Customization, Freedom and the Next Phase of Luxury Travel
Photo Credit: An elephant in Amboseli National Park, Kenya. Cox & Kings
Skift Take
Luxury tour operators are starting to focus more on customization than the traditional safaris and expeditions. This reflects the growing trend of personalization in leisure travel.
It's not enough for luxury tour operators to build pricy, exclusive travel experiences anymore. Shifting consumer behavior has led to the need to develop a diverse set of products while anticipating consumer demand years ahead of time.
For companies like Cox & Kings, which has been operating more than 250 years, growth in the luxury market has been an opportunity for expansion into new destinations and tailoring experiences for specific clients. While best known for safaris and trips to the extreme reaches of the globe, the company has been pushing into more urban products, especially in developing countries.
Cox & Kings' president of the Americas Scott Wiseman spoke to Skift about the line between customization and freedom for luxury travelers, how the tour operator decides to expand into emerging destinations, and why luxury travelers still depend on travel agents.
Skift: What kind of trends do you see in the luxury tour space right now?
Wiseman: For us this yea
