We live in an ever-changing world where different people, cultures, and lifestyles are blending together to create new trends that impact our society and reach the hospitality industry. Travelers are no longer just looking for a place to sleep, but are looking for an unforgettable experience filled with exploration and local interaction.
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On the site of the historic Portland Press Herald building in Maine, Portland's first boutique hotel opens its doors in May 2015. The design promises to be out-of-the-ordinary, with references to the old newspaper business--a letterpress wall sculpture at the lobby, and guestrooms inspired by a 1920s journalist's office--as well as local art displayed throughout. The Press Hotel is the newest pearl in the growing string of Marriott International's boutique hotel brand, Autograph Collection. It is also another sign of how large chains are evolving to survive in a market increasingly dominated by the millennials.
It's inevitable that millennials -- or Generation Y -- are going to play a huge role in shaping the hospitality industry over the next decade. Currently, one-third of all travelers are millennials -- a percentage that will only increase. By 2020, it's projected that half of the money spent in the travel sector will come out of the pockets of millennials.
2015, more so than years past, appears to be the year of the millennial traveler arriving on the market: the average millennial plans to take nine trips (includes short and long trips) this year, and 50% say they plan to spend more on travel in 2015. Such statistics makes it hard for hotels to ignore this fact: millennials are currently shaping the travel market.