What you need to know
Mintel’s research shows that two groups stand out as premium travel spenders, young professionals and affluent older travellers. However, it is the latter group – the wealthiest in the UK – who are the most prepared to splash out on a diverse range of upmarket holidays, and demographic expansion here offers many opportunities for luxury brands in the coming years. Growth of ‘mainstream’ tour operator and OTA (Online Travel Agent) product, as well as discount sites, offering five-star hotels/resorts, and the growing accessibility of exotic long-haul destinations are also bringing a luxury experience within reach of a wider cross-section of the population than ever before.
Scope of the report
Identifying the luxury traveller is problematic, given the lack of clear-cut criteria for defining this market. Mintel approached this problem from a number of angles, firstly asking consumers:
“How much, if at all, did you spend, per adult, on the most expensive holiday you’ve been over the past 5 years? Please only consider the cost of transport, accommodation, board etc. Exclude any extra spending while on holiday (eg non-inclusive meals, attractions).”
Then:
“How long was the most expensive holiday you’ve been on over the past 5 years?”
As a further check Mintel also asked holidaymakers if they had spent £250 or more per night on a hotel stay (including breakfast but not other meals) or stayed in five-star accommodation.
Mintel then combined the responses on levels of holiday expenditure with trip duration to arrive at three luxury traveller categories:
those who have spent £1,000+ per adult on a break of six nights or less
those who have spent £1,500+ per adult on a stay of seven to 13 nights
those who have spent £3,000+ per adult on a holiday of 14 nights or more.
These three categories are collated in the group ‘Big-ticket holiday spenders’.
Mintel’s consumer analysis is therefore based on an umbrella group of ‘All luxury travellers’, comprising:
‘Big-ticket holiday spenders’
5+ star hotel guests and
£250+ per night hotel guests.
Further detail about these categorisations can be found in The Luxury Traveller section of the report.
