What Luxury Travelers Are Willing to Pay More For Now
A new study finds travelers are prioritizing exclusivity, purpose, and service, with younger Americans showing a strong appetite for premium experiences.
Photo: Will Truettner / Unsplash
This year’s edition of WTE Miami kicked off with an optimistic outlook for international travel, as new research showed North American travelers remain committed to exploring the world, with luxury experiences staying a priority despite rising budget pressures.
Rose Mary Cortes, vice president of international marketing and communications at MMGY, opened the event with a presentation highlighting key findings from the company’s latest Portrait of North American International Travelers report. The research suggests that while travelers are becoming more selective about where they go and how much they spend, their appetite for international travel remains strong, particularly for experiences they consider worth the investment. (The study found that 73% of travelers remain willing to pay more for luxury experiences when traveling internationally.)
The findings come as travelers navigate rising costs, geopolitical uncertainty, and changing priorities, all of which are influencing international travel decisions. American travelers expect to spend an average of $11,808 on international vacations over the next 12 months, down from $13,130 in 2025. Despite the decline, they still plan to take an average of 2.7 international vacations over the next two years.
“Travelers don’t just want to check destinations off their bucket lists anymore,” Cortes told Luxury Travel Report. “They’re more curious. They want to do something meaningful, and over the past three years, travel has become increasingly immersive.”
One of the study’s most notable findings is that travelers remain willing to pay a premium for luxury experiences, even as they become more selective about their overall vacation spending. “It’s interesting to see that the luxury segment hasn’t really declined despite everything,” Cortes added. “Travelers who have money are still willing to spend, but where they spend their money has shifted. It’s not just about staying at a luxury hotel anymore. It’s about exclusivity, purpose, and service.”
For Cortes, the shift reflects a broader evolution in how travelers define luxury.
“It’s more about booking a helicopter ride to make your trip easier and more exclusive than booking a room at a Ritz-Carlton property,” she said. “Travel has never been more about the experience.”
That willingness is particularly pronounced among younger Americans, with 85% of millennials and 80% of Gen Z travelers expressing an appetite for premium experiences. The findings suggest that rather than abandoning luxury travel, consumers are becoming more intentional about where they allocate their vacation budgets, prioritizing experiences they consider worth the additional investment.
The 2026 Portrait of American and Canadian International Travelers is based on a survey of 2,518 U.S. and Canadian adults conducted between June and July 2026. Participants had taken at least one vacation outside North America or the Caribbean in the previous three years and expected to take another within the next 12 months.
