Affluent Travelers to Cruise in Record Numbers, Survey Says
Domestic travel and cruises are both in demand among America’s wealthiest travelers, according to a new study of the top 10% released earlier this month by the American Affluence Research Center.
The responses are reported as indexes ranging from 0 to 200, which are determined by subtracting negative responses from positive responses.
The number of people planning an international vacation is at the highest level (109) since 2006. Almost a third (31%) plan to spend more on international travel in the next year, compared to 23% who said they would spend less.
Domestic travel proved to be an even stronger market. Its index number of 119 was the highest it’s been since hitting a record of 126 in 2004. About a third (31%) said they will spend more on a domestic vacation, almost triple the number (12%) expecting to spend less.
It’s not just the Baby Boomers who will be out there, either. Those most likely to spend more on both international and domestic travel are under the age of 50, in a higher income bracket ($200,000 or more), and have a net worth of $2 million or more.
Almost one in five (18%) respondents plan to take a cruise in 2016—especially those who are over the age of 60 and have a net worth of $8 million or more.
The “Millionaire Monitor” report attributes the potential increase in spending to the recovery of the stock market, which gave the affluent both the confidence and comfort to spend on luxury vacations.
— Jessica Montevago
Photo: Flickr
