Here's an opinion that ruffles feathers every time I teach it: some of the world's most magnificent destinations are not luxury destinations: and pretending otherwise is a disservice to the destination AND your clients. Brazil, Cuba, Colombia: extraordinary trips, some of my favorites anywhere. Block parties, family-run restaurants, mud volcanoes, living culture. That's not a luxury product. That's a cultural product, and it deserves to be sold as exactly what it is.
“Gen Z? Absolutely, they're doing it. Luxury clients would say no.”
The Gen-Z test
Would a twenty-six-year-old adventurer love climbing into a mud volcano? Absolutely, they're doing it right now. Would your Four Seasons-every-time client? She would not. Neither of them is wrong. The mistake is only ever in the matching: put the five-star client in the cultural itinerary you sold as "luxury" and you've manufactured a disappointed review out of a wonderful trip.
Claire's own numbers
The framework, step by step
- 1
Label every trip in your catalog honestly
luxury, upscale, or cultural. The word belongs in the marketing, the webinar, and the pre-trip call, not just your head.
- 2
Set dining expectations explicitly when a trip mixes
local spots with high-end tables. Surprise is for amenities, never for standards
- 3
And when a destination can't meet your bar
when you can't staff ten-out-of-ten guides who genuinely care for your travelers, have the discipline to drop it. When the guide isn't conscious of wh
Claire's own framework from this essay, in the order she teaches it.
Source: Claire B. Soares, from her own travel business and live trainings.
Classify, then say it out loud
- Label every trip in your catalog honestly: luxury, upscale, or cultural. The word belongs in the marketing, the webinar, and the pre-trip call, not just your head.
- Set dining expectations explicitly when a trip mixes local spots with high-end tables. Surprise is for amenities, never for standards.
- And when a destination can't meet your bar, when you can't staff ten-out-of-ten guides who genuinely care for your travelers, have the discipline to drop it. When the guide isn't conscious of what's happening with your travelers, it's a losing battle.
Honest classification isn't lowering the bar. It's choosing which bar each trip is jumping: and that clarity is what luxury clients are actually paying you for.
Common Questions
What is the difference between a luxury and a cultural destination?
A luxury destination supports genuinely top-tier product and service. A cultural destination delivers extraordinary experience built on local infrastructure. Both are worth selling; only one should be marketed as luxury.
Why does mislabeling a trip cause complaints?
Because disappointment comes from the gap between what was promised and what was delivered. A five-star client placed in a cultural itinerary sold as luxury will complain about an otherwise wonderful trip.
When should an advisor drop a destination?
When on-the-ground quality cannot meet your standard, especially guides. Claire's test is whether you can consistently staff people who are conscious of what is happening with your travelers.
Written By
Claire B. Soares
6× Condé Nast Top Travel Specialist, Certified AI Consultant, and founder of Travel AI University. $3.4B+ in enterprise travel software sold to Google, IBM, Boeing, the federal government, and the DoD; $16M+ in luxury travel sales with Up in the Air Life.
About Claire
