When
some of the wealthiest U.S. consumers think about how to spend
their money, their thoughts often turn to travel -- and the brand
names they prefer run the gamut from Ritz-Carlton to Starwood to
Southwest.
According to a study
compiled by Mendelsohn Media Research, about 43% of U.S. consumers
with annual household incomes of $85,000 or more (the top 22% of
U.S. consumers, Mendelsohn said) said they were planning within the
next 12 months to take a cruise or vacation outside the
U.S.
Travel appeared to be
the most popular pastime compared with other survey choices --
about 41% of respondents said they were planning to invest in
stocks and mutual funds, for example.
According to the
survey, 23% had taken a cruise within the past three years. The
most popular cruise line: Carnival Cruise Lines.
Meanwhile, another
study released by Yesawich Pepperdine Brown & Russell surveyed
brand preferences of affluent travelers -- in this case, consumers
with annual household incomes above $150,000.
Holland America Line
topped the list of nine "luxury cruise lines affluent travelers are
interested in patronizing during the next two years." Cunard and
Windstar came in second and third, respectively.
YPB&R also asked
survey respondents to pick their top three preferred hotel brands
for leisure and business travel, top three preferred independent
hotels and their top three preferred airlines. "The concept of 'value' isn't lost on well-heeled
travelers ... as evidenced by the fact that fully one out of five
affluent business travelers prefers ... Southwest," the report
said.