Roamies re the new buzz word
While the economic and global political outlook has looked uncertain this year, it has not dampened people’s appetites for travel.  2016 will be a record year for worldwide travel with 1.2 billion tourists moving around the globe.
Each year in November for World Travel Market, Euromonitor, the market research organisation releases a report on future Global Travel Trends.  According to this year’s  report  “travel thrives on disruptive innovation and the outlook  for the year ahead is no exception.”
The report usually has an invented name to describe a type of traveller, this year the buzz word is Roamies.  They like to co-live with other and live outside the mainstream. They work in the gig economy on projects or short term contracts and can work anywhere with internet.
Roam.co has developed three co-living projects around the world, Miami, Madrid and Bali.  For a fee of $1,800 a month, the Roamies can choose where to live.  In each place you get an en suite room, communal living and cooking space and as they say battle-tested wi fi.  New locations are planned for London and Argentina.  
Other companies in this space are Pure House in New York and We Live in New York and Washington. The co-living concept has caught the attention of Airbnb and through its design studio Samara will explore the possibility of community centres that will host guests.

Supersonic is coming back
A new generation of supersonic aircraft, that will fly 2.6 times faster than normal jets are being developed by start-up Boom.  London to New York will be 3.5 hours and priced around $5,000 return.  A subsidiary of Virgin Galactic, the Spaceship Company is partnering with Boom to provide engineering , manufacturing services and test flight support.  The first test flight is planned for late next year and commercial operations in 2023.

Microadventures with maximum impact
As people’s lives get busier they are looking towards getting the most from their precious time off. Microadventures could be hiking, kayaking, cycling, waterfall climbing, zip-lining or as simple as sleeping under the stars.  Boys’ weekends are now being rebranded as “mancations” and easyJet has created a number of alternatives to city break activities.  Adventure tour companies are offering microadventures for lads, particularly in Europe.

Hiking Through Middle East History
After many years of challenging times in the Middle East hiking through history is beginning to bring hope to rural communities.  The development and promotion of historic hiking trails is a surprising success.  Many of the trails have existed for hundreds and thousands of years and include the Nativity Path in Palestine, Abraham’s Path from Turkey to Egypt, the Jordan trail and Lebanon’s mountain trail. Hiking is sending out a message of peace, hope and reconciliation and local communities are ensuring a safe and welcoming environment for tourists. Visitors to these trails come for religious and Diaspora reasons and the future could see opportunities for development of support services.

Mindfulness in Africa
The demand for spiritual travel is growing and in Africa the concept of “wellness in the wilderness”, where traditional safari holidays are accompanied by meditation, yoga and spa services.   The mindfulness trend combines well with people’s interest in responsible and sustainable tourism.    South Africa and Kenya are the most developed countries for this type of holiday.

Bag free, hassle free travel
With the rise of the sharing economy renting items is becoming more acceptable.  Imagine arriving at your hotel and the wardrobe is stocked with all your favourite fashion brands.  Some Westin hotels are already rent running clothes and shoes to guests from $5.  In Chicago the Virgin Hotel allows guests to purchase clothes from Gap and have them delivered to their rooms.  Fashion brand Pimkie has installed mini fashion bars in hotels in Antwerp, Brussels, Milan and Paris with clothes you can buy, minifashionbar.com.
 

While the economic and global political outlook has looked uncertain this year, it has not dampened people’s appetites for travel.  2016 will be a record year for worldwide travel with 1.2 billion tourists moving around the globe.

Each year in November for World Travel Market, Euromonitor, the market research organisation releases a report on future Global Travel Trends.  According to this year’s  report  “travel thrives on disruptive innovation and the outlook  for the year ahead is no exception.”
The report usually has an invented name to describe a type of traveller, this year the buzz word is Roamies.  They like to co-live with other and live outside the mainstream. They work in the gig economy on projects or short term contracts and can work anywhere with internet.

Roam.co has developed three co-living projects around the world, Miami, Madrid and Bali.  For a fee of $1,800 a month, the Roamies can choose where to live.  In each place you get an en suite room, communal living and cooking space and as they say battle-tested wi fi.  New locations are planned for London and Argentina.  
Other companies in this space are Pure House in New York and We Live in New York and Washington. The co-living concept has caught the attention of Airbnb and through its design studio Samara will explore the possibility of community centres that will host guests.

Supersonic is coming back
A new generation of supersonic aircraft, that will fly 2.6 times faster than normal jets are being developed by start-up Boom.  London to New York will be 3.5 hours and priced around $5,000 return.  A subsidiary of Virgin Galactic, the Spaceship Company is partnering with Boom to provide engineering , manufacturing services and test flight support.  The first test flight is planned for late next year and commercial operations in 2023.

Microadventures with maximum impact
As people’s lives get busier they are looking towards getting the most from their precious time off. Microadventures could be hiking, kayaking, cycling, waterfall climbing, zip-lining or as simple as sleeping under the stars.  Boys’ weekends are now being rebranded as “mancations” and easyJet has created a number of alternatives to city break activities.  Adventure tour companies are offering microadventures for lads, particularly in Europe.

Hiking Through Middle East History
After many years of challenging times in the Middle East hiking through history is beginning to bring hope to rural communities.  The development and promotion of historic hiking trails is a surprising success.  Many of the trails have existed for hundreds and thousands of years and include the Nativity Path in Palestine, Abraham’s Path from Turkey to Egypt, the Jordan trail and Lebanon’s mountain trail. Hiking is sending out a message of peace, hope and reconciliation and local communities are ensuring a safe and welcoming environment for tourists. Visitors to these trails come for religious and Diaspora reasons and the future could see opportunities for development of support services.

Mindfulness in Africa
The demand for spiritual travel is growing and in Africa the concept of “wellness in the wilderness”, where traditional safari holidays are accompanied by meditation, yoga and spa services.   The mindfulness trend combines well with people’s interest in responsible and sustainable tourism.    South Africa and Kenya are the most developed countries for this type of holiday.

Bag free, hassle free travel
With the rise of the sharing economy renting items is becoming more acceptable.  Imagine arriving at your hotel and the wardrobe is stocked with all your favourite fashion brands.  Some Westin hotels are already rent running clothes and shoes to guests from $5.  In Chicago the Virgin Hotel allows guests to purchase clothes from Gap and have them delivered to their rooms.  Fashion brand Pimkie has installed mini fashion bars in hotels in Antwerp, Brussels, Milan and Paris with clothes you can buy, minifashionbar.com.