The world of luxury travel is evolving, with many high-net-worth families shifting away from traditional sightseeing or beach holidays in favor of trips that emphasize shared experiences and cultural immersion. This type of “experiential tourism” allows travelers to learn new skills or engage in activities that they may not get to try otherwise.
“Post-pandemic, we’ve seen a growing trend for travel to be about an experience, an opportunity to learn and grow as a person and be inspired,” says Angie O’Leary, head of Wealth Strategies and Solutions at RBC Wealth Management–U.S. “Fewer clients are wanting to sit on a lounge chair under an umbrella.”
Today, high-net-worth families are increasingly opting for unique getaways that offer hyper-personalization and exclusivity, such as private educational tours, once-in-a-lifetime adventure travel and multigenerational trips to make memories with extended family.
Here are some considerations for families looking to book their next trip.
Private aviation for seamless travel
In an era where time is the ultimate luxury, more high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth families are using “jet cards” for access to private planes, says Liz Jacovino, a wealth strategist for RBC Wealth Management–U.S.
“Many of our clients ask us to help them budget for a jet card that provides them with a specific number of hours on a certain size plane,” says Jacovino. “For example, a family of five might purchase a card for 30 flight hours on a six-person plane.”
Jet cards are particularly useful when traveling to less commercially accessible locations, such as remote ski resorts or private islands that would require several connecting flights to visit.
“They’re paying for the convenience, so they spend less time in layovers and more time enjoying the experience,” Jacovino says, adding that families who own their own plane need a substantially larger budget to cover upkeep, fuel costs and hanger fees.
How to determine your travel budget
Travel is a constant for most wealthy families, Jacovino says, but the annual amount spent varies, as some years a family might plan a special trip or pay for extended family members, while other years might be more low-key.
“For the families we work with, travel is often the third item of importance in their wealth plan, after daily living expenses and health care needs,” she says.
According to the 2025 Luxury Travel Report by Preferred Hotels & Resorts, affluent travelers have an average of eight leisure trips planned in the next year, with three of those being international.
The amount a family should budget for travel depends on their individual appetites and life stages. For example, more money is often allocated for travel during the “go-go” phase of early retirement.
“We usually budget five to 10 percent of all spending on travel, but sometimes we go up to 20 percent if the clients really have the travel bug,” O’Leary says.
Paying for luxury travel
Depending on a family’s sources of income, sometimes cash flow isn’t consistent with vacation planning. For example, people who receive most of their income from quarterly commissions or a year-end bonus may want to look at other options to fund travel instead of putting it on a credit card, says Matt Franks, head of Wealth Management Lending at RBC Wealth Management–U.S.
“One way to bridge a three-to-six-month gap is to pledge your assets for a line of credit, make interest-only payments and then pay it in full when your cash arrives, such as when your bonus comes in or you get a distribution from your business,” Franks says.
Your financial advisor can help determine an appropriate borrowing level for your situation, but generally Franks recommends keeping total borrowing against your portfolio to under half—usually 25 to 40 percent—of what you could borrow.
“Avoid anything that doesn’t give you flexibility,” Franks says. “You don’t want to borrow $12,000 and have to make $1,000 mandatory monthly payments when you could be paying only interest each month on a line of credit. Interest rates are important for anything you borrow, but you also need to pay attention to flexibility.”
Managing expectations
Ultimately, even high-net-worth families don’t have unlimited time or money for travel, so it’s important for families to be realistic about their vacation plans each year. For those who want to treat their extended family to vacations, it may be wise to take an every-other-year approach.
”It’s important to manage expectations so people don’t assume that each trip will be bigger and better than the last,” O’Leary says. “Maybe you go all-out one year and then do a simpler, less costly option, such as renting a mountain cabin for a week, the following year.”