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Luxury Travel Trends For 2020

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Where should you go and what should you do in your travels next year? I spoke with Becky Powell, President of Protravel International.  She told me that these resorts below set the bar extremely high as top properties to experience in 2020 and are her favorite picks for luxury trips next year.

1.      The Chatwal New York: I absolutely love this property as it’s just in my backyard of New York City! It’s a place that I recommend to my friends and family when they are visiting. When I’m looking for a mini-escape and a staycation-type experience for the weekend, this is one of my top choices. They have beautiful accommodations and amazing spa  and wellness offerings.

2.   Anantara Dhigu Maldives Resort: At Anantara Dhigu Maldives Resort, adventures await across three islands, at sea, and below the water’s surface. Salute the sun. Meditate before the ocean. Indulge in soothing Ayurvedic therapies tailored to your needs. At Anantara Dhigu, you can be as relaxed or revved up as you please, with their Balance Wellness by Anantara program on offer at Maldives wellness resort Anantara Veli across the lagoon.

3.   Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok: Bangkok is such a fantastic destination to experience. With that said, the Mandarin Oriental Bangkok is perfect because of the location, the crystal views of the river and because of the newly remodeled rooms. The rooms are light and airy, the décor is luxurious and delicate. The crown molding that was chosen is gorgeous. The restaurant Lord Jim’s has uninterrupted views of the river. The Seafood and Prime Cut Grill is one of Bangkok’s most beloved places to meet. While at the hotel, you can delight your palate and be healthier with their vegan and gluten-free afternoon tea.

4.   Raffles SingaporeThis hotel just reopened from a big refurbishment and it’s a must-see in 2020.Travelers can experience the ultimate legendary service the hotel is known for and enjoy newly opened bars, restaurants and boutiques. The architecture is stunning and so is the ambience.

5.      The Dupont CircleThis luxurious hotel is in the heart of D.C. and is part of The Doyle Collection. It recently went through a refurbishment and the new rooms are beautiful. Not only do they provide comfort for their guests in the rooms but they have super-luxe interiors. Following a multimillion-dollar investment program, in collaboration with world-acclaimed interior designer, Martin Brudnizki and New York-based designer Clodagh, The Dupont Circle brings both a fusion of American and European style and service to the city.

6.      Equinox Hotel in New York All of the Equinox Hotels embody the same holistic philosophy as the Equinox Fitness Clubs. This hotel is innovative and the brand is redefining “luxury” as the ultimate in experience and “travel” as a seamless extension of a life well-lived. These hotels were developed to empower guests with tools that simplify the complex interplay between work, rest, decadence and discipline, part of a connected 360-degree lifestyle travel experience.

7.      The new Conrad just opened in New York City and I can’t wait to have a first look. 

As background, these hotels are part of Protravel’s SELECT Hotels & Resorts, which is made up of over 1,400 of the world’s most stunning hotels, spas and resorts. This premium program from Protravel offers VIP-worthy amenities to craft an authentic, memorable experience. SELECT perks may include a $100 USD VIP amenity, private transfers, breakfast, Wi-Fi, spa treatments, afternoon tea, custom welcome amenities and exclusive on-property access reserved for the most discerning travelers.

 As Protravel specializes in luxury travel experiences, Becky also cites these luxury travel trends for 2020.

 ·        Seeing How the Locals Live: More and more people are looking to see small towns and experience how the locals live. I've noticed an increase in biking and walking tours, which allow you to get a better insight into this way of life as opposed to big cities and more touristy areas. In other words, more remote areas are becoming more prevalent. 

·        Culinary Curated to Healthy Living: Food has become more important as people become more health-conscious. People are continuing on the wellness track and working out as well as being cognizant of a better lifestyle. Accordingly, tours and interest groups are popping up where one can experience farm-to-table experiences at resorts, with resorts creating in-room wellness experiences such as private yoga.

·        DNA & Heritage: Tracing one's ancestry has become of great interest to people especially with websites that are out there that allow you to trace your DNA and your heritage. The ability to locate relatives and famous people from your lineage are of great interest. Therefore, people are traveling to far-off places to try and discover their heritage. 

·        Luxury Camping: Camping is on the increase but in a more luxurious manner with upscale tent facilities and this is appearing moreso to Gen-Xers and millennials.

·        Sustainability Continuing To Trend: Recently, I traveled to Dubai and Phuket – it’s truly incredible to see how sustainability initiatives are taking over among both beach and city hotels. Many of these hotels in these destinations are getting rid of plastics completely. 

·        Hot Destinations for 2020:

o   Brazil: Once again Brazil is on the horizon mainly because the visa requirements have been relaxed and can be done via an E-visa on the internet —  as opposed to the difficulty in the past of obtaining a visa and waiting extended periods of time for that visa to come through.

o   Portugal: Portugal has become a hot destination since it's an easy flight in and out of Lisbon. Great hotels are popping up in the North as well as the South of the country making it easy to spend two or three days in each area making for a wonderful 10- or 11- day trip. Feeding off of this is the island of Madeira, which is not only beautiful but it has some wonderful five-star hotels and a beautiful add-on for two or three more days. These areas are of interest just as Malta is of interest for the rest of Europe. Both destinations in the past were totally forgotten but they have so much to offer and wonderful weather historically as well as sparkling views of water off the coast.

For more about my Wanderlust travels, follow me on Instagram at @DebbiKickham.

Read my blog at www.Debbikickham.com, and follow me on Twitter at @Debbikickham.

 


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