What’s Trending in Romance Travel

Romance travel has changed dramatically in the last decade, morphing beyond traditional honeymoons and packaged resort nuptials to customized destination weddings, proposal trips, babymoons, mini-moons and vow renewals. The expanding selection of all-inclusive resorts in warm-weather destinations that offer expert wedding coordinators has also ramped up romance travel options.

We spoke with romance travel experts to gain perspective on what’s trending and how travel sellers can qualify couples for the romantic vacation that best suits their needs.

Strong Growth

The emergence of new romance travel trends is a product of the category’s strong growth in the last decade, said Lisa Sheldon, executive director of the Destination Weddings & Honeymoon Specialists Association. “The destination wedding numbers are always increasing. Even with all of the bad publicity that the Dominican Republic and Mexico have received recently, destination weddings [at resorts in those countries] continue to be extremely popular. We have hundreds of members who only sell destination weddings.”

Extravagant Affairs

Destination weddings increasingly provide an opportunity not just for romantic nuptials in beautiful warm-weather locales, but also for highly personal expressions of taste and style, said travel advisors who specialize in the niche. “Destination weddings have become extravagant affairs over the years,” said Kem Matthews, owner of Nebraska-based Enchanted Honeymoons. “Not too many years ago, destination weddings were limited to a few family members possibly sharing in a ceremony that many times was a second marriage or vow renewal. Today’s destination weddings consist of grand affairs of a large mix of friends and family, ranging from 20 to over 100 guests.”

New Resort Offerings

Agents can help cultivate romance travel prospects by focusing on the growing selection of all-inclusive resorts in traditional warm-weather destinations, said Sheldon.

“New resorts opening up in various destinations are always a draw. Travelers may like a particular brand and want to visit the brand’s newest properties,” she said. The properties also offer the convenience of professionals who handle the planning and logistical elements so the couple can focus solely on the big day.

Immersive Experiences

Agents should be aware that travelers, particularly Millennials, also desire off-site activity options as part of romance travel. “Romance clients are asking for cultural experiences to get off the resort and visit local communities,” said Linda Dancer, owner of Tennessee-based Honeymoons, Inc.

Agents should be prepared to offer local options for these travelers, she said. “Foodies like farm-to-table cooking classes and wine pairings. Other clients are taking their friends with them on their honeymoon, so they want fun places where they can do stuff together.”

Mini-Moons

Mini-moons are continuing to be popular as “quick getaways just after the wedding” for couples planning to follow up later with an exotic trip or adventure-themed experience, said Dancer.

“Couples are planning mini-moons just prior to a two-week trip to Thailand or a trip to Eastern Europe,” Sheldon said. “Some are also taking the shorter trips to save for the big one—their ‘dream’ honeymoon—at a later date.”

Selling Tips

New trends will continue to impact the romance travel segment—but there is still no substitute for qualifying your clients to determine their precise tastes and desires.“No two couples are the same, so even the most basic of answers can mean something totally different to each couple,” said Linda Dancer of Tennesseebased Honeymoons, Inc. “Sometimes it means something different to each person in the party. So asking the right questions throughout the planning process is so important.”

Agents should turn to their databases to begin building a roster of romance prospects, said Lisa Sheldon of the Destination Weddings & Honeymoon Specialists Association. “Even if they’ve sold travel for just a year or two, travel advisors probably have started building a database,” she said. “Their databases are really their gold mines, because they can turn a cruise client into a romance travel client if they know they have a big anniversary coming up.”

She added, “Agents should also use their databases to let their clients know they’re focusing on romance travel. Explain that it could be a proposal trip or a honeymoon or a destination wedding or even an anniversary trip. Everybody knows somebody that would need those potential trips.”