USA
segment within W&O’s Caribbean & USA brochure but with ranch turning out to be one of the strongest sellers this year, it’s been put back at the forefront and the operator has graduated to offering a dedicated USA and Ranch brochure. It also now features North and South Carolina, Florida, the Deep South and the Pacific Northwest for the first time. The range of ranching properties on offer
varies, with guests able to be as hands-on or as hands-off as they like. “Some guests want the complete cowboy
experience of riding every day, herding cattle and taking part in other outdoor pursuits such as archery or fly fishing, while others simply want to relax amidst beautiful landscapes,” says Pointer. One new option for 2016 is the Magee
The museum will also house the Pritzker Center for Photography, the largest space devoted to this medium at any US art museum. California is a perennial hit with Carrier, but the operator has also added three new destinations –The Hamptons, Seattle and Colorado – and 27 hotels across the country. They include The Lodge and Spa at Brush Creek Ranch, The Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch and Triple Creek Ranch, which show how the operator’s “Big Sky” ranch and wilderness offering is expanding to meet demand. Fiona Greenhalgh, head of product and
commercial, says: “The US is definitely becoming more popular with affluent travellers; especially for high-end touring holidays, to California particularly. And luxury ranches are becoming more popular too as clients explore new areas and get more adventurous. Hawaii is also popular this year, as are the national parks and Las Vegas.” Some of the other hotels new for Carrier include Metropolitan by Como, Miami and Fairmont Miramar, Santa Monica. On a smaller scale, Cavallo Point near San Francisco is added, while Topping Rose House, The Quogue Club and 1770 House in the Hamptons are now in the programme. To bolster New York, Langham Place and Baccarat Hotel & Residences have been added for this year. New York’s rising popularity seems
unstoppable, with the city expected to welcome a high of 59.7 million visitors in 2016, making it the seventh consecutive year for record- breaking tourism; 12.7 million of them are from outside the US, also an all-time high. It has the nation’s most active hotel
development pipeline, with 107,000 hotel rooms due to open this year within several noteworthy high-end arrivals such as The William Vale, InterContinental New York Barclay and The Beekman this spring, followed by Four Seasons New York Downtown, Firmdale’s second hotel in the city, The Whitby and 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge, later this year.
Riding high “Luxury travel is booming generally and remains the strongest-growing market segment worldwide, but the US is by far the most popular luxury travel destination, having seen the highest registered increases in the number of luxury travel stays in recent years,” says Brand USA travel trade director Gerry Boyle and with plenty going on in the US, it’s hardly surprising operators are feeling positive. “We’re definitely seeing an increase in
popularity – there’s so much choice there and holidaymakers can keep returning and find a new experience on every trip,” says Western & Oriental’s senior product manager David Pointer. “Travellers perceive it to provide value for money, including in the luxury sector; it has a reputation for offering good service; and they still see it as safe – or at least familiar – at a time when other destinations are suffering on that front.” Pointer additionally highlights the high level
of investment in the tourism sector, with new luxury hotels and attractions “opening constantly” which also helps to keep customers interested. It’s this increased interest that has led Western & Oriental to revive its Ranch America range and add more US product generally to the mix. Previously, the US formed a relatively small
Homestead at Brush Creek Ranch in Wyoming, an adults-only retreat set a little distance from the main property with the focus more towards food, wine and wellness. Fly-drives are also selling really well, says
Pointer, with travellers seeing the value in engaging the help of a tour operator to put together such complex trips in favoured regions such as California and New England. “They are always going to attract visitors, but
we’re seeing a rise in demand for lesser-known corners of the US too, so we’re continuing to develop new programmes,” he says. “We’re working on new fly-drive itineraries around the Pacific Northwest in particular, using Seattle as a gateway and including excursions to the San Juan islands, thus combining dramatic scenery, wildlife and nature.” He adds that Hawaii and Florida are also
becoming more popular, with new hotels and excursions added there. Somewhere else set to get a boost from the
UK is Utah, with Delta starting daily flights to Salt Lake City from Heathrow in May, making it the only non-stop option for us, and back on the national parks theme – this place certainly has its fair share, known for the “Mighty Five” of Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands and Arches. Utah is of course also home to Sundance, the mountain resort on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos that’s owned by Robert Redford, so it’s only fitting that on America Wild, it’s his soothing tones that can be heard extolling the virtues of America’s great outdoors.
Pictured 1. Shenandoah national park 2. Mount Rainier national park 3. Cavallo Point, San Francisco 4. Triple Creek Ranch, Montana
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