Travelers are no longer limited by simple categories such as budget, business and luxury. A new study from Amadeus breaks luxury travelers down into six distinct categories based on habits, spending and motives. The report, which aims to understand the future of travel, points out the varying frames of reference travelers carry with them. These prior experiences, ideas and traits make it much more difficult to anticipate travelers’ wants and needs, as every luxury traveler’s definition of luxury is different. In addition, as time progresses and certain luxury items and experiences are available to all, brands feel the need to up the ante. Many brands turn to what they call “non-Googleable options,” or one-of-a-kind experiences found nowhere else, rather than mass-created products. “Middle class tourists from emerging markets want materialism,” said Ian Yeoman, travel futurologist. “However, with the rise of middle classes in developing economies, luxury becomes less exclusive as more people are accessing it. As consumers become older, luxury becomes more about enrichment than materialism.” Brands are also learning to cater their services to each traveler individually, rather than offering one standard, albeit extravagant, experience for all their guests. “You need to be able to listen and read between the lines or their body language and their behavior throughout their trip and to communicate that extremely fast within your team,” said Joachim Hartl, general manager, Conrad Algarve. “We have engineers and maids going into the hotel rooms who have received special training so they can scan the room and make observations. If they see, for example, that somebody has running shoes, we’ll leave them extra bottles of water. They then feed back to the Customer Relationship Management team.” The six luxury travel types the study presents are travelers defined as always luxury, special occasion, “bluxury,” cash-rich and time-poor, strictly opulent and independent plus affluent. The majority of luxury travelers are considered “bluxury,” at 31 percent, followed by the cash-rich and time-poor. At the very bottom of the pack are the always luxury and independent and affluent. The “bluxury” traveler combines business or obligatory travel (such as traveling for a wedding or graduation) with luxury leisure travel, thanks to both a flexible work schedule and affluence. These travelers are often chief executives or entrepreneurs. Not far behind in popularity, the cash-rich and time-poor traveler can easily fund their travel, but work, family and other obligations keep them from traveling as often as they’d like. Since their travel is few and far between, they prefer extra-special, private and tailored service to fit their needs. Always luxury travelers are not limited by any sort of budget and they lead a luxurious lifestyle both at home and abroad. They enjoy first class, private jets and travel planning conducted by a third party. In comparison, the strictly opulent traveler is all about the experience, rather than the product. More popular than the always luxury traveler, the strictly opulent individual still prefers the best in life, but opts for fun experiences overall. Special occasion travelers only enjoy luxury travel part of the time, and are often willing to forgo one kind of luxury in lieu of another, such as sacrificing first-class airfare to afford a longer 5-star hotel stay. The study claims 20 percent of luxury travelers fall into this category. Down at the bottom, the independent and affluent travelers often travel alone and have very few familial or work ties holding them back. Which of the six luxury traveler types would you choose for yourself? Do you think travelers are more simple or more complex than the study claims? Do you find true luxury is harder to find as it becomes less exclusive? Email us and let us know. Please include your full name and location with your email.