Eye-Catchers From the High-End Segment
Ultra-Luxury
Do you have clients with ultra high expectations for their luxury vacation? These new and renovated hotels from the very top tier of luxury will create true wow moments. Get inspired!
Eye-Catchers From the High-End Segment
Ultra Luxury
Do you have clients with especially high expectations for their luxury vacation? These fresh hotel highlights from the very top tier of luxury will create true wow moments. Get inspired.
Image: Daria/stock.adobe.com
Caribbean expansion: Àni Private Resorts will add Àni Shoal Bay on Anguilla to its portfolio in January 2027. The property will be available exclusively for buyouts and sits directly on Shoal Bay Beach. Up to 30 guests can stay in 15 ocean-view suites, with a team of 30 staff members taking care of them. Àni Shoal Bay follows an all-inclusive concept, offering guests private-chef dining, butler service, daily spa treatments, childcare, transfers and individually designed excursions and activities. And should guests want more than gazing out at the turquoise sea, there is a beach club, a spa with steam room and cold plunge, an infinity pool, a kids club, a fitness center, as well as tennis, pickleball, basketball and bocce courts. Bookings for the soft opening in the fourth quarter of 2026 are already available.
Trade Contact: Lena Wantjer, Vice President Sales
Rendering: ÀNI Private Resorts
Image: Fregate Island
After several years of closure, Fregate Island is finally reopening this year. All buildings and accommodations have been redesigned, with 14 secluded one- or two-bedroom pool villas and three estates available going forward. Each accommodation comes with round-the-clock butler service. The residential highlight is The Owner’s Estate, set on its own peninsula and featuring a spa, cinema, pool and helipad. Plantation House has been expanded and now includes the distillery, patisserie, café, art gallery, conservation lab and wine cellar. Also new are a spa, tennis and padel courts, and a sunset bar on Mont Signal.
Trade Contact: Angelika Kuert, Director of Sales & Marketing
Uninvited visitors are out of luck here: The private island retreat Isolaria is a nature reserve with many birds, set in the Mediterranean off the Amalfi Coast and, true to island style, accessible only by boat. The Mediterranean villa features six bedrooms. Outdoors, island life unfolds on shaded terraces and around the 46-square-meter (495 square feet) infinity pool. Around it are Mediterranean gardens, olive groves and a nature trail. A pizza oven and barbecue area are also available. These are handled by a private chef, supported by service staff. Laundry service, Italian cooking classes and boat transfers to the beach? Naturally, those are included too. Good to know: Due to the uneven terrain, Isolaria may not be suitable for guests with limited mobility.
Trade Contact: The Trade-Team of Villas of Distinction
Image: Villas of Distinction
Image: Laucala
Laucala is treating itself to an update: The island resort in Fiji will reopen on October 1, 2027, under private management. Bookings are now open. The 24 villas with private pools are being refreshed in terms of technology and design. New additions include an Asian specialty restaurant, a beach grill, a beach bar and a sports bar. The wellness offering is also expanding, with an outdoor gym, new Technogym equipment, hot and cold rooms and an ice bath. A new fishing yacht will take guests out to sea in the future. Of course, the 18-hole golf course designed by David McLay Kidd remains part of the activity options, as do diving, sailing, horseback riding and tennis. For getting around the island, each villa comes with its own golf cart. From Nadi, guests travel to the private island with Air Laucala.
Trade Contact: Commercial Director Cataline Richmond
In early 2027, the South Malé Atoll will welcome an ultra-luxury resort: Six & Six Don Maaga, the flagship of Six & Six Private Islands. Space and privacy are at the heart of the concept. Even the smallest villa spans around 900 square meters (9,687 square feet), while the signature villas Terra and Aethr (pictured) offer more than 1,500 square meters (16,145 square feet). Many of the villas feature two pools, along with open courtyards. The butler offering on Don Maaga is particularly distinctive: In the so-called Edhurun program, butlers serve as hosts and not only handle classic butler tasks, but also introduce guests to Maldivian culture and daily life as mentors and storytellers. The ultimate luxury is Hirigaa: The private island within the resort is available exclusively by invitation as a buyout.
Trade Contact: Mercy Guerva, Director of Marketing and Communications
Graphic: phaisalphotos.com
Image: ROKI Collection
Roki Collection Queenstown, New Zealand
New Zealand can do ultra-luxury, too: Roki Collection Queenstown sits on Lake Wakatipu and is very boutique with just seven suites. Accommodations start with a Junior Suite and go all the way up to the Grand Roki Suite with seven (!) bedrooms and 789 square meters (8,492 square feet) of living space. In the higher suite categories, guests enjoy a dedicated butler, a private in-suite chef and terraces with a spa and sauna. Cool touch: For evening rides around town, guests can use the hotel’s own Rolls-Royce Cullinan with chauffeur service. Roki also focuses on special helicopter experiences. Its Roki Pure wellness concept offers so-called Rewilds treatments, flying guests by helicopter to remote natural locations.
Trade Contact: Alex Scasny, Co-Founder and Marketing Director of Plateau International
Let's Ask the Industry
Where is ultra-luxury headed?
"Ultra-luxury is becoming more personal. This means visible status is losing importance, while discreet quality and curated end-to-end experiences are gaining ground. Everything has to work seamlessly together, without the client having to coordinate anything themselves – which makes professional travel designers even more valuable. Clients value individual planning, concierge service and time savings, for example through private jets and VIP transfers. This shift plays directly to the strengths of good travel designers. The current geopolitical situation and the desire for safety are also increasing the willingness to pay for strong logistics. Despite AI, top travel advisors continue to play a major role because we have the client’s trust and our personal network of hotels and DMCs – something that will become even more important in the future. There are challenges, too: the segment is small and difficult to scale. Growth is more likely to come from higher spend per client than from large numbers of new clients. Those who offer genuine insider access and personal trust will win. In the ultra-luxury segment, bookings are usually made only a few weeks in advance, not far ahead of time. Current demand is especially strong for private villas for multi-week stays in secluded estates with staff, wellness areas and security concepts, as well as yacht charters, private islands, longevity trips and occasion-based travel. In Europe, Lake Como, the Amalfi Coast, the French Riviera and Greece are popular, as are Norway and Iceland. Further afield, ultra-luxury clients like to book Botswana, Tanzania and Kenya, as well as St. Barth, Japan, Bhutan and Patagonia. This segment will continue to gain importance, while the core age group is expected to shift from currently 55-plus to 45-plus."
Diana Geithe, General Manager, Das Reisekonzept (Portrait: LuxuryWise)
Image: mars58/stock.adobe.com
Our Takeaway
Yes, ultra-luxury is still a small and highly refined niche within the luxury travel segment – but it is growing. In fact, 37 percent of Virtuoso travel advisors have seen an increase in requests for ultra-luxury. Among luxury clients, demand is rising for greater privacy, exclusive use and private, exceptionally high-end experiences. What matters most is the seamless integration of all travel elements – from transfers and Michelin-level dining to experiences, wellness and private staff. The reasons for travel vary widely. Celebrations, multigenerational vacations, active adventure travel or the desire for maximum privacy often come with unexpectedly high budgets. Use that potential!