Why I Hit Pause on My Luxury Travel Business (and Why the Party’s Back On!)

Picture this: it's early 2020, and I’m sitting at my kitchen table, glaring at my calendar filled with stunning luxury holidays. Maldives, Mauritius, Kenya—the stuff of dreams, right? Except, the news in the background is bleating something about a "novel virus." At first, I thought, "Novel virus? That sounds charmingly literary—very chic, very Austen-esque." Oh, naive, sweet Beth.

Fast forward a few weeks, and that chic little virus had unleashed chaos, grounding flights, shutting borders, and turning Heathrow into something resembling a scene from The Walking Dead. Overnight, my carefully curated business, built on crafting impeccable luxury escapes, was, quite frankly, going nowhere faster than an East Midlands train on a Sunday.

So, What Happened to UK Luxury Travel During COVID?

In March 2020, luxury travel—particularly the glitzy kind involving sipping bubbly at 35,000 feet—came to a screeching halt. London’s posh hotels, usually bustling with impeccably dressed guests Instagramming their afternoon teas, stood empty. Claridge's without guests felt about as right as eating fish and chips with chopsticks.

The reality hit harder than a Ryanair landing. With lockdowns, travel bans, and endless PCR tests (remember those charming brain-tickling swabs?), luxury travel seemed about as appealing as navigating the Aldi special buys aisle on a Saturday morning.

Hitting Pause: Prudence or Panic?

Now, anyone who knows me will confirm that I love a good panic as much as the next mum at school drop-off. But pausing my business wasn’t panic—it was prudence (and maybe a teeny tiny bit of panicked biscuit-eating). After all, no one wants to pay five-star prices for a holiday that feels more like an episode of Survivor.

My heart broke for the industry. Hotels scrambling to meet new hygiene standards, airlines reinventing their refund policies faster than Netflix cancels new series, and travellers mourning lost holidays like their first teenage heartbreak.

Meanwhile, the UK government did its bit by ending the VAT retail export scheme in 2021, inadvertently handing Paris and Milan the tax-free shopping crown and making London about as financially attractive as buying petrol at motorway services.

Luxury Travel During the Pandemic: A Bizarre Reinvention

Interestingly, amidst the chaos, something rather magical happened. Luxury travel, stripped of its glossy veneer, began to reinvent itself. Staycations became surprisingly posh. Cornwall was the new Caribbean (minus the sun), and Devon’s cream teas rivalled any five-star patisserie (though don’t even start on the cream-first versus jam-first debate—wars have started for less).

Domestic travel became our lifeline. Suddenly, a weekend at a Yorkshire country estate or a Scottish loch-side lodge felt as exotic and exclusive as a private island in Fiji—especially if it involved navigating local COVID restrictions that changed more often than British weather.

Travel providers adapted too. Hygiene went from something discreetly done at 3 am by housekeeping elves to front-and-centre selling points. "Clinically clean suites" became as desirable as ocean views, and private experiences surged in popularity because, let’s face it, who wanted to share a lift, let alone a buffet?

The Post-Pandemic Hangover: Quality, Value, and a Dash of Inflation

As restrictions eased, the industry didn’t bounce back—it crawled back, slightly dazed and clutching a bottle of overpriced hand sanitiser. Luxury travellers emerged changed, no longer satisfied with mere opulence. Now, authenticity, immersive experiences, and sustainability topped wish lists.

However, just as luxury travel found its groove again, the economy decided it hadn’t quite tortured us enough. Enter the cost-of-living crisis: the villain of our modern fairytale. Suddenly, luxury travel wasn’t immune from belt-tightening—no matter how designer that belt might be.

Travellers started scrutinising every pound spent. Was the experience truly luxurious, or was it just overpriced and underwhelming? Was that private safari lodge worth the remortgage-level costs, or was a cheeky weekend in Lisbon equally fabulous?

This became my cue to stay on pause a little longer. Luxury travel had become somewhat bipolar: prices surged, yet value wasn’t always obvious. It felt irresponsible to recommend five-star indulgences when some providers were struggling to offer three-star value.

2023–2025: The New Era of Luxury (Or, Why Beth’s Back!)

Fast forward to today. After years of watching, waiting, and far too much comfort eating, luxury travel has finally settled into a gorgeous, confident new chapter. Market predictions now show robust growth, and the luxury travel landscape feels more vibrant, diverse, and innovative than ever.

Today’s luxury traveller is younger, savvier, and expects experiences richer in culture, authenticity, and sustainability. Hotels like Claridge's parent company, Maybourne, are boldly expanding, confident that luxury travel’s future is bright—and they're not wrong.

Yet, the challenges remain: air passenger duties have soared, tax-free shopping remains elusive, and prices for top-tier experiences have climbed higher than interest rates. Despite these headwinds, the industry is back to delivering genuine, memorable value, precisely why I've finally pressed play on my business again.

Why Now? Because Luxury is Finally Luxurious Again

My decision to resume Dream Fly Chill (shameless plug—please do follow) wasn’t based on sheer impatience or fear of my family discovering that I’m no Nigella Lawson after all. Instead, it’s rooted in a passionate belief that luxury travel has found its rhythm again.

My clients deserve genuine luxury: meaningful, expertly curated, utterly unforgettable holidays. And now, the industry can deliver that promise once more. Personalisation, immersive local experiences, and sustainability are no longer buzzwords—they’re standard. Flexible bookings, personalised attention, and genuine value-for-money have returned.

So here we are: back at the kitchen table, the world is open again, and my calendar is joyfully crowded with Maldives, Mauritius, and Kenya. Only this time, I’m wiser, wittier (or so I claim), and far clearer about the value I offer.

And Finally…

If COVID taught me anything, it’s to value authentic connections, unforgettable experiences, and—perhaps most crucially—the importance of flexibility (not just in booking terms, but also yoga and jeans size). Luxury travel is about joy, memories, and the stories you tell long after the tan fades.

So let’s travel again, shall we? After all, life’s too short not to have the occasional glass of champagne at 35,000 feet. Cheers!