Luxury Travelers Are Over Beige-ification and Copy-Paste Travel

The biggest threat to the luxury travel industry is not recession or geopolitics. It’s beige.

Preferred Hotels & Resorts this week released a new report on trends in the luxury travel segment, based on input from more than 500 luxury consumers surveyed in late February and March.

The good news is that things are strong—luxury travelers are planning an average of eight leisure trips for 2025, with three being international. More than half expect to increase their spend over 2024, with two-thirds saying they’re earmarking $25,000 for travel.

The numbers are incredibly encouraging for the luxury travel market—high-net-worth consumers, even amid economic uncertainty, are still ready and excited to spend on experiences.

However, they are becoming a little more discerning. Mostly, they want something less beige.

Beige-ification is a term used to describe the feeling of looking at something bland, or something designed to appeal to a mass audience. If boldness is on one side of the spectrum, beige-ification is on the other. Think about hotels that aren’t taking many chances—ones that don’t feel distinct.

The report found that a lot of luxury hotels are starting to feel that way, particularly among younger generations—62% of travelers in the survey agreed that “luxury hotels feel beige lately,” with 67% saying that “modern luxury hotels have sacrificed soul for standardization.” Both numbers rise even higher for Gen Z and Millennial travelers.

An even higher percentage—83%—agreed that they “can immediately tell when a hotel is designed for mass appeal rather than true luxury,” a number that jumps to 92% for Gen Z and Millennial travelers.

Part of that seems to be Instagram and social media’s growing impact on the industry. Preferred’s report found that consumers believe hotels are now designed more to appear better in social media photos than in real life—68% agreed that “hotel design has become too focused on being ‘Instagram-ready,’” and 65% said that “Instagram has created a ‘copy-and-paste’ effect in luxury travel.”

It’s not just an attitude change—it’s a spending change. A majority—72%—of luxury travelers now say they won’t pay for luxury accommodations that look the same as everything else out there today. For hotels, and for those trying to connect with luxury travelers (like travel advisors), it’s no longer about meeting an industry standard or gaining footing next to legacy names that have long dominated the landscape.

It’s now about finding a way to stand out—finding the place where the industry is going, instead of where the industry is right now. Good enough is no longer good enough. It’s part of the reason why Hyatt paid $66 million for the Mr. and Mrs. Smith Collection, a slate of properties that seemingly rejects mass-market appeal.

Travelers Are Shifting Away From the Algorithm

Social media changed the way people travel—and the way advisors sell travel—but that may be shifting, which is good news for advisors.

The Preferred report, which outlines several trends among luxury consumers, suggests that social media is no longer at the vanguard of luxury travel taste. Instead, it has become old-hat for many.

According to the report, 77% of luxury travelers say that “the best travel tips and curated lists are the ones you don’t find online,” and 75% say that “the best travel experiences can’t be found through social media.” Both are good news for travel advisors who, despite social media’s growth, have remained the tastemakers for so many looking to spend on travel.

Another 77% of those surveyed also said that “true luxury” today means going to a place to escape whatever social constructs have been built on Instagram Discover pages—opting against going somewhere just to impress online.