Here at Macaroni Kid Family Travel, we are always on the lookout for the newest ideas, the hottest trends and the best family destinations. We work every day to figure out what makes family travel great.
As we head into 2015, we are excited to share five top trends we are seeing in family travel … four that we hope to see continue and one we could really do without.
Hotel rooms with a separate bunk bed nook for the kids. Great Wolf Lodge was one of the first and they tricked out those little nooks with fun paintings on the walls and a TV just for the kids. Since then, we’ve seen them pop up more and more … at Wyndham Bonnet Creek in Orlando, the Wyndham Trypp Times Square in New York City, Kimpton’s Helix in Washington DC and elsewhere.
Why do we see this trend continuing? With family travel ever on the rise, smart hotels will continue to find smart solutions and this brilliant plan gives kids and parents their own space without the need for a full-blown suite or adjoining room. And with more "blended families" traveling with kids of varying ages, a bunk bed nook provides a super solution for stashing the older kids in the bunk beds and keeping the little one in with mom and dad.
Concierge style/in-room check-in. It is safe bet that a family arriving for check-in has had an awful day. Whether they’ve navigated two airports and the challenges of flying with kids, or been cooped up on a long car ride, that family is likely to arrive tired, hungry, harried and cranky. Slowly but surely, we are seeing a rise in in-room, or at least concierge style check-in (where you relax in comfy chairs rather than stand at a counter). The smartest check-in practices have something on hand for the kids to do and cold drinks ready for all.
Why do we see this trend continuing? While some hotels have voiced security concerns about capturing guests’ credit card info wirelessly, security methods are improving every day. Combine that with the efforts to make their guests feel a sense of “homecoming” and an easy, comfortable personalized check-in is obvious. And next up? Well, you get to select your seat on an airplane, so why not select your perfect room at your destination? Hilton is already beginning to roll this feature out.
Free wi-fi but continued growth in dreaded resort fees. The day has just about come when guests expect good strong, complimentary wi-fi in their rooms the same way they expect that the electric it takes to turn on the lights or the cable that makes Nickelodeon play on the TV will be included in their room rate. Additional fees for wi-fi will soon be a thing of the past and that is awesome. But sadly, we don’t expect the dreaded “resort fee” to disappear anytime soon as hotels continue to tack on additional daily fees – generally we’ve seen them range from $12 to $25 – for wi-fi, access to the gym, a morning paper, towels by the pool and other amenities — whether you want them or not.
Why do we see this trend continuing? Hotels will not be so quick to give up the revenue they were generating from those wi-fi fees. But perhaps more importantly, reallocating a portion of the room rate into a “resort fee” allows hotels to publish a lower room rate on the all-important travel comparison sites. With 43% of all travel bookings now happening online according to the Economist – a number that is sure to continue to climb -- hotels will continue to reduce room rates by burying the resort fee in the fine print.
Hotels partnering with high profile brands to deliver experiences. American Girl has partnered with the Benjamin Hotel in New York, the Marriott in Atlanta and the Omni in Chicago to deliver guests an American Doll-themed weekend. Cookie Monster and Elmo have taken up residence at Beaches Resorts; Norwegian Cruise Line® has a well-established partnership with Nickelodeon; and Atlantis Resort once offered a Dallas Cowboy Cheerleading Camp for girls. We anticipate more and more hotels working with well-known entertainment and toy brands to offer themed experiences.
Why do we see this trend continuing? As the strength of the mega brands continues to grow, and kids exert increasing influence on a family’s travel choices according to Travel Market Report and Thomas Cook, these kinds of partnerships give hotels the ability to leverage the passion kids have for their favorite brands.
Multigenerational travel will continue its growth trajectory. Pack up the pop-pop for some fun in the sun as multigenerational travel continues grow, with more and more extended families heading off together. Cruises will continue to top the list for multigenerational travel, but the trend will spread into all facets of travel, from Disney to ski resorts to family adventures.
Why do we see this trend continuing? More baby boomers are becoming grandparents and these are not your parents’ parents. They are youthful, active and have the disposable income to plan a trip of lifetime or mark a family milestone in style. In fact, some estimates are that boomers control 70% of the disposable income in the US. With families living further and further apart – indeed according to AARP 67% of grandparents cite distance as the reason they don’t see enough of their grandchildren — and Sunday night family dinners becoming a thing of the past, those well-heeled grandmas will long for ways to get their clan together.
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We’d love to hear what trends you have noticed in family travel … and what trends you’d like to see! Share your thoughts in a comment below.
