year-olds who make up the bulk of the market bring with them a different set of standards than their elders. Such travelers are concerned less with opulence and pampering and more with value, authenticity and truly local experiences. They know much more about travel, the destination and what they want from the experience.

For younger, wealthier travelers it's not about ‘fly and flop.’ It’s about ‘find and seek.’ They are looking for one-of-a-kind, nature-based experiences that tried and true luxury brands don't normally accomodate a more modern, less traditional sense of luxury. They are less awed by legacy luxury brands like Astoria, Fairmont and Four Seasons.

Younger luxury travelers, like more modest travelers under the age of 45, are likely to get as much or more of their travel content from destination and hotel review sites like TripAdvisor and through social networks as they are from travel agents. They will be more easily swayed by a good or bad review than the older group.

Many among this younger contingent are first-generation luxury travelers from regions such as Asia and South America. As a result, unlike many younger travelers from the U.S., they feel no allegiance, for example, to a hotel chain that their parents might have frequented.

While those under 45 currently comprise just a third of worldwide luxury travelers, that contingent is the fastest-growing luxury demographic. Younger travelers are expected to account for an increasing proportion of the upscale buyers on whom hoteliers and other suppliers are counting to drive growth during the next few years. Spending by the so-called millennial generation, whose age range is roughly between 20 and 35, will surpass baby boomer spending by 2016.

Some things never change. Younger guests are like older guests - they don’t want mistakes made. Some hotels are very defensive about it. But properties are lucky if a guest complains. Most customers don’t, and simply say, ‘I’m not going to return. No matter what their age - Listening to and addressing customers'http://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Young,-affluent-travelers-disavow-luxury-defined-by-older-generation/ needs is still paramount.

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