Forget Instagram if you want to know where the top 1% is vacationing this summer; they are too clever to tag freely and rеveal their preferred vacation spots (at least not before they return home). Instead, focus on the select handful of agents who manage those excursions and satisfy the most affluent, pickiest tourists.
International Travel Management is headed by John Clifford in San Diego, who has experience with LGBTQ+ travel. His clientele spends roughly 10,000 euros per day, or $11,180, on the essentials of the trip before adding on more expensive private experiences, like a visit of the Vatican without tourists, for between 10,000 and 15,000 euros each.
Red Savannah, a business based in London that caters to affluent travelers everywhere, is run by Edward Granville. The typical trip he arranges costs roughly £35,000, or about $45,000; however, many of them cost more than twice that much, and he frequently arranges trips worth a million dollars.
Insider tapped these industry insiders to divulge where and how the top 1% will be taking their summer vacations in 2023.
‘Surf-and-turf travel’ is the newest craze.Views of the yacht on the ocean from a distanceEnes Yilmazer Boat purchases increased much early in the epidemic, and wealthy people’s fondness of sailing vacations hasn’t diminished in the wake of COVID-19.
Granville told Insider, “We’re doing so many more yachts than we did before the pandеmic, and they’re bigger and better as well — the budget has changed from, perhaps, $25,000 per week to up to $90,000,” noting the new Galapagos-based Aqua Mare as a great example.
Instead of flashy, oligarch-style superyachts, guests prefer cozy sailing yachts that are spacious, well-furnished, and loaded with sundecks, aqua foils, and other water toys.Maury concurred. So-called “surf-and-turf travel” has become popular among many of her clientele, who frequently add a week at sea after staying for seven days in a five-star hotel on land, or the opposite.
They want to travel to a Greek island and stay there, then have something completely custom made for them, she added, adding that she had just spent £140,000 on a vessel with six suites. The essence of being away from people is having incredible accommodations and food, as well as any toys you could desire, all to yourself.
This summer, according to Clifford, he is frequently scheduling charters throughout Europe for 75,000 euros per day.
Regarding the Mediterranean excursions he had planned, he added, “Clients just want to do the whole thing.” We follow a detailed itinerary, and everything is prearranged.
The 1% phrase that is frequently mentioned is desiring to travel when on vacation.The French villa’s exterior.The French villa’s exterior. Sotheby’s International Realty Côte d’Azur
There are two reasons why the ultrawealthy want to leave: First of all, like any vacationer, they want to get away from their regular lives. Second, they want to get away from the holiday-goers. As a result, choosing private islands and hotel buyouts has become the norm for the summer.
According to Granville, there is a huge demand for properties like the brand-new Le Grand Jardin, a villa on its own private island just off the coast of Cannes in France’s Côte d’Azur, which rents for about $290,000 per week.
“It has cachet because it’s new to the market and because it’s on its own island, but you really have an entire hotel to yourself, and you’re not on the mainland surrounded by other people’s villas and traffic,” the man added.
Instead, you can quickly travel there using the island’s watercraft if you want to spend the night dancing till daylight.”Looking back at all the mess but delving into it anytime you choose has a one-upmanship quality to it. That’s most likely what gives it its “X factor,” according to Granville.
Maury reported that the phrase “avoid the crowds” was appearing increasingly frequently. In Africa, she has noticed an increase in customers looking for “camp buyouts,” in which a single group of tourists chooses to book every room in a hotel, thus converting it into their own private property for the length of the trip.
She added that three of these bookings were at the brand-new 12-room high-design lodge Xigera in Botswana’s Okavango Delta. “We’ve got seven one percenters in Botswana this summer and another three in Namibia, and every booking is over £150,000,” she said.
She continued that Botswana was a favorite since the buyouts were more feasible and the camps were smaller than in places like Kenya. Additionally, the bush was teeming with life.
Turn the corner at Mombo, and there are 15 leopards, 15 cheetahs, and 300 elephants. You’re blown away. You have to pay to play in Botswana, Maury added.
But renting a house that isn’t even open to the public is the ultimate in seclusion, according to Granville. Take, for example, a seven-house complex with a taverna and a town square in Porto Heli, Greece, which is more akin to its own village. Renting it for a week from the shipping tycoon who constructed it for himself costs $185,000.
Granville stated, “He doesn’t want it advertised or promoted,” and added that it isn’t on the company website. To even be accepted to book it, he explained, “You have to be slightly vetted.”
Greece stands out as the undisputed front-runner for the 2023 Paros Games.Images via Getty/Rod Stables/EyeEm
The Mediterranean continues to be a summer resort for the affluent. Greece, meanwhile, is surpassing its rivals in terms of bookings with these agents.Granville stated, “If I had to rank Italy, Spain, Greece, and France this year in a league table, Greece would be winning — Italy has always been No. 1, but it’s probably No. 2 now.”
Greek travel is still centered on the islands, but according to him, a number of up-and-comers have replaced a number of long-standing staples, most notably Mykonos.
Paros was listed as the most frequently discussed new location by Granville.
“In the past year or so, Paros has increasingly come up when people describe their desire to visit Greece. Everyone is aware that Mykonos is crowded and overpriced, but Paros is a return to the Greece that existed before it was overrun by partygoers and beach clubs, according to Granville.
Paros, which in recent years essentially served as a stopover for ferries traveling from Athens to other islands, has undergone an astounding transformation.
The accommodations have been renovated to be fit for the wealthiest people thanks to hotels like Cosme, Parilio, and the Nobu-endorsed Avant Mar, which made its debut this summer. This is another challenge it has long faced.
The same interest in Maury’s clientele, according to her, is present.
“Nobody really wants to go to Mykonos,” she remarked, adding that she had been planning a sailing trip that stopped at Paros and Milos instead. People want to travel to remote beaches and places off the beaten path, and the only way to accomplish so is by yacht, she claimed.The ‘White Lotus’ effect has sparked discontent among the world’s most affluent travelers.The facade of the hotel featured in “The White Lotus” season 2. HBOItaly shouldn’t be completely discounted, though: For instance, in the beginning of June, Maury was juggling 11 reservations at once, all of which were on the Amalfi Coast and required a minimum investment of £100,000 apiece.
Clifford described his travel arrangements to Rome as “balls-to-the-wall crazy,” largely due to the opening of a number of alluring five-star hotels, such as the new Bulgari, a homecoming for the city’s original jewelry company, and Six Senses Rome, which brings the company’s renowned spa-driven hospitality to the heart of the ancient city.
But where are the super-rich most likely to avoid going? Sicily. The most recent season of the megahit “The White Lotus” has resulted in a surge in tourism for the entire island, not just the Four Seasons-run San Domenico Palace where the show was headquartered. Because of this, Clifford claimed, it no longer appeals to the truly luxury traveler.
Since they are now fully booked for the entire year, the Four Seasons is “happy as a clam,” he remarked. However, real luxury travelers, particularly the top 1%, don’t want to be stuck somewhere with selfie-taking kids.