2ND EDITION OF THE WORLD LUXURY INDEX™ HOTELS RELEASED
EMBARGO UNTIL TUESDAY, OCTOBER 14TH 3AM EDT/9AM CEST/10AM IN ATHENS
Athens, October 14th, 2014 – At Luxury Hospitality 2014, organized by the International New York Times (INYT) and the
Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne, Digital Luxury Group (DLG) in partnership with the Chair of Luxury Hospitality of Ecole
hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL), Prof. Samad Laaroussi, unveils the results of the World Luxury Index™ Hotels 2014.
The report, features an in-depth analysis of leading luxury hotel brands based on unbiased information on consumer
interest derived from over 485 million online searches on 70 brands in 20 markets. The World Luxury Index™ Hotels 2014
is part of the World Luxury Index™, an international analysis of the most sought-after brands within the luxury industry.
HIGHLIGHTS
1.
Global consumer interest for the luxury hospitality industry is up +7.7%.
2.
Major growth rate coming from China (+39%), whilst interest from German consumers has dropped by 9.4%.
3.
The most-searched-for luxury hotel groups are Hilton Worldwide, Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Hyatt. While
the fastest growing interest is for Shangri-La Hotels (+20%).
4.
The most attractive destinations in the Mediterranean region are Rome, Barcelona and Istanbul. Athens only
represents 2% of the total interest for Mediterranean destinations but it is the fastest growing city (+29%).
5.
A significant statistical correlation between online search volume measured by DLG and the number of rooms
sold provided by Smith Travel Research (STR Global), has been revealed in an analysis made by the Chair of
Luxury Hospitality at the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne.
INSIGHTS
1.
Global consumer interest for the luxury hospitality industry is up +7.7%.
Global consumer interest in luxury hotels has increased by 7.7 % over the past twelve months. All three hotels categories
have benefitted from increased interest, but the biggest rise was within the Luxury Exclusive category, with almost 10%
growth year-on-year (+9.6%). Four Seasons leads the Luxury Exclusive Category while Langham is the fastest growing
brand with +26% consumer interest year-on-year.
2.
Major growth rate coming from China (+39%), whilst interest from German consumers has dropped by 9.4%.
Chinese consumers are becoming significantly more interested in luxury hotels. Chinese interest has increased by 9% over
the past twelve months, approaching the same level of interest as that of the United Kingdom (+10%), which is the second
largest region in terms of luxury hotel searches. Chinese consumer interest still represents less than 10% of global interest
but has increased by an impressive 39%, confirming the strong market potential.
Regained interest for the luxury hospitality industry is driven by the U.S. market, which represents over half of worldwide
consumer interest (58%) and where interest grew by 7% over the past twelve months.
Consumer interest from the United Kingdom remains stable, while interest in luxury hotels from Germany drops by 9.4%.
“Such a significant increase in interest for luxury hotels from China can be attributed to a few things. Firstly, numerous western hotel
brands are opening in second, third and fourth-tier cities, building brand awareness in parts of China where wealth is increasing and
overall luxury hotel awareness may be low. This could mean that – after experiencing a particular brand in their home country – Chinese
tourists are now seeking out this brand when they travel abroad.
We are also seeing the new generation of Chinese tourists move away from the ‘tour group’ mentality of their parents, electing to travel
amongst friends or partners, and arrange their hotels and transport independently. Armed with English language skills many of their
parents did not possess, and of course, Internet connectivity, these travelers are more confident to create their own itineraries in cities
such as New York, Paris and London.” comments David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of Digital Luxury Group presenting the
results at the Luxury Hospitality Summit.
3.
The most-searched-for luxury hotel groups are Hilton Worldwide, Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Hyatt. Whilst
the fastest growing consumer interest is for Shangri-La Hotels (+20%).
American luxury hotel groups Hilton, Starwood and Hyatt claimed the most consumer interest on a global scale. Though
Shangri-La Hotels group has demonstrated the biggest increase in consumer interest (+20%). Shangri-La is currently the
most sought-after luxury hotel brand in China and Singapore, the second in Taiwan, and the fourth in France and Hong
Kong. In China, Shangri-La is the most sought after brand and it also outperformed second and third preferred brands
Sheraton and Intercontinental in terms of interest growth (+35% for Shangri-La, +29% for Sheraton and +43% for
Intercontinental).
The majority of searches for Shangri La Hotels originate in China (49%), the United States (12%) and United Kingdom (9%).
But online interest is growing fastest in Brazil (+38%), China (+35%) and Taiwan (+29%). The most searched-for destinations
associated with Shangri-La Hotels are Singapore, Paris, Shanghai, Bangkok and Dubai.
4.
The most attractive destinations in the Mediterranean region are Rome, Barcelona and Istanbul. Athens only
represents 2% of the total interest for Mediterranean destinations but it is the fastest growing city (+29%).
The most sought after Mediterranean destinations for the period are Rome, Barcelona and Istanbul. However, while
consumer interest for Rome and Barcelona continues to grow (+12% and +21% respectively), it declined for Istanbul declined
by 9%. “This decline in consumer interest is likely the result of heightened political unrest in Turkey between 2013 and 2014.”
mentions David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of Digital Luxury Group.
In terms of Mediterranean destinations, interest is growing the most significantly for Athens (+29%), where the brand that
gets the most consumer interest is Hilton, followed by Sofitel and Intercontinental. ”Interest for Greece continues to rise.
According to the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises 17.9 million tourists visited Greece in 2013, most likely lured by attractive
travel promotions post-crisis. The Greek Islands remain a hugely popular tourist destination and Athens is generally the gateway. We
expect travel to Greece to continue growing in the next 2 years.” notes David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of Digital Luxury Group.
5.
A strong statistical correlation between online search volume measured by DLG and the number of rooms
sold provided by Smith Travel Research (STR Global), has been revealed in an analysis made by the Chair of
Luxury Hospitality at the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne.
There is a strong statistical correlation (r=74%) between the evolution of the number of rooms sold (as reported by STR) and
the evolution of online search volume measured by DLG’s DemandTracker™ technology.
This correlation presents itself in different ways when investigating primary leisure destinations versus business
destinations. For example, Beirut, Istanbul and Rome are destinations where room sales follow very shortly the time of
search.
Conversely, for Barcelona and Tel-Aviv the time lag between the time of search and the time of purchase is about one
month. Therefore, we believe an analysis of online search can be used by hoteliers to forecast future demand and improve
their RevPar.
“Thanks to STR and DLG proprietary data, the search interest proved to be a good predictor of rooms sold and RevPAR. There are many
potential implications for marketing and revenue management” notes Prof. Samad Laaroussi, Holder of the Chair of Luxury
Hospitality of Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne presenting the results at the Luxury Hospitality Summit.
“Combining consumer interest data as measured by DLG with hotel performance data open-up tremendous opportunities: the results
can help hoteliers to understand consumer behavior per destination, identify source of raising demand, develop specific marketing
campaign per markets and improve RevPar by appropriately anticipating demand.” explains Prof. Samad Laaroussi, Holder of the
Chair of Luxury Hospitality of Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne presenting the results at the Luxury Hospitality Summit.
Detailed brand and market analysis and executives workshop are available upon request. An excerpt of the report is
available for download at http://dlgr.com/wlihotels2014
METHODOLOGY

Data Period: July 2013 – June 2014, Comparison Period : July 2012 – June 2013

Brands: 70 tracked

3 categories:

o
25 Upper Upscale: Camino Real Hotel, Dusit Thani, Embassy Suites, Gaylord Hotel, Hilton, Hotel du Vin,
Hyatt, Joie De Vivre, Kimpton, Le Méridien, Mgallery, Millennium Hotel, Nikko, Okura Hotel, Omni Hotel,
Pan Pacific, Pullman Hotel, Radisson Blu Hotel, Renaissance, Sheraton, Steigenberger, Swissotel, Vivanta
by Taj, Westin, Wyndham.
o
18 Luxury Major: Andaz, Bulgari Hotels, Conrad, Fairmont, Gran Melia, Grand Hyatt, Hotel Missoni,
InterContinental, JW Marriott, ME hotel, Park Hyatt, Raffles, Ritz-Carlton, Royal Tulip, Sofitel, St. Regis,
W Hotel, Waldorf Astoria.
o
27 Luxury Exclusive: Affinia, African Pride Hotel, Anantara, Angsana, Banyan Tree, Four Seasons,
Guoman, Hospes, Impiana Hotel, Jumeirah, Kempinski, Langham, Loews, Lotus Resort, Mandarin
Oriental, Oberoi, One & Only, Orient-Express Hotel, Peninsula, Regalia Hotel, Regent, RockResorts,
Rosewood, Shangri-La, Six Senses, Taj Hotel, The Leela.
Markets: 20 - Brazil, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia,
Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, United States.
SOME BACKGROUND
Digital Luxury Group
Digital Luxury Group provides exclusive access to intelligence, industry executives and digital marketing solutions, to
enable smarter business decisions. With offices in Geneva, Shanghai, Paris and New York, digital luxury group helps
executives of the luxury industry navigate the market by providing them with solutions based on a combination of
unique technology and luxury savoir-faire. The group’s three divisions (DLG, DLG Intelligence and Luxury Society) aim
at giving the visibility on the luxury market and the tools to act in order to accelerate their success in the luxury industry.
www.digitalluxurygroup.com
Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne
The Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) offers university-level studies to talented and ambitious students who are aiming
for top careers in the international hospitality industry. Since it was founded in 1893, EHL has educated more than 25,000
hospitality industry executives. Today, there are over 1,800 students, from almost 90 countries, enjoying the unique and
enriching environment of the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne. http://www.ehl.edu
The Chair of Luxury Hospitality of Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne
The objective of the Chair of Luxury Hospitality is to contribute to the advancement of managerial thinking, practices and
research about the specificity of hospitality luxury. Through a holistic and multidisciplinary approach, the goal is to develop
research, create an observatory and sharing platform dedicated to luxury hotels by bringing together within the same
network academic skills from EHL and professional skills from the hotel industry and other industries with a strong luxury
customer experience focus.
Luxury Hospitality 2014
The first Luxury Hospitality Conference gathered over 200 top international executives working in the luxury hospitality
industry to address the opportunities and challenges being faced by the luxury hospitality community. Luxury Hospitality
2014, The Quest for Luxury Experiences, will look at ways to rethink the concept of luxury, from design to service, and from
business models to new consumers. www.luxuryhospitalityleaders.com
The International New York Times
The International New York Times is a news report tailored specifically for our global audience. The title combines the
journalistic strengths and the newsrooms of The New York Times and The International Herald Tribune (IHT), with
continuous news desks and a 24/7 global news flow from Hong Kong, Paris, London and New York. http://inyt.com/
PRESS CONTACTS
1.
Ines Lazaro, Digital Luxury Group, Geneva, ilazaro@digital-luxury.com +41 22 702 07 60
2.
Valerie Silverman Kerr, Digital Luxury Group Consultant, New York, valerie@vsk-publicrelations.com +1 914 806 66 47
3.
Michel Ferla, Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne, Lausanne, michel.ferla@ehl.ch +41 21 785 15 61
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