5 Things We Learned at Virtuoso Travel Week 2024

This year marked the 23rd year for Virtuoso Travel Week (VTW) in Las Vegas, the annual conference for members of the travel network and its preferred partners. More than 4,700 attendees, comprising luxury travel advisors and 2,086 travel brands spanning 97 countries, convened at the Bellagio Resort & Casino, Aria Resort & Casino, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas and Vdara Hotel & Spa from Aug. 10-16 for the weeklong event.

But while the conference has decades of history, this year looked markedly different, thanks to several changes made to the event’s format.

Each member’s attendance was reviewed by the Virtuoso team, rather than offering spots on a first-come, first-served basis, and VTW’s classic appointment schedule has been replaced by matched meetings in the morning, and self-scheduled meetings or events in the afternoon. Among the new offerings were “Brain Dates” for informal and unstructured group discussions on self-selected topics, a Hotel Showcase, and wellness offerings such as fitness classes and yoga.

“Changing Virtuoso Travel Week came with risk, but we embrace that risk,” said Julie Campbell, senior vice president of network products and events, during the event’s opening general session on Aug. 11.
Virtuoso’s diverse community of members and partners was also on display at the conference, which was united under the theme “The Voice of Luxury.”

“Our varied backgrounds, business models and offerings allow us to deliver the ‘right’ experiences, backed by authentic relationships, to a richly diverse group of affluent travelers around the world,” Campbell said.

Here are five things we learned at the event — from the latest trends in luxury travel to the network’s upcoming news.

1. Virtuoso Is Continuing to Experience Growth

This year, the luxury network added 18 new members and 109 preferred partners, including 71 new hotels, 26 new tour/on-site (DMC) partners, eight new tourism boards and four new cruise lines, bringing the total partner network to 2,300 suppliers across 58 countries, according to Cory Hagopian, senior vice president of global member and partner sales for the network.

Virtuoso advisors and suppliers focus on catering to high-net-worth clients, and the organization needs to continue to grow to meet the high demand from this discerning group, said David Kolner, executive vice president of the company, who mentioned that Virtuoso grew 15% year over year in preferred partner revenue, while only adding 4-5% more preferred partners.

“Maybe we aren’t even adding enough to keep up with expanded demand and the types of clients that are coming,” he said. “On the advisor side, I want every [nigh-net-worth traveler] to have the opportunity to use a Virtuoso travel advisor, and we are not even close to that. So, we are going to be adding advisors to meet that need.”

Virtuoso also recently introduced its enhanced amenities program for hotels, which includes higher commission for advisors and extra amenities beyond Virtuoso’s standard upgrades, including early check-in and late check-out at the time of booking (one in four hotels in the network have signed onto the program), and an initiative aimed at helping preferred hotels to sell villas and suites is in the works. The Virtuoso Air program was also recently relaunched as a preferred partner category.

“The whole industry has to grow so much still, so we are optimistic about getting people to grow the industry,” Kolner added. “There’s so much demand out there, and there’s the opportunity for more choice in the space.”

2.The Latest Luxury Trends Include Coolcations and the “Swift Lift”

Despite geopolitical conflicts, wars, elections, natural disasters, climate change and overtourism listed as major concerns that could affect travel in 2024, the first half of the year was record-breaking for Virtuoso members. So far, the first six months of 2024 has doubled 2019’s sales, growing 213% (compared to the overall travel industry, which is now pacing at 136% of 2019’s sales), according to Kolner. From 2023-2024, the network’s sales grew 14%, and 2025-2026 sales are up 38% so far.

“You ate and left no crumbs,” Kolner joked to attendees during the opening general session. “We are not only hitting record sales, but we are growing faster than the [overall] industry … We are in our relevance era.”

We are not only hitting record sales, but we are growing faster than the [overall] industry … We are in our relevance era.

Speaking of “eras,” Taylor Swift’s worldwide Eras tour is one driving force behind this booking volume, thanks to a phenomenon called the “Swift Lift.” Virtuoso is seeing a 51% increase in average daily rates (ADRs) in cities during Swift’s concerts, and a spike of 139% in booking night volume. (The Paris Olympics were also a driving force behind increased ADRs.)

Hot weather is also pushing some travelers toward cooler destinations including Denmark, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Finland; these “coolcations” have grown in sales by 44%, while warm destinations have dropped by 0.5% (however, warm destinations are still outselling cool destinations by a ratio of 10:1).

3. Integrated Tech Solutions, PR Outreach and Travel Advisor Reviews Keep Virtuoso Advisors Top of Mind

On the sales and marketing front, Virtuoso is continuing to remain relevant in the minds of the traveling consumer with new initiatives and outreach. The network’s PR efforts have seen momentum, with 20 billion impressions this year. Additionally, there has been a 76% increase in use of the “Find a Travel Advisor” button on the website in 2024, according to Helen McCabe-Young, senior vice president of marketing for the network.

Additionally, the Virtuoso homepage has been redesigned with enhanced search and navigation, in addition to new optimizations for mobile viewing.

Advisors are also receiving top marks: Nearly 94% of clients recommend Virtuoso preferred partners after traveling with them, and 99.3% of clients recommend their Virtuoso advisor. (Cristina Buaas of CSB Travel in Houston has the highest number of 100% ratings in the network.)

4. Each Generation Has Its Own Varying Interests and Travel Habits

The current time period is unique in that it’s the first time the world has seen seven generations traveling at the same time, with the Silent Generation (aka Matures), Baby Boomers, Generation X, millennials, Generation Z, Generation Alpha and, beginning in 2025, Generation Beta, hitting the road. Virtuoso advisors’ last-minute planners mostly come from Gen X, according to Kolner, which leads with the shortest booking window of any group (averaging 83 days). However, when it comes to intent to travel, millennials and Gen Z reign supreme, seeing a 15% increase in intent in 2024. They are also “outpacing, out-traveling and out-luxing” their older counterparts, according to the network.

Travel spending attracts another bunch entirely: Baby Boomers are the most likely to spend money on travel in 2024, doubling the spend of any other age group.

5. Sustainability Is (Still) a Hot Topic.

Sustainability has been at the forefront of Virtuoso’s strategy since 2011, and this year, the network’s Impact Study (which tracks sustainable contributions among advisors and supplier members) revealed that Virtuoso’s Sustainable Partner sales came in at $700 million so far in 2024.

And traveling ethically is certainly of interest to clients: Half of Virtuoso travelers say global developments have encouraged them to travel more responsibly, and 55% expressed a willingness to visit popular sites at off-peak times. Top destinations experiencing growth for fall travel include Canada (up 168%), Japan (up 160%) and St. Barts (up 155%). Year-over-year growth over 2023 is led by greater China (146%), Japan (108%), Iceland (72%), French Polynesia (60%) and the U.K. and Ireland (33%). To combat overtourism, Virtuoso has listed Slovenia, Portugal, Croatia, Montenegro and Guatemala as recommended alternatives to traditional hot spots. 

On August 12, the network hosted its “Under One Sky” lunch, where the network honored the advisors and preferred partners who are making a difference in the sustainability space. On the supplier side, Wilderness, Big Five Tours & Expeditions, Inc. and Abercrombie & Kent Vietnam took home awards; on the agency side, Nuba and Winkaffe Global Travel received honors.

“Virtuoso’s mission statement has been to make sustainability a greater factor in traveler’s choices, so that those who do good are successful,” said Jessica Hall Upchurch, vice chair and sustainability strategist for Virtuoso. “Not only is doing good important, but prioritizing sustainability is both a serious market opportunity and a transformative way of doing business.”