WEALTHY tourists still have an appetite for the exclusive luxury experiences that Britain offers despite the economic downturn, according to a new VisitBritain report.
Luxury Travel: Understanding the Luxury Consumer was introduced at International Luxury Travel Market in Cannes and identifies seven new trends in luxury travel which are capturing the imaginations of the world’s wealthy elite.
It comes as VisitBritain is preparing a worldwide advertising campaign in the spring to attract more high-net-worth individuals – people with more than $1 million in spare cash – whose numbers worldwide grew by 17.1 per cent in 2009 to 10 million. For the first time there are as many in Asia as Europe and North America – about three million.
The report identifies a fashion among the rich for dream-like, unreal ‘fairytale’ holidays. Many want fantasy experiences where, for example, guests re-live the lives of residents in a British stately home. Another trend is for frictionless ‘flow’ holidays described as ‘turning the mute button on life’. It shows the wealthy have a growing appetite for luxury holidays planned with the skill of an art curator or choreographer, full of surprises and a compelling story they can talk about to their friends.
The report identifies three tiers of luxury: the ‘gold’ for the wealthy who love bling and showing off, ‘platinum’ for the rich who are less overt while ‘black’ luxury is for those who love understated wealth but revel in utter exclusivity and the feeling of total freedom money brings. VisitBritain is using these insights to create a major new marketing campaign to be launched in the spring aimed at boosting Britain’s burgeoning high-end tourism business.
Patricia Yates, director of strategy and communications at VisitBritain said: “Britain is already regarded by many of the international jet-set as the original home of luxury, thanks to our centuries-old aristocratic traditions and history of service. This report shows that while every country has five-star hotels, luxurious spas, designer shops and championship golf courses, Britain stands out because it has the original world-renowned luxury experiences and brands. For example, a stay at Claridges, shopping in Selfridges or 18 holes at St Andrews have a cachet that can’t be found elsewhere.”