Eight trends we took away from Audley Travel’s ‘Premium Travel Report’

The long-haul tour operator, which has been edging closer to the trade since Nick Longman became chief executive in 2019, surveyed 2,000 travellers across the UK.

Different age groups and locations were represented, and the majority had not travelled with Audley so it is a market overview, not an Audley client overview.

Longman said the resulting research showed that people still wanted to treat themselves: “The commitment to premium travel remains as strong, if not stronger, than it was pre-pandemic.”

“The results are certainly encouraging for the industry as a whole,” he added. 

Presenting the research, members of Audley’s senior team spoke about their own destination trends, which included travelling out of season becoming more normal – this was influenced by the pressure on availability of premium experiences, caused by pent-up demand post-pandemic.

While the research revealed travellers wanted more sustainable choices, Longman said the business was not tempted to make carbon offsetting mandatory.

“If the travel industry took a stance, then the whole industry would need to get behind that. But if a business decided to do it unilaterally, it would be hard one to sell. It has to be client choice, and anything imposed mandatorily means you are making that decision for the client.”

Chief marketing officer Daniel Robb agreed, saying: “When we asked, would you be prepared to pay a surcharge for long-haul travel, the answer was local single digits. But would you like to be offered sustainable choices, different story, that was high double digits.”

Product and operations director James Herbert said that Audley had expanded its range of Responsible Choice stays and experiences, with 350 products for customers to select, from eco-friendly accommodation to experiences giving back to communities. 

“People are starting to seed these into their two-week trips – for two/three days at a time, and that will build up some steam,” he said.

Herbert highlighted new product that fit with demand for slow travel and community engagement, such as the Pekoe Trail, a new walking trail in Sri Lanka.

“This 300km trail can be broken down into smaller sections, – because it’s not signposted, you would probably get lost unless you do it with a local guide.”

Playing into “going off the beaten track”, a new experience at Kualoa Ranch shows a completely different side to Hawaii, while adding Explora’s new Travesia journey enables clients to explore two remote areas of Latin America – Chile’s Atacama Desert and Bolivia’s Uyuni Salt Flat.