Fortune.com
From renting estates to hotel buyouts, travelers are looking at private travel to keep their distance
“When travel slowly began to renew in May 2020, there was an immediate rebound in the vacation rental industry. That upward trend remained consistent throughout regular shoulder seasons (generally spring and fall) as people worked remotely and kids attended virtual school. Since then, demand simply hasn’t waned as travelers rush to homes away from home.
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Hotels themselves are expanding to exclusive use or are seeing massive increases in their villa bookings. Hotel Amparo, a five-bedroom boutique hotel in Mexico’s San Miguel Allende, launched its Residency at Hotel Amparo during the pandemic for groups of 10 to take over the entire property for only $500 per night. This includes private (but not inclusive) use of its full bar, restaurant, and lounging areas. At Sonoma’s MacArthur Place, the new Exclusively Yours package accommodates groups staying in one of the duplex or fourplex cottages. The hotel will block out the remaining rooms to ensure absolute privacy from neighbors not in the party. “Many of our rooms already were equipped with private balconies, porches, or patios, but we wanted to take it a step further and offer the option to book an entire cottage or series of rooms,” says Liddy Parlato, the creative marketing manager.
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Domestic travel is flourishing at the moment, both via air and land. And as COVID seems as unpredictable as ever, there’s no slowing the popularity of stretching out in a home or a section of a hotel that is exclusively yours.” – Danielle Bernabe, August 2021
