travel

Where do richest US travellers go?

January 23, 2016

Mexico, the preferred destination for the richest 1% of US travellers. – AFP/Relaxnews pic, January 23, 2016.Mexico is the preferred destination among the ranks of the US's richest travellers, for whom money is no object and the world is at their well-heeled, designer-clad feet.

That’s according to the results of a new study that looked at the travel trends of the richest 1% of Americans.

For the report, international travel and tourism consultancy group Resonance Consultancy analysed data from more than 1,660 travellers with a household income of at least US$200,000 (RM854,310) or a net worth of US$2 million.

Compared to the average American traveller who takes about five trips a year, the top 5% of richest Americans take about 14 trips a year, divided roughly between business and leisure trips.

Likewise, while the typical traveller will spend an average of US$1,347 per person, per vacation, the affluent traveller will spend about US$3,115.

With that kind of budget, that means reserving stays at high-end hotels such as the Four Seasons and Hilton, which are the preferred brands of the wealthiest 1%.

And while the middle-class and more budget-conscious traveller may spend hours on end shopping for flight and hotel deals online, analysts found that wealthy travellers are more likely to book directly with a hotel or airline.

Here are the top 10 travel destinations among the US's top 1%:

1. Mexico (26%)
2. Canada (24%)
3. Italy (24%)
4. England (22%)
5. France (22%)
6. Germany (14%)
7. Bahamas (14%)
8. Anguilla (13%)
9. Australia (12%)
10. US Virgin Islands (11%). – AFP/Relaxnews, January 23, 2016.