The NEW Luxury

I would like to share some reflections on luxury tourism and the new meaning it is taking.

?

AN OVERVIEW

First of all, what are we talking about?

According to recent market research surveys, compiled by Deloitte , the luxury travel industry is a growing sector with a global market value of US$1.2 trillion in 2021, and projections foresee a steady growth of 7.6% in the next decade.

?

As I shared in my article on the new travel trends for 2023 , written for Yugen Earthside, the concept of luxury has been redefined recently. In the first place, by including more nature. The explosion of the wellness industry shows how the sector has expanded to include healing experiences in remote locations. The so-called transformational travel trend has also seen growth and the adjective profusely appears to describe a variety of experiences which encourage a meaningful return to nature and a reconnection from an inner perspective.

?

According to recent reports and market research, its audience has also started to change and now even the younger generations are looking at it with interest, following their preference for quality over quantity.

?

As reported by CBI (the Centre for the Promotion of Imports from developing countries, in the Netherlands), and based on research by Amadeus and Acorn Tourism Consulting, the demographic of this sector is expanding . Beyond noticing that European and North American Baby Boomers have increased their spending on luxury tourism, the research also highlights that millennials and younger travellers are becoming more important markets with an increase in their spending in this segment.

??

A MORE SUSTAINABLE SECTOR

This relevant sector is also becoming more and more intertwined with sustainability practices. Travellers are changing and they are more aware of, and concerned, with the subject. In the same study by the CBI, figures reported by YouGov show that more than 50% of luxury travellers keep sustainability in high consideration and are willing to pay more for responsible, eco-friendly and sustainable trips, and choosing a company with a strong sustainability policy.

?

At the same time, the industry has embarked on its sustainability journey with many global examples leading the way. The motivation for this comes both from the new tourist demands and from governmental pressure.

?

It is appropriate to remember that the ‘s’ word includes several aspects, or dimensions, and the communities are a crucial part of its definition. We register that tourists want to travel somewhere with completely different cultural experiences and languages (51% Booking.com 2023), or want recommendations for destinations that support indigenous cultures and heritages (43% by Expedia Group 2022). These new demands show a clear interest which translates inevitably into supporting the local economy and leaving a positive impact at the destination level, also expressed as a clear intent.

?

SUSTAINABILITY INCLUDES SUPPORTING COMMUNITIES

What if the traditional communities have already found a complementary way to support themselves, through offering tourism experiences owned, designed and managed by themselves? Wouldn’t that be a direct way to support a community in a non-paternalistic way by investing in an alternative economic activity that they have chosen to embrace to continue being who they are?

?

Yes, because Community-Based Tourism (CBT) offers them the opportunity to continue living according to their lifestyle, just with a better quality of conditions for their members.?

Their cultural traditions can continue to guide their lives and they won’t need to escape to the big urban centre to?find alternative sources of income.

Beyond supporting the local infrastructure, investing in local social projects that protect marginalised communities with the support of a local NGO; beyond purchasing souvenirs produced by local women entrepreneurs using traditional techniques, and beyond consuming organic fruits and vegetables produced by enthusiastic local farmers, there is something else that luxury travel could do.

?

Beyond – but not instead of – all that, there is the possibility of offering an additional experience to guests: an indigenous Community-Based Tourism experience i.e. an experience designed, owned and managed directly by the community. Imagine if these options could be included in the portfolio of a sustainable eco-boutique hotel? Wouldn’t it be great to provide added value to your customers, in addition to proving them with the existing engagement and support of the local community and local economy?

?

A MISSING LINK, PERHAPS AN IMPOSSIBLE LINK?

As I previously mentioned in my article on the subject, written for Inspire Global in

?September 2022, I strongly believe that we need to innovate the relationships we have with the local indigenous communities that live in the destinations where we operate. Opening up space for new creative dynamics that generate positive impact through new connections and partnerships is becoming a must. The concept of ‘community engagement’ and ‘community support’ in the tourism industry should move beyond the mere idea of ‘giving back’ – often after having extracted a lot – and be replaced with a more inclusive attitude that considers new voices and narratives in the decision-making process.

?

There is space for new collaborations with the indigenous entrepreneurs involved in tourism. Their tourism projects boost their role as guardians of the land and biodiversity and as repositories of ancestral cultures that we need to protect; every single experience that travellers book with them through their luxury stay will support that.

?

VALUE FOR ALL?

The value that these experiences offer is immense, and it goes both ways.

For the tourists, they offer the opportunity to have unique, remote and authentic cultural full-immersion, straight from the source. If we adopt the etymologic meaning of the word luxury – whose root means rare – it is clear that this kind of adventure can be certainly included in this definition. An additional value to the tourists is, of course, the guarantee that?they are not only contributing to conserving biodiversity on land and underwater but also to preserving the cultural heritage.

?

To the community members themselves, these experiences represent the chance to present themselves to the world on their terms and, more importantly, to continue to live on their lands in the way they have chosen to, which has not always been a given for them.

?

?

FUTURE STEPS

?If we define luxury as a way of acquiring and experiencing more value, I believe that indigenous tourism should be then considered the new Luxury.

?

It seems that a good starting point to convince the sceptic – rather than to continue preaching to the converted – would be to show the value of indigenous, and all the Community-Based Tourism, experiences in a tangible way.

I intend to do that also by partnering with a recognised tech company that has the tools to measure that with a unique set of the latest generation of data. This is the next step of my journey that I started many years ago. For now, I am heading into the field where?this new step can begin.

?

Watch this space for more evidence of the value of the new Luxury.

?

?