Recent data from global luxury travel network Virtuoso suggests that summer travel as we know it might finally be shifting, but not in the way you might expect. Rather than changing where they travel, UHNWIs are shifting when.
Fall travel, once considered ‘shoulder season’, is now steadily stealing the spotlight – autumn 2026 bookings across Virtuoso’s network are up 59 percent, with sales up 69 percent.
The numbers suggest that September in particular is closing the gap with August. In 2023, September bookings in Europe were equivalent to 79 percent of August’s volume. By 2025, this climbed to 92 percent, with September growing almost three times faster than August over the same period. September sales alone were up 77 percent, with November also seeing an increase of more than 70 percent. Virtuoso’s pacing data suggests that September could even outsell August this year.
Each spring there is talk of the end of ‘Euro summer,’ yet, year upon year, crowded yacht ports and overbooked beach clubs prove otherwise. Looking regionally, though summer has not lost its grip on Europe – yet – Virtuoso’s data points to a crack in July and August’s monopoly. This fall, European bookings climbed 49 percent, even as rates rose (autumn prices have increased by seven percent), suggesting travelers are actively choosing the season, rather than settling.
There are obvious practical reasons for the shift. Europe has endured successive heatwaves this summer, with Western Europe recording its hottest June-to-July period on record, while wildfires have affected areas across Greece, Portugal, France, Spain, and Italy.
Temperatures that were once typical of July and August are increasingly extending into September and October, and fall in Europe means warm seas and slightly quieter cultural attractions, with the end of school holidays limiting family travel.
The rise of wellness travel may also play into this seasonal shift. Virtuoso’s advisor data shows wellness-segmented hotels outpacing the broader hotel portfolio, with bookings up 28 percent and sales rising by 44 percent.
Three types of wellness travelers are emerging, according to the report: the performance optimizer, interested in measurable, data-driven results; the restoration seeker, who wants to immerse themselves in nature and take a break from modern technologies; and the meaning seeker, drawn to mindfulness and retreats designed around mental development.
For this growing group of travelers, vacation priorities don’t necessarily depend on the peak of summer. As wellness travel continues to rise, the trend could further blur the traditional travel calendar, pushing demand beyond shoulder season and towards the increasingly popular ‘coolcation’.
