In focus: Why affluent travellers are spending more money on their holidays

Big spenders

According to Virtuoso’s report into 2025 travel trends, luxury travellers are adopting a carpe diem attitude that means they’re “finding ways to justify spending more”. For some, this comes in the form of multigenerational holidays – something noted by Jill Bentley, director of Jill Bentley Bespoke Travel, who made her biggest-ever booking last year for a family trip to the Maldives, worth £190,000. “One of the reasons for the trip was that time is precious, and [the client] wanted to have this amazing holiday with her family, including all her children and grandchildren,” she says. Another reason for the rise in bumper bookings is the demand for bespoke experiences, a sector that research and consulting firm Future Market Insights predicts will grow by 18% between 2022 and 2032. This is something recognised by London-based agency Travelwise, which last year made one of the trade’s largest-ever bookings. The £2.3 million, round-the-world trip was centred around a private yacht charter and featured a number of destinations the client had “always wanted to go to”. “The booking came from a very long-standing client,” say agency directors Nic Davies and Kim Hart. “She came to us and gave us a bit of an outline, but she wasn’t entirely sure what she wanted, so she pretty much left the rest to us.” The team then spent “months and months” finding out more about the client’s likes and dislikes to help craft the perfect itinerary.

Paying attention

This thoroughness is something consistently heralded as one of the most critical components when making six or seven-figure bookings. “When you’re dealing with somebody with enormous wealth, the cost is not the issue – it’s about finding exactly what it is they want and how to make that special,” Davies and Hart say. And it’s not just agents putting increasing amounts of time and effort into securing sizeable bookings. When speaking about Elegant Resorts’ ability to craft bespoke itineraries, Jeffries explains: “We spend a great deal of time understanding the requirements of our guests for these bookings and leave no stone unturned to ensure that the needs of each member of the party are specifically catered for.” Carrier also follows a similar ethos and, as part of its strategy for 2025, is putting a renewed focus on ultra-high-value bookings. Head of trade partnerships Lee Marshall says concierge has become “a very important part of the customer journey”. He explains: “We’ve bolstered our team, and we also offer things such as ‘beyond the booking’, which are pre-departure calls that our sellers host with the client and the travel agent to offer more personal insight and inspiration before the client travels. “This is about connecting with the concierge teams and making sure that every single element of that client’s holiday is absolutely as it should be.”

A premium experience

Crafting intricate itineraries that tick the boxes of affluent clients also presents agents with a lucrative opportunity to upsell and generate a bigger commission. For her high[1]net-worth clients, Bentley adds “an extra level of care, making sure they’re really well taken care of”, which not only involves her organising boarding passes and visas for each traveller, but also securing board upgrades and additional drinks packages. The same goes for Travelwise’s £2.3 million booking, which started out on a budget of £1 million. “It’s the perfect opportunity to upsell,” Davies and Hart explain. “You know they’re wealthy enough to do this, and you want to make it the best trip of their life, so maybe we get a special chef in, or we ship champagne over from France. We do all these extra things that of course are going to cost more, but it’s the detail that really makes a trip like this.” Successfully executing ultra-high-value bookings takes considerable time and effort – and those who are rewarded have no doubt played the long game. But agents and operators alike should make the investment – it might just pay off.

Sought-after spots

For affluent clients, the world is their oyster. But which destinations and experiences do agents book most frequently for high-net-worth clients?

Kate Hales, Hot Chilli Travel

“Among the most popular are places such as Botswana, as it’s one of the best places to go on safari. The east also seems to be enjoying more demand. There are some amazing trips to places like Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand (pictured), and so many opportunities to do them in a luxury way.”

David Farrell, Ten Lifestyle Group

“Luxury train journeys had a resurgence for us last year. The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, Rocky Mountaineer, Rovos Rail in southern Africa and The Ghan in Australia were requested from our members in higher numbers than past years. The Indian Ocean has also been as popular as ever.”

Nadine Brady, Limelight Escapes and Travl.Love

“One trend is the extraordinary demand for ultra-luxury long-haul stays over the festive period, where clients are spending six figures for their holiday. I also recently arranged a two-week stay at a Tuscan estate, with 40 guests flying in from all over the world.”