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Our global community of over two hundred travel-obsessed Smarties live and breathe travel trends. In the northern hemisphere, we’re diving into back-to-school season as lifelong students of the ever-changing travel industry.
With travel advisors hailing from all over the world – SmartFlyer has concentrations of agents in the U.S., Europe, and Australia – we’re continuously sharing intel amongst our community of Smarties across both countries and continents to ensure that our clients are armed with the most up-to-date intel. As we see questions coming across our desks spanning from “When is best to book my next vacation? Where should I go when Amalfi Coast is full?” We’re here to recap ten of the major trends that we anticipate will impact your 2024 travel plans.
Ideally, we advise booking your summer travels before the close of the previous calendar year.
We’ve long been proponents of working with your trusted SmartFlyer travel advisor to book your vacation well in advance of your departure date. For Europe specifically, we’ll focus on how high season dictates availability and in turn, drives how early you should be booking. Peak demand for Italy, France, and Greece is concentrated from May to September; while May and September used to be considered “shoulder season,” this is no longer the case with peak travel windows widening post-pandemic. Ideally, we advise booking your summer travels before the close of the previous calendar year. If you elect to wait too long, space at top hotels across some of the most sought-after spots like St. Tropez, the Amalfi Coast, and the Santorini will be hard to come by.
According to the New York Times demand has been so high that many travel advisers have had to turn away clients looking to book vacations in popular European destinations in July and August because of a lack of availability.” This compression during peak times of the year is also in part due to Europe’s inventory not meeting the rising demand for luxury products. While there has been a slew of exciting openings across top markets, real estate experts cite soaring construction costs and increased interest rates as impacting development financing. According to a recent article in the Financial Times, “Europe’s hotel room supply rose just 2.7 percent in the 12 months to March 2023, against 3.6 percent in the same period four years earlier.” What does this all mean for you? The early bird gets the worm. By working with your SmartFlyer travel advisor to begin plotting out your next European adventure six to nine months in advance, you’ll secure prime access to the full inventory of rooms before increased occupancy has impacted premiere room types to be snatched up.
The Bigger The Bucket List Trip, the Longer the Runway
There’s no safe assumption on which destinations qualify as long-haul or bucket list for you. For our Aussie travelers, a road trip on Route 66 with a pitstop to see St. Louis Arch might be something you’ve long dreamt about; For our American travelers, the chance to swim at Bondi Beach – just down the street from some of our Austalia team– could be at the top of your bucket list. With this in mind, we’ll generalize based on some of our top-requested experiential trips. Whether your version is a villa for the festive season, an “Around The World” private jet expedition, a cruise to a hard-to-reach destination like Antarctica, or gorilla trekking in Rwanda.
The festive season has long been touted as some of the most hard-to-secure space in destinations like the Caribbean and Mexico; To ensure you secure the best type of accommodation or your trip – whether that be guaranteeing connecting rooms at a hotel or securing the top-booked villas – we recommend booking as early as January for the following winter, and no later than the end of summer. Private jet expeditions typically release rates 18 months in advance, and itineraries almost always sell out; If you’re looking to book, be sure your travel advisor knows this and can put you on a high-priority list with our top partners, like TCS World Travel. Cruises visiting hard-to-reach destinations like Antarctica are often done on expedition ships with limited numbers of cabins; as soon as you know you want to go, get in touch with your agent who can begin sourcing space. Safari rates are typically released in May for the following full calendar year; the sooner you can book, the better!
Air Has Never Been More Complex
It seems like not a week goes by without headlines splashing across your preferred news app that airline cancellations are leaving travelers stranded in airports. But it’s not just that you’re seeing delays and cancellations reported on more, they’re happening with greater frequency. According to a recent article in Forbes, “FlightAware data shows an average of 30,000 delayed flights per day globally — including 7,000 to 9,000 delayed flights per day in the U.S.” It continues, quoting a former commercial airline pilot who shares, “The total number of global flights have gone up significantly due to pandemic recovery. But delays have gone up even more, percentage-wise, than the volume of flights.”
So while air has never been more complex, we’re here to help simplify.
And while the act of getting you to your destination smoothly is integral to what we do, for over thirty years, we’ve also been our clients’ trusted resource when travel doesn’t go according to plan. Booking flights with the SmartFlyer Air Team ensures that you have a primary point of contact as your direct advocate to the airline. So, if you’re at the gate and the flight you’re supposed to board is canceled, you’re not queuing at the Help Desk with dozens of other disgruntled passengers; you’re on a direct line with an air expert, available to you 24/7. As a company that was founded to help make your experience as seamless as possible from wheels up to wheels down, our team also takes into account the type of aircraft you’ll be flying, routing logistics, carrier agreements, codeshares, and so much more. So while air has never been more complex, we’re here to help simplify.
Set-Jetting: Trips Based on Pop Culture Moments
Perhaps the most playful trend to immerge in recent years, SmartFlyer travel advisors report a collective surge in requests spurred by film and television show locales. Few correlations are as direct The White Lotus effect on Sicily inquiries. We reported on HBO filming at San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel with an interview with the hotel’s General Manager last spring prior to the season being released, sure it would inspire travelers to further south in Italy. But perhaps no one could have predicted just how much; According to a recent survey shared by Robb Report, “Vacations from the UK to Sicily specifically were up 61 percent when compared to last year, while the US saw a 90 percent spark in inquiries.”
“Seventy percent of Gen Z and millennial respondents agree that they have been inspired to travel to a destination after seeing it featured in a TV show, news source, or movie.”
And while remarkable, this is by no means the first time we’ve seen television drive booking patterns with a desire for TV-themed itineraries for travelers to be their own main character. Hotels across London leaned into the trend with Bridgerton-themed afternoon teas that Lady Whisteldown would approve of. And in nearby Scotland, we’ve had travelers request visits to Midhope Castle, the landmark which stands in as Lallybroch for Outlander’s cast. Stateside, the appeal of Dutton Ranch’s wide open spaces as depicted in Yellowstone is reflected in an uptick of dude ranch inquires – Montana and beyond. Data from a recent survey supports these shifts particularly with younger travelers, “Seventy percent of Gen Z and millennial respondents agree that they have been inspired to travel to a destination after seeing it featured in a TV show, news source, or movie.” Similarly, we predict that the wedding of Sofia Richie and Elliot Grainge will only continue to fuel interest in the ever-elegant Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc.
Bookings Inspired by International Tours
On track to yield arecord-setting $1 billionin sales, here’s no shortage of buzz on how the Taylor Swift Eras Tour has impacted the global economy. If you, like many others, missed out on having your Eras Tour moment stateside, there’s still hope for you; With fifty international dates across Mexico, Canada, South America, Asia, Australia, and Europe, there are ample opportunities to still sing your heart out for four hours. And even better, SmartFlyer has access to a vetted ticket broker who has VIP tickets in France, the U.K., and Italy, it sounds like you’ve got an entire trip in the making.
But for those who aren’t on the Swiftie train, there are ample other tours worth traveling for. We’ve been working with clients to build entire trips around some of the following tours on deck this year and next: Beyonce, Lizzo, Coldplay, Bruce Springsteen, Andrea Bocelli, Foo Fighters, Madonna, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam, Dead & Co, and U2. As always, when booking with a SmartFlyer travel advisor, we can simply handle your hotel stay, or assist in booking your airfare, car rental (for luxury rentals stateside, we’ve been loving Go Rentals), touring, and even travel insurance; but more on that later!
Bucket List Trips Build on Sporting Events
In the same vein as traveling for a concert, we’re seeing a surge in inquiries to build trips around major sporting events. With the 2024 Summer Olympics set to take place in Paris beginning July 26th, we’ve been chatting with clients about how partnering with a SmartFlyer travel advisor allows you to access hotel room rates outside of the standard two-week minimums that you’ll find if trying to book your hotel room direct. In addition to securing you a place to stay, we can help create a custom itinerary with tickets for the events that interest you most in addition to all the finer details that make a trip seamless like meet-and-greet airport service, car transfers, and a bilingual point of contact on the ground.
The Olympics is just the beginning of the long list of sought-after events. Tap your trusted travel advisor for tickets to the Grand Prix (any of them!), Kentucky Derby, Masters, Ryder Cup, Super Bowl, Rugby Finals, Wimbledon, and the Australian Open. No matter where your next adrenaline-fueled trip may take you, we have vetted partnerships around the world to ensure you’re set up at every stage of your adventure.
The Rebound of Asia-Pacific
Perhaps the region of the world that was slowest to open back up to travelers in recent years, the lifting of restrictions in Asia-Pacific has resulted in a boom of demand. Reports are showingthat travelers are booking destinations across Asia at pre-pandemic levels, and further in advance than they do their Europe trips. For travelers coming from North America, the long-haul nature of traveling to Asia and the Pacific – think: islands like Bora Bora, Tahiti, and Fiji – contribute to these trips being both planned further in advance and for longer durations of stay. We’re seeing travelers collaborate with their advisors to split their two-, three-, and sometimes four-week trips between a tropical oasis like Kokomo Private Island Fiji combined with a city stay at a restorative property like The Siam in Bangkok.
…most of our ground operators in Japan are only working on trips with a minimum of a three-month lead time.
For those who want to dig deeper into one destination, Japan remains a top-requested country. Reuters reports, “Inbound visitors rose to 2.07 million in June, the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) said, clearing the 2 million mark for the first time since February 2020.” One nuance to consider with Japan is the near-necessity of having a guide and the extremely limited numbers available. With this in mind, most of our ground operators in Japan are only working on trips with a minimum of a three-month lead time. In addition to Kid-Approved Japan, we’re also seeing an uptick in requests for customizable itineraries like Eight Nights of Epic Thailand, Ten Days Adventuring through Vietnam, and One Week in Sri Lanka.
A Need for Creative Destination Swaps
As trendspotters, we’re continually out in the field testing out lesser-known locales to ensure they meet our rigorous standards for service, up-to-date accommodations, and exceptional food and beverage
If limited availability is proving to present challenges for your next trip, rest assured, we have a series of creative solutions to ensure you still get to have that dreamy getaway you deserve. By partnering with a SmartFlyer travel advisor, you’re privy to a wealth of resources, one of which is an introduction to creative destinations you may not have previously considered. As trendspotters, we’re continually out in the field testing out lesser-known locales to ensure they meet our rigorous standards for service, up-to-date accommodations, and exceptional food and beverage. An example of this research coming to life can be found in ourUp-And-Coming Alternatives to European Hotspots roundup with eight unexpected destinations featured including Stockholm, Budapest, Malta, Lake Lucerne, Bodrum, and more.
With Italy and France remaining our two top international destinations, we’ve dug even deeper into these countries to identify lesser-visited pockets to explore. In Unchartered Territory: Italy’s New Frontier, we’re digging into the Dolomites, Pantelleria, Piedmont, Puglia, Sardinia, and Umbria. In neighboring France, we’re going beyond Paris and Provence into regions like Marseille and the Loire Valley as we detail Ten of the Best Hotels in France that You Haven’t Heard of (Yet). Ultimately, all of these lists are just starting points to spark inspiration. Effectively matching with an agent is a matchmaking process of sorts, and as they get to know your specific taste over time, they’ll be able to suggest specific destinations and hotels that align best with your tastes.
Carry-On Only, with a Twist
If the unfortunate trend around flight delays and cancellations resonates, we feel your pain. But whether it’s a complicated routing to reach a far-flung destination, a longer itinerary that encompasses multiple climates, or the kids being in tow making the carry-on life impossible, there are ways to mitigate having your checked luggage lost along the way. There are a handful of vetted services SmartFlyer agents love booking to give their clients for additional peace of mind.
If you prefer not to handle your bags at the airport at all, Luggage Free is a specialty service that offers travelers the ability to ship luggage ahead to any destination worldwide, meaning you don’t have to stress about carrying, checking, or claiming luggage, it will be at your hotel to greet you! And for families, we love BabyQuip, a service that allows you to have a car seat, stroller, or any other baby gear delivered to you right at the airport or directly at your hotel or villa rental.
Your Travel Advisor Can Book More than Flights and Hotels
For our clients who we’ve been working with for years – sometimes decades – they know their SmartFlyer travel advisors to be a wealth of information on things beyond just where to stay. Sometimes, we field that panicked phone call about your passport being expired, or on the verge of expiration, just days before departure. According to U.S. Customs, “As a general rule, passports must be valid for six months beyond the date the traveler will exit the United States.” But you wouldn’t be the first person caught in a pinch if you need an expedited passport renewal to meet this requirement; luckily, we know a guy. The Passport Experts are our vetted partner for all things related to passport renewal.
When it comes to getting your pre-trip wardrobe in order, ask about being referred to a Saks stylist who can help curate your suitcase to the aesthetic of your destination. Worried about what medications you should bring? We aren’t doctors but can link you up with the team at Runway Health for a pre-trip consult. If you want to capture the memories made on the ground, as your agent about scheduling a Flytographer shoot with a local photographer. And last but certainly not least, it’s better to be safe than sorry; We recommend protecting your investment on a trip and can share tailored insurance options based on your needs, even if that’s just ensuring your checked bags. Blue Ribbon Bags is a service that will track and expedite the return of undelivered baggage by the airline; even better, if your luggage is lost and doesn’t get found after four days, Blue Ribbon Bags will send you one thousand dollars per bag, guaranteed.
Contact your SmartFlyer travel advisor to get ahead of the trends.
