Why Hospitality Brands Are Winning While Everyone Else Cuts Back
Summer travel is booming. But not for the reasons you think.
In a year defined by cost-cutting and cautious spend, the luxury hospitality sector is charting a different course: forward.
Despite inflation, the average U.S. household is expected to spend $2,867 on summer vacations this year—a post-pandemic high (Savannah CEO). Airlines are doubling down on premium offerings. Ultra-luxury travelers are planning to spend more, not less—with 97% prioritizing their mental and physical wellbeing through travel (Flywire 2025 Travel Report).
As someone who’s helped shape brand storytelling for cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea, I’ve long believed this sector understands something many others miss:
Travel isn’t just booked. It’s felt.
Hospitality brands are thriving because they don’t just sell rooms—they sell a state of mind.
Three Reasons Experience-Led Brands Are Outperforming
1. They Lead with Sensory Detail
During my time leading digital transformation at Royal Caribbean, we learned early that guests didn’t remember what they paid. They remembered what they felt.
Great hospitality marketing doesn’t list amenities. It conjures a mood:
A citrus-salted breeze
A teak deck at golden hour
The hush of a spa corridor
The best brands translate IRL experience into digital story through language, tone, and imagery—building desire long before arrival.
2. They Use Nostalgia as Strategy
Today’s most compelling hospitality campaigns evoke emotional landmarks, not just destination pins. I’ve seen this firsthand—whether helping Silversea position itself around “timeless discovery” or crafting family-meets-fantasy moments for Royal Caribbean’s global audience.
From Amalfi-inspired color palettes to copy lines like “just like you remembered,” nostalgia is no longer a vibe. It’s a conversion tool.
3. They Market Through the Guest’s Eyes
The brands winning today don’t broadcast—they echo.
When I build messaging systems with Wink clients, we prioritize voice that reflects guest memory, not brand ego. Whether it’s a couple toasting on the balcony or a handwritten note on the pillow, these micro-moments become the macro-story.
Because emotional resonance is what keeps people coming back—even when the market says they shouldn’t.
Coming Next Week: Interview with Tamara Strauss
To dig deeper into these insights, I sat down with hospitality marketing leader Tamara Strauss, whose work has helped elevate brands through guest-centric design, emotional branding, and cultural relevance.
We’ll be talking:
• What guests really remember
• Why “selling a feeling” still works
• How hospitality can lead other industries into emotional storytelling
Final Word
Not every brand has a yacht, a penthouse suite, or a Michelin-starred chef.
But every brand can learn from what hospitality gets right:
Use your words like scent.
Use your visuals like touch.
Speak not to audience awareness—but to audience longing.
Because in the end, we don’t remember what we bought.
We remember how we felt when we did.
