Travel came back in 2023 — but not the way the industry expected. Buyers didn't return to the old catalog. They rewrote it.
Which trend defined the recovery?
Experience over check-list. Buyers stopped counting countries and started buying stories — a week in one place with a chef, a guide, a purpose. Boutique operators outperformed the mass brands.
What broke through in luxury?
Private aviation kept the volume it picked up during COVID. Ultra-luxury hotels raised rates and kept occupancy. Cruising rebuilt faster than analysts predicted, but only in the categories that repositioned as expedition and wellness.
Where did the mainstream traveler go?
Southern Europe, Japan, Mexico's Pacific coast, the American Southwest. Long stays. Remote-work-friendly properties. Neighborhood rentals over resort compounds. The map shifted; the operators who read it early won.
What died?
The generic city-break weekend. The forgettable chain-hotel campaign. The influencer trip that produced content nobody trusted. The travel category tightened around meaning.
How did 5WPR read the shift?
5WPR runs Travel & Hospitality as a permanent practice. The 2023 lesson we carried forward: travel buyers now research inside AI engines before they open a booking site. The question is no longer where should I go — it's which brand shows up in the answer. That is now the entire game.
What still applies in 2026?
- Story-led operators beat catalog-led ones.
- Trade press and expert citations feed the retrieval anchors AI engines read.
- Loyalty is now a citation problem, not a points problem.
- Every hotel, airline, and destination brand has an AI visibility footprint — measured or not.
Ronn Torossian is the founder and chairman of 5W AI Communications, the AI Communications Firm. He is the publisher of Everything-PR and the author of two best-selling editions of For Immediate Release.