The luxury travel industry is undergoing a noticeable shift to offer consistently comfortable stays while incorporating the newest technology and various high-end amenities. Here’s how one industry leader is adapting to today’s demands to deliver unforgettable vacation home stays expected by an influx of travelers for business or pleasure.
Luxury properties on Wander.com
How the luxurious travel industry is changing
High-quality accommodations are a cornerstone of luxury travel. Five-star hotels and resorts dominate the image, where guests expect a consistent experience across a brand’s entire portfolio. Even though each location has its own unique features, certain “amenities” resembling rain showers, fireplaces or comfortable beds are consistent.
The coronavirus pandemic is a catalyst for rapid changes within the industry. In particular, many travelers began staying in vacation homes for more privacy and private amenities. However, the dearth of hotel-level amenities in lots of properties is affecting the guest experience.
John Andrew Entwistle was aware of the urgent need for higher accommodation and founded Hike in May 2021 to enable luxurious holiday home experiences without sacrificing the standard of luxury hotels.
Entwistle’s timing is ideal. He had just given up running his last company and was using this getaway to take into consideration his future. In particular, his rented cabin in Colorado with uncomfortable beds, unreliable web and no dedicated workspace inspired him to mix the standard of luxury hotels with the comfort of personal vacation homes.
Currently, Wander is realizing his dream by owning and operating greater than 90 properties in sought-after destinations across the United States, including Big Sur, Yosemite, Malibu, Vail, Telluride, the Atlantic Coast, and the New England countryside.
Each property has the next basic amenities:
- AI-powered services
- Smart bed technology
- Modern workplaces
- Wellness facilities (e.g. swimming pools, saunas and whirlpools)
- Concierge service across the clock
“With an industry-leading guest satisfaction rate of over 93%, we are the first end-to-end travel platform for travel, experiences and concierge services,” said Entwistle, who’s currently CEO of Wander and was previously a Forbes 30 under 30 and Thiel Fellow.
Entwistle continues: “In a world where expectations are high and disappointments are great, where the infrastructure for experiencing the world is so badly destroyed, Wander is a
Beacon of what the longer term of luxury travel can appear to be: durable, beautiful and
unforgettable.”
Growth trends in luxury travel
Luxury hospitality is the fastest growing travel segment with expected annual growth of 6% through 2025, reports McKinsey in his The State of Travel and Hospitality 2024 Report.
McKinsey concludes that the rapid increase is because of several aspects:
- Younger generations prefer experiences and subsequently spend extra money on travel than previous generations of the identical age.
- 66% of travelers surveyed are more desirous about traveling now than before the pandemic.
- 35% of travelers have a net price between $100,000 and $1 million. The emergence of aspiring luxury travelers who spend on select trip components – accommodations, special meals or flight upgrades – is dispelling the notion that luxury travel is barely for millionaires.
- Luxury travel is not any longer almost exclusively reserved for travelers from the United States or Europe because the purchasing power of a bigger variety of international residents has increased.
- More and more modern travelers prefer branded luxury and loyalty programs over independent providers and are searching for individually designed itineraries and experiences.
Growing interest within the upscale travel segment is increasing competition amongst luxury hotel and vacation home operators who’re adapting to today’s travel needs.
Guests want standardization in luxury travel
As the industry focuses on a growing audience and more diverse travel behavior, McKinsey recommends digging deeper and segmenting by age, nationality and wealth to satisfy the needs of the first guest with a standardized experience.
Wander has recognized industry-wide changes and learned from personal travel experiences. To date, over 17,000 guests have experienced the corporate’s modern, world-class amenities.
Unlike most vacation rental platforms that simply list properties from a big selection of individual hosts and agencies with very different amenities and minimum standards, Wander operates each property on its platform entirely itself. This approach allows the corporate to supply a consistent experience across its entire portfolio.
Additionally, implementing the newest technology available to offer a private touch from booking to checkout is considered one of Wander CEO John Andrew Entwistle’s priorities. Leveraging technology comes naturally to him, as Entwistle co-founded Coder.com before founding Wander.
Instead of just browsing listings by destination initially of the booking process, prospective guests receive AI-powered accommodation recommendations to search out the best destination. Additionally, each listing includes virtual house tours, guides to local attractions and guest reviews to get a comprehensive sense of the stay experience and views before arrival.
Economic challenges for luxury travel providers
While the increased demand for premium travel experiences is overall positive for tour operators, there are financial obstacles lurking beneath the surface that may impact the profitability of high-quality short-term rental properties.
In 2023 specifically, short-term accommodation owners faced a double whammy of inflation and an overall decline in revenue per available room (RevPAR). Fortunately, the industry is forecasting modest improvements in average day by day rates and revenue, allowing hosts to proceed to offer services that affluent and high-income travelers expect.
Wander is responding to changes within the industry with the next strategies:
- Authentic experiences: Focus on differentiation and put the shopper experience at the middle reasonably than offering a typical solution for all guests.
- Portfolio diversification: Be extremely selective when selecting homes and locations. Inspiring destinations are one research factor, but selecting the appropriate location is crucial.
- Top 1% of vacation rentals: Data shows that the highest 1% of properties generate 35% of all short-term vacation rental revenue. Wander prides itself on owning only top-notch properties, which leads to extremely positive guest reviews, making it a win-win situation.
- Ignore the hype: Numerous temporary distractions – especially the increasing demand for travel – make it difficult to attain the most important goal of constructing a stable and lasting business.
Entwistle’s vision is to be a sturdy, smart vacation rental platform for the foreseeable future, while being responsive and adaptable to guests’ needs for a premium experience. Guests can expect a level of consistency across the Wander portfolio of their favorite destinations and latest adventure spots, allowing them to spend more time exploring reasonably than putting up with a property’s shortcomings.
Recent studies show that 77% of travelers place more value on the optimal travel experience than on the associated fee of the trip. American Express Travel Global Travel Trends 2024 Report.
Wander, for instance, has ambitions to determine itself globally while expanding its portfolio within the US. As it grows, the corporate plans to seamlessly integrate other travel booking options resembling flights and ancillary services that the following generation of travellers are searching for. However, first-class accommodations will remain the corporate’s most important focus, Entwistle assures.
Final thoughts
During the pandemic, vacationers and business travelers flocked to luxury vacation rentals. While many benefit from the coziness and further living space, the dearth of hotel-level amenities and cleanliness leaves much to be desired. Wander addresses these shortcomings with vacation homes that meet Twenty first-century travel needs for work or rest.
