Spacious rooms, high-touch amenities and a relaxing spa—a luxury vacation is a bucket list item for many travelers. Sojern’s latest Hotel Report shows the latest and greatest travel trends around hotel search and booking behavior, including the luxury segment. Here are three of the biggest findings:
- Boutique hotels on the rise: Large chains are consistently among the top five searched brands across all segments. In the Luxury hotel segment, we see that Ritz Carlton, Fairmont, and Four Seasons are among the top fastest growing brands year-over-year. However, we also see a significant rise in searches for boutique hotels—especially in the Upper Upscale hotel segment. Boutique hoteliers, ensure your paid search strategy includes bidding on your brand, or you’ll risk losing out on direct bookings.
- Growth in mobile: Luxury hotels see the lowest share of mobile searches for their rooms at 45%. However, they are also experiencing the largest growth in mobile of any segment. Mobile queries for the Luxury hotel segment grew an incredible 23% year-over-year. This shows that, no matter what size your property is, you can’t afford to ignore mobile. A mobile presence is necessary to attract in-market travelers, who may be researching your property on the go.
- Luxury bookings take time: Luxury travelers conduct more hotel searches, on average, than more economical segments. This is probably due to the fact that a luxury hotel booking is often a more considered purchase. Ensure your marketing strategy inspires early-on, we suggest using video to capture the imagination by highlighting the best of your offerings.
With these tips, you can ensure you’re reaching more luxury guests in the right way.