JEDDAH — The number of wealthy families making travel a high-spend priority is on the rise, and this will be a major focus of the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2015 seminar series as the region's inbound and outbound travel professionals look to capitalize on this niche market opportunity. According to the latest YouGov report, the top three luxury holiday destinations for MENA residents are UAE (14%), Italy (10%) and Turkey (5%). Top-end hotels look set to profit from this trend with over a third of MENA residents usually staying in luxury hotels when traveling for leisure. Looking at a region-wide breakdown, around one-quarter of GCC residents (27%) and Levant residents (23%) stay in luxury hotels compared to 17% of North African residents. Meanwhile, in terms of specific countries, one-third of Bahrain residents (34%) usually stay in luxury hotels - the highest percentage in the entire MENA region. “This trend for luxury family travel offers opportunities for tour operators to create tailor-made packages that take into account not only family needs, but also the cultural considerations unique to the MENA region, and this opens up tremendous marketing opportunities. Luxury, and family luxury travel in particular, is a trend to watch, and one that will be covered extensively at this year's show,” said Nadege Noblet, Exhibition Manager, Arabian Travel Market. “Over half of MENA residents arrange all aspects of family travel themselves, yet 72% of MENA residents would book an all-inclusive luxury package if they were available. This is a phenomenon that has not as yet manifested itself in the GCC, apart from the Rixos Bab Al Bahr in Ras Al Khaimah; although it has long been a cost-friendly family option in Egypt's key coastal destinations,” she added. Two ILTM@ATM seminar sessions will look at various aspects of luxury travel: ‘Biting into Gourmet Travel' and ‘Luxury Family Travel'. Moderated by Destinations of the World News and featuring a panel of luxury travel specialists, the Luxury Family Travel seminar will take place on Wednesday 6 May at 16:00 in the Visa sponsored Seminar Theatre. Here they will pinpoint some of the key trends of today's affluent families. The panel discussion will wrap with an evaluation of the impact and value of the local and global family travel market within the overarching domestic and international luxury tourism industries. — SG
