Trends for luxury travel in 2014 – local life and set-jetting

In this post, we predict what we think will be the key trends for luxury travel in 2014, and we have also hand-picked a selection of the world’s most luxurious destinations, hotels and resorts that encompass each of these growing trends. Read on to learn more about our predicted trends of ‘local life’ and ‘set-jetting’. Local life No-one knows how to navigate a place better than a local. These hotels are increasingly introducing guests to neighbourhood specialists to provide instant roots, nurturing the next generation of local talent and inviting their community to become part of their very fabric. Seek out Mario’s hidden treasure at Sandy Lane, Barbados This hotel is synonymous with Caribbean luxury. Discerning guests value the impeccable service and superlative recreation facilities. The local knowledge of the team is incomparable; the most recent find of Mario Bevilacqua von Gunderrode, the Resident Manager, is a true local gem. Off the beaten-track and secreted-away inside the Timothy Oulton Gallery, guests are recommended to visit Gianluca’s Café. Here Sicilian chef Gianluca Trasatti prepares a daily lunch menu of sumptuously fresh dishes – including homemade pastas and, every Friday night, light-as-air pizzas from a wood-burning oven. This hidden treasure is now a firm favourite of those guests in the know at Sandy Lane. Explore an ‘artist’ village at Columbia Beach Resort, Cyprus A cluster of honey-coloured stone houses shaded by jasmine and bougainvillea, descending to a sandy beach, this elegant resort has a traditional Cypriot village feel. Demetris Ioannou, the charismatic Front of House Manager, goes to great lengths to ensure that guests get a true flavour of Cyprus. One of Demetris’ recommendations is to travel into the Troodos hills to Lania – a beautiful ‘artist’ village full of rustic charm and homes filled with art and vibrant colour; just one idea to experience a ‘taste of the essential island’. Set-jetting Art, film, music and books have long influenced travel, but rarely in such a prolific way as today. Memories matter and hotels are creating new types of immersive or themed experiences so you can relive the place or time of your favourite artist. Disney character dining at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa Orlando® Moments from the Magic Kingdom, this bayside Victorian styled spa resort exudes a bygone Palm Beach elegance. Overlooking a tranquil white beach and lit up nightly by fireworks over Cinderella’s Castle, this is Disney at its most refined. Little ones can meet Tigger over a breakfast of Mickey Mouse-shaped waffles at 1900 Park Fare, furnished with carousel horses and a 19th century French organ. Junior Jedi knights can learn to use ‘the Force’ at the training academy whilst little princesses decorate cupcakes with Alice in Wonderland followed by watching Disney classics under the stars by the pool. ‘Nobody does it better’ than at Goldeneye, Jamaica Near Ocho Rios in picture-perfect Oracabessa Bay, lies the property where Ian Fleming wrote the James Bond novels and which has, understandably, acquired something of a celebrity status. Today, accommodations at the resort include the original Fleming Villa, spacious Beach Villas, and eight Lagoon Villas and Cottages with private overwater decks. Located on a verdant 52 acre site, discover secret coves, breathtaking private beaches, tropical forests and a seawater lagoon. Relax on an oversized sun lounger and see if your inner novelist can be inspired. Other trends we are predicting for 2014 include creative collaborations and spirit of adventure. Maxine Roberts is Head of Marketing at Carrier.