Luxury Travel

How Do You Rate a High-End Hotel?

Patrick Whyte, Skift

Travel guides, in their various forms, are a dying breed, especially those that require an expensive army of reviewers. They are still valued by agents and others in the industry, but with cheaper alternatives out there, how long can they survive?

21 hours ago

An Inside Look at the Forbes Travel Guide

Laura Powell, Skift

With so many hotel ratings systems out there, who can you trust? Should ratings systems be open to all, a la the People’s Choice Awards, or do more accurate results come from a system of professionals judging professionals, a la the Oscars or the Tonys? We take a look at one of the world's top rating guides for luxury properties.

1 day ago

Luxury Luggage Brand Rimowa Wants to Sell More Than Suitcases

Joao Lima, Bloomberg

Sales of Rimowa's grooved aluminum suitcases are growing by an estimated 30 percent a year. But brand extensions beyond luggage could turn out to be a case study in dreams that go undelivered.

6 days ago

High-End Hoteliers Are Taking Loyalty More Seriously

Patrick Whyte, Skift

Luxury hotel brands have lagged behind their cheaper siblings when it comes to loyalty programs. In the past they might not have needed to think about such schemes but with data becoming more and more valuable, companies can no longer afford to ignore them.

1 week ago

Digging Deeper Into the Traveler Shift Toward Meaning, Purpose, and Fulfillment

Singapore Tourism Board + Skift

Some might feel that the idea of transformative travel can easily be dismissed as marketing hype. But data shows that more and more, customers are seeking out these types of experiences in their actual travels.

1 week ago

Luxury Hotels Aim to Get Smarter About Which Ads Work Best

Sean O'Neill, Skift

Sometimes it's the small financing deals that reveal cutting-edge trends in investment and technological opportunity. Curacity must hope that's true of this funding, given that its progress to date has been a slow burn in a promising sector.

2 weeks ago

Fitness Clubs Are Becoming Hotels – and Vice Versa

Patrick Whyte, Skift

With people spending more money on well-being, it makes sense that fitness clubs around the country would spy an opportunity to expand their brands. However, it's important to remember not every gym can have a 40-room boutique hotel above it.

2 weeks ago

New Skift Research Survey Shows the Complexity of Affluent Travelers

Meghan Carty, Skift Research

Affluent travelers are often targeted by travel brands due to their huge spending power. Making assumptions about this segment based purely on their high incomes, however, is likely to be a mistake.

2 weeks ago

Urban Sports Resorts Are Closing the Gap Between Fitness and Hospitality

Laura Powell, Skift

Some of the country's highest-end fitness clubs are taking a gander at the hospitality space. But one athletic club in Chicago has already laid claim to opening the country's first "urban sports resort."

2 weeks ago

Luxury Retreats Recognizes That Curated Experiences Are Essential to Luxury Hospitality

Luxury Retreats + Skift

The sharing economy has come a long way over the last few years, and luxury accommodations now play a large role. Because of its consistency and highly secure vetting process, Luxury Retreats stands out from other companies in the space.

2 weeks ago

CEO Interview: Chris Cahill of AccorHotels Luxury Brands on the Company’s Custom Approach to Wellness

AccorHotels + Skift

The luxury traveler of 2018 wants to be healthier, more mindful, and personally enriched. AccorHotels is turning these desires into reality at its luxury properties.

3 weeks ago

Paying to Be on the A-List

Patrick Whyte, Skift

Times are tough for legacy travel media brands and they are having to come up with more creative ways to cash in. But bringing in a charge for its A-List — no matter how this manifests itself — calls into question the idea of editorial independence.

3 weeks ago