Wednesday, November 19, 2008

The luxury (golf) travel landscape

It would appear that no industry is immune from the current economic challenges, indeed the travel industry is feeling the full effects of the lower confidence of US consumers. Having said that, I believe that the affluent (golf) traveler will probably return to their lifestyle habits, including travel, quicker than the wider population.

Since the New Year we are witnessing some very early indications that some of this may be occurring. For the prospective international golf traveler there truly has never been a better time to buy a foreign trip; availability is excellent; suppliers are providing some value added incentives and the exchange rate is generally more favorable today than it was a few months ago.

An emblematic sign of the times in southern Spain; an unnamed, exclusive club which has accepted visitors on a limited basis for many years has dropped green fees by 40% while opening up access significantly.

On the air travel side, premium international travel has been affected by a decline in corporate travel and as a result it has probably never been cheaper, with good availability, to purchase discounted First & Business Class travel.

These cycles are just part of the normal economic ebb & flow and are inherently good as it tightens up businesses that possibly were getting overstaffed or delivering poor service. I know from personal experience that as a company, we have been innovating with various changes to our business practises and also redoubling our efforts to develop compelling travel opportunities. We also have been working to create messaging and communications which are as attractive as possible to potential travelers.

On the supplier front, we are excited about seeing Turnberry Hotel reopen after their extensive renovations & refurbishment this winter. Turnberry was acquired by a Dubai based company in 2008 and have closed the golf course and hotel over the winter as they prepare for the 2009 Open Championship. The hotel is being rebranded as a Luxury Collection property within Starwood (an upgrade from Westin) when it reopens this coming summer.

Also in Scotland we have course openings at Castle Stuart (near Inverness) and Machrahanish Bay which will both add tremendously to the golfing landscape in their respective regions.

All in all, a wonderful time to travel if you have the ability to make the trip.

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