Luxury Travel - UK - November 2019

OVERVIEW
What you need to know
Products covered in this Report
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The market
Top earners see decline in household income in 2017/18
Volume and value of HNWIs in the UK declined in 2018
Volume of sea cruises projected to grow above holiday market average
Long-haul destinations under pressure amid rising demand for shorter breaks
Companies and brands
Leading luxury specialists continue to grow
Audley Travel expands European and cruises offering
Kenwood Travel introduces online booking system
Airbnb expands into luxury market by offering tailor-made stays
Abercrombie & Kent expands group travel by private jet
Boeing invests in Virgin Galactic to make space travel accessible
The consumer
Volume of Mintel’s luxury traveller segments
Luxury holiday types diversify
Figure 1: Types of luxury holiday taken, August 2017 and August 2019
Opportunities to provide luxury adventure holidays to families
Exclusivity is the new luxury
Figure 2: Meanings attached to luxury holidays, August 2017 and August 2019
Search technology falls behind travellers’ needs
Figure 3: Preferred search options on a travel company’s website, August 2019
Motivation and experiences play a crucial role when young travellers search for a luxury holiday
Luxury travellers value travel agents with specialist knowledge about the destination
Figure 4: Attitudes towards paying for travel expert advice and support, August 2019
Educating travellers is key to making the travel industry greener
Figure 5: Attitudes towards minimising impact on the environment whilst travelling, by age, August 2019
Supporting the local economy and staying in eco-friendly accommodation top the list
Figure 6: Considered sustainable travel options, by luxury traveller groups, August 2019
What we think
ISSUES AND INSIGHTS
Flexible search technology is key
The implications
Making holidays greener through support and inspiration
The implications
THE MARKET – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Top earners see decline in household income in 2017/18
Volume and value of HNWIs in the UK declined in 2018
Volume of sea cruises projected to grow above holiday market average
Long-haul destinations under pressure amid rising demand for shorter breaks
MARKET DRIVERS
Top earners see decline in household income in 2017/18
Figure 7: Average annual household income after tax and benefits, by quintile, 2008/09-2017/18
Volume and value of HNWIs in the UK declined in 2018
Figure 8: Top 10 nations for number of HNWIs*, 2014-18
Almost half of high earners are confident about their financial situation
Figure 9: Consumer sentiment among high earners for the coming year, January 2018-October 2019
Volume of sea cruises projected to grow above holiday market average
Figure 10: Forecast volume of UK & Ireland sea cruise holidays (number of trips), 2013-23
Long-haul destinations under pressure amid rising demand for shorter breaks
Figure 11: Volume of UK overseas holidays by global region, by duration, 2018
COMPANIES AND BRANDS – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Leading luxury specialists continue to grow
Audley Travel expands European and cruises offering
Kenwood Travel introduces online booking system
Airbnb expands into luxury market by offering tailor-made stays
Abercrombie & Kent expands group travel by private jet
Boeing invests in Virgin Galactic to make space travel accessible
LUXURY TRAVEL SPECIALISTS
Leading luxury specialists continue to grow
Figure 12: Leading luxury holiday specialist operators, by turnover, 2012-18
Kuoni launches new Family Holidays brochure
Audley Travel expands European destinations and cruises offering
Kenwood Travel introduces online booking system for the first time
Airbnb expands into luxury market by offering tailor-made stays
LAUNCH ACTIVITY AND INNOVATION
Luxury travel companies are showcasing exclusive experiences
Kuoni inspires travellers to move away from the crowds
Abercrombie & Kent expands group travel by private jet
Space travel will open new doors to luxury travellers
Boeing invests in Virgin Galactic to make space travel accessible
New space hotel concept uses artificial gravity
Getting luxury travellers on board a cruise
Scenic Eclipse showcases its discovery-themed wine list
Abercrombie & Kent offers one-time only expedition to Antarctic
Working towards a more sustainable travel industry
Luxury travel tour operators increase efforts to reduce single-use plastic
Airbnb offers purposeful trip “Antarctic Sabbatical”
Luxury brands scale down whilst budget brands scale up
Emirates unbundles business class tickets on selected routes
Airbnb launches Airbnb Luxe; higher-end accommodation with tailored experiences
THE CONSUMER – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Volume of Mintel’s luxury traveller segments
Luxury holiday types have become more diverse
Exclusivity is the new luxury
Search technology falls behind travellers’ needs
Luxury travellers value travel agents with specialist destination knowledge
Educating travellers is key to making the travel industry greener
Supporting the local economy and staying in eco-friendly accommodation top the list
DEFINING THE LUXURY TRAVELLER
Mintel’s approach to defining the luxury traveller
Figure 13: Amount spent on most expensive holiday taken, August 2019
Younger generation keen on shorter trips
Figure 14: Duration of most expensive holiday taken, by age profile, August 2019
More than one-third of holidaymakers have stayed in five-star accommodation
Figure 15: Use of premium/luxury holiday accommodation, August 2019
Volume of Mintel’s luxury traveller segments
Figure 16: Luxury traveller segments, August 2019
Millennials choose experiences over possessions
Figure 17: Luxury traveller segments, by age and household income profile, August 2019
HOLIDAY TYPES
Luxury holiday types have become more diverse
Figure 18: Types of luxury holiday taken, August 2017 and August 2019
Younger generation driving force behind diverse holiday behaviour
Figure 19: Types of luxury holiday taken, by age, August 2019
Most select luxury target group keen on taking guided touring holidays
Figure 20: Types of luxury holiday taken, by luxury traveller groups, August 2019
High interest in unusual accommodation
Figure 21: Interest in unusual accommodation, by age, August 2019
MEANING OF LUXURY
Exclusivity is the new luxury
Figure 22: Meanings attached to luxury holidays, August 2017 and August 2019
Figure 23: Meanings attached to luxury holidays, by luxury traveller groups, August 2019
Flexibility to enhance the traveller’s experience
Figure 24: Meanings attached to luxury holidays, August 2019
Opportunities to provide luxury adventure holidays to families
Figure 25: Meanings attached to luxury holidays, by age, August 2019
ONLINE SEARCH PREFERENCES
Search technology falls behind travellers’ needs
Figure 26: Preferred search options on a travel company’s website, August 2019
Motivation and experiences play a crucial role when young travellers search for a luxury holiday
Figure 27: Preferred search options on a travel company’s website, by age, August 2019
Great variety in path to purchase
Figure 28: Holiday selected by respondent in Mintel’s qualitative study, July 2019
TRAVEL AGENT SUPPORT 
Luxury travellers value travel agents with specialist destination knowledge
Figure 29: Attitudes towards paying for travel expert advice and support, August 2019
Travel experts should be all-round
Luxury holidaymakers with children are more open to a travel expert subscription
Figure 30: Attitudes towards a subscription for unlimited access to a personal travel expert, CHAID analysis, August 2019
TRAVELLING AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Consensus among consumers: travel companies should take actions to protect the environment
The vast majority of luxury travellers want to help to protect the environment
Figure 31: Attitudes towards minimising impact on the environment whilst travelling, by age, August 2019
Educating travellers is key to making the travel industry greener
Transparency is also required to enable travellers to make greener choices when booking
Figure 32: Attitudes towards ethical labelling, by age, August 2019
SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL PREFERENCES
Supporting the local economy and staying in eco-friendly accommodation top the list
Figure 33: Considered sustainable travel options, by luxury traveller groups, August 2019
Younger generation more likely to take part in eco-friendly and volunteering activities
Figure 34: Considered sustainable travel options, by age, August 2019
APPENDIX – DATA SOURCES, ABBREVIATIONS AND SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Definitions
Abbreviations
Consumer research methodology
CHAID analysis methodology