Strategic Vision's 2020 Pulse of the Industry Survey talks to CEOs, presidents and senior executives at top luxury travel management firms, revealing the overall sentiments of the industry.
This year's survey finds an overwhelmingly positive outlook with a strong economy that is prevailing over concerns about global instability.
The insatiable drive to travel is one of the reasons luxury travel executives believe that 2020 will be another banner year for the segment.
Strategic Vision reports that 70 percent of respondents forecast an increase in revenues in 2020, while 50 percent described their clients' attitudes as "optimistic" about both domestic and international travel.
The research also found that luxury travelers are increasingly concerned about the global impact of travel and have a growing sense of responsibility to travel in a sustainable manner.
"Once again, we are seeing that the desire to explore the world, make connections, and find self-fulfillment through travel remains strong at the high end of the market," said Peter J. Bates, president and founder of Strategic Vision, which services the luxury travel and lifestyle industries. "At the same time, travelers are expressing concern about the impact of overtourism and climate change, and they recognize the need to ensure that their own travel behaviors are sustainable."
In addition to an overall positive outlook, the survey revealed several key findings, inducing that 88 percent of respondents indicating that their company's overall revenues increased in 2019.
A growth outlook was forecast throughout the industry. Sixty-seven percent of travel advisors, 70 percent of hotel executives, 71 percent of destination marketers, and 100 percent of cruise executives reflected that sentiment.
All segments reported that 2019 revenues exceeded those of the previous year.
Personal finances are the biggest positive influence on travel decisions and concerns about terrorism and crime had the greatest negative impact.
Luxury travel advisors noted that Japan, Portugal, and Iceland are among the top "trending" destinations while places such as Hong Kong, France, the United Kingdom, Turkey and South America were trending downward.
Advisors are seeing rising interest in destinations, including Portugal Iceland Italy Egypt, Australia, New Zealand, Croatia, St. Barths and Rwanda.
Pent up demand is also inspiring many travelers to book trips to the Caribbean. Seventy-nine percent of travel advisors said that they have planned or are planning trips to the region as it recovers from past storms.
Among the most admired luxury travel brands, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Crystal Cruises, and AmaWaterways topped the list.
Experiential travel was the most sought-after type of travel once again. Nearly nine out of ten (88 percent) said they see more interest in experiential travel, followed by a focus on local experiences (86 percent); multi-generational travel (81 percent); adventure travel (77 percent); and once-in-a-lifetime or "bucket list" trips (67 percent).
"There's a newfound consciousness among luxury travelers," said Bates. "People are seeking out transformation and wellness in all aspects of their lives, and they see travel as a way to improve themselves and increase self-worth. That includes spending their increasingly precious time with extended families, and engaging intelligently and respectfully with the places they visit."
That newfound consciousness has also led to more travelers paying attention to sustainability. Forty-two percent of respondents said that concerns about overtourism-the problem of too many visitors-had a negative impact on travel decisions.
Sustainability is clearly rising to the surface as a new concern that didn't exist a few years ago," said Dan Ilves, senior vice president of TravelStore.
Respondents said that the issue that had the most influence was overtourism, which was chosen by 58 percent of respondents, followed by plastic usage by hotels, cruise ships and other suppliers (51 percent); the impact of tourism on natural environments or wildlife populations (39 percent); and its impact on local cultures and communities (37 percent).
Most respondents said that concerns about overtourism were not preventing people from traveling but highlighting destinations that are "undiscovered" or underappreciated.
"Clients want to travel and they're overall the issues," said Anne Scully, President of McCabe World Travel. "They don't want to cancel their dream trips or vacation plans."
Social media also continues to weigh heavily on decisions made by consumers. Sixty-five percent of travel advisors say that clients have asked them to book a trip based on a discovery they made on social media.
There are some obstacles within the luxury travel industry.
One of the top concerns is competition. Nine out of ten of the travel management executives surveyed said they face competition from suppliers and other partners who are marketing directly to their clients, while 86 percent said their advisors need to search more sources than in the past for rates and/or information.
An economic slowdown or political unrest, as well as natural disasters and disease outbreaks, could also put a damper on these strong forecasts.
"Clients are better aware of what is going on in the destinations, due to social media or news in general," said Monica Varri, president of Lake Forest Travel Bureau.
However, personal wealth can act as a bulwark against current events.
"Strong investment markets, low unemployment-folks are ignoring impeachment, world chaos, and other potentially destabilizing news," said Scott Milne, president of Milne Travel.
Jack Ezon, founder and managing partner of Embark Beyond, concurred: "I think there is an optimistic outlook on traveling. The big factor is going to be the economy and the shift from conspicuous to conscious consumption."
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