Top Destinations to Book for High-End Clients

2020 promises to be a year in which wealthy wanderers seize the day and prioritize their travel wishes, propelled by the belief that customized experiences are the best investment of their time and money, says Virtuoso's latest Luxe Report. So, where exactly are the beau monde setting their sights as we round the corner into a new decade?

Eternally alluring, Italy captured the first position overall among preferred global destinations and was also rated number-one among solo travelers, second for families, and ranked second for top honeymoon picks among couples, according to the Luxe Report. Both Rome and Florence claimed positions among the top-five list of cities that high-end travelers aspire to visit in all the world. American Express Travel's 2020 Trending Destinations also highlighted the Italian Alps as an area that's attracting attention from high-end tourists, as it boasts Roman ruins, cultural attractions and museums, as well as multi-seasonal outdoor pursuits, including a superb, stylish ski scene in winter.

Come July 2020, Tokyo's Shinjuku ward (a.k.a. "Times Square of Tokyo") is set to become Olympic Central, and its wide range of attractions make it a prime spot for exploration by the well-heeled, says Virtuoso. A sort of city within a city, Shinjuku is distinguished by its towering skyscrapers, flashy billboards and intriguing red-light district. American Express Travel's list of 2020 must-sees also includes Osaka, Japan's third-largest city, which stands out primarily for its prized culinary scene, where cozy cafés and street stalls serving rare seafood delicacies coexist alongside Michelin-starred restaurants.

In its recent market analysis, luxury travel specialist Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) designated Egypt "The Comeback King." Since having effectively returned back to the tourism scene in 2018, the transcontinental country has been named the fastest-growing travel destination by the World Tourism Organization.

Scheduled to finally open in 2020 (following several delays), the new Grand Egyptian Museum on the Giza Plateau, representing the world's largest archaeological exhibition space, promises to become a major draw. It's set to showcase a vast miscellany of Egyptian finds, 30,000 of which have never been made available for public viewing.

Added tourist appeal is also sure to follow the October 2020 release of Kenneth Branagh's elegant film adaption of Agatha Christie's beloved mystery, "Death on the Nile."

Named number one on Lonely Planet's 'Best in Travel 2020' list, the tiny Himalayan nation of Bhutan is arguably the world's last Shangri-La and is truly reserved for affluent visitors, charging a daily fee just to set foot on its hallowed soil. This mountainous Buddhist kingdom-known for its monasteries, fortresses, soaring mountains and pristine pine forests-only opened itself to outside visitors as recently as the 1970's, adopting a "High Value, Low Impact" tourism approach.

Minimum daily fees are imposed specifically to deter low-cost tourism with an eye towards preserving this fiercely-guarded enclave's singular culture, enchanting traditions and unspoiled environment. That's not to say that it's completely inaccessible, but is better described as exclusive; and multiple high-end hotel brands in the region, including Six Senses and COMO, stand ready to welcome visitors.

Jamaica also made Business Insider's list of preferred getaways among billionaires and is poised to draw some special attention in 2020, in part because it would be Bob Marley's 75th birthday year, and concerts and celebrations certain to follow. And, as the 25th James Bond film (which marks Daniel Craig's final appearance as 007) is set to be released in April, fans may be inspired to visit the island where the character's creator lived and worked.

In 1946, the novels' author and former British Intelligence agent, Ian Fleming, purchased fifteen acres of underdeveloped tropical land, naming it "GoldenEye" after the WWII naval operation that first introduced him to Jamaica. Today, his beachfront bungalow is part of the 52-acre GoldenEye Resort, where guests can see his writing desk and the sunken garden where he liked to entertain.

Still considered an emerging destination, Croatia is an eastern European gem that continues to attract attention as a Game of Thrones filming location, and for the richness and fine preservation of its architecture and cultural history as well as the convenient proximity to other European hubs. Croatia ranked fifth in Virtuoso's top global destinations for luxury travelers overall and was ranked the third favorite among Millennials, in particular. The Medieval, white-walled city of Dubrovnik on the Adriatic already seems to host as many cruise-goers as it can handle and has begun implementing tourism management initiatives.

France ranked third among Virtuoso's list of top global destinations for luxury travelers and Paris took the top spot among the world's most desirable cities to visit. But, besides the famed capital, France boasts plenty of other places that exemplify the haute lifestyle that high-end clients appreciate. American Express Travel's recent evaluation of 2020 Trending Destinations revealed that its card members are particularly concentrating their travel plans on the perennially glamorous, famed French Riviera region.

Based on a recent Business Insider investigation, TravelPulse recently revealed England to be the top destination on billionaires' lists for next year. As 2020 marks the 75th anniversary year since the end of World War II, a wealth of cultural and artistic events taking place throughout the U.K. is expected to bring the country into special focus, even as it continues to juggle concerns over the international implications of Brexit. England also recently snagged second place among the world's ten leading countries to visit on Lonely Planet's 'Best in Travel 2020' list.

The intoxicating Maldives is named among the Luxe Report's top five top honeymoon destinations for the coming year and identified by Business Insider as a hotspot for billionaires. Known for its many private-island resorts, the small, South Asian country is comprised of a series of atolls in the Arabian Sea of the Indian Ocean, whose crystal-clear, shallow waters and exotic marine reef ecosystems make it the ideal, secluded, waterfront, warm-weather getaway.

An abundance of five-star and ultra-high-end accommodations occupy the archipelago, many offering distinctive overwater (and underwater) villas, including Baros Maldives, which has won the World Travel Awards title of "World's Most Romantic Resort" for four years in a row, six times total.

While travel to Iceland has already been booming for a few years past, curiosity about Greenland is catching up, especially as climate change causes its icy landscapes and ancient glaciers to alter with each passing season. A private-guided expedition or a cruise on board an expedition vessel is the best way to reach many sites that would otherwise be inaccessible owing to the harsh coastline and rugged terrain. Upon reaching this undeniably off-the-beaten-path destination, 1000-year-old Viking ruins, hikes along majestic fjords and helicopter rides over mammoth icebergs await.