Wealthy Americans are vacationing in style this summer, eschewing luxury hotels for $20,000-a-week villas.
Industry professionals say people are flocking to Europe, but more of them are choosing to rent sprawling estates.
Wealthy tourists now choose to book entire homes when they travel because they don’t want to share swimming pools, restaurants or other amenities with strangers.
They seek complete privacy not offered by the five-star hotels and resorts they once went to.
The pandemic is said to have spurred the growth of the luxury home rental industry as those who can now afford it don’t want to interact with strangers.
Wealthy Americans will vacation in style this summer, eschewing luxury hotels for $20,000-a-week villas
David Bell, from Chicago, likes to travel to Europe and hosts a houseful of guests of about 15 people.
He paid for a $20,200-a-week villa on a multi-building complex in Languedoc, southwest France, in July for his friends to join him.
The luxury residence has 11 bedrooms and eight bathrooms and a stone house is the center of the 630-acre estate.
Bell, 74, is a retired theater professional and he invites industry people as well as friends, including Chicago celebrity chef Rick Bayless.
“We do day trips and invite a local chef to cook,” he told the Wall Street Journal.
He added that “imprisonment” in a villa rather than a hotel allows him to disconnect from the world of technology and reset with his close friends.
Bell pays the cost of the rent, while his guests pay for the extras, including dining at restaurants.
Antonio Bertone and Alexandra Drane from Boston have been renting a modern villa in northwest Sicily for the past few years.
She added that another reason for the surge in rental bookings is due to the use of luxury villas in popular TV shows, such as this one from HBO’s The White Lotus.
The White Lotus villa contains this remarkable pool room
Located in Italy, Villa Centinale has also proved popular with American tourists
Wealthy Americans shun luxury European hotels for $20,000 a week villas because they no longer want to share pools or other amenities with strangers
They own a natural wine business and end up spending about $27,450 a week on a five-bedroom oceanfront estate that Antonio says “feels like our home now.”
Richard and Roberta Terapak, from Columbus, Ohio, have booked a villa in Greece to enjoy with their large group of friends.
The eight-bedroom property in Syros Island comes with an infinity pool, two private beaches and two tennis courts.
The couple in their 70s and a total of 28 couples will stay there for four weeks at a cost of just under $110,000.
Richard, a retired lawyer, said: ‘The bedrooms all have en-suite bathrooms, which is critical as old people don’t like to share.’
New Jersey couple Evans Gebhardt and Tanya Tuccillo, in their early sixties, have booked a stay in a villa on the French island of Corsica.
They paid $15,600 a week for the seven-bedroom property with a tiered infinity, breathtaking views of the sea and a network of terraces.
The couple have been looking at holiday rentals since the 1980s and now use a UK-based agency called Thinking Traveler to choose the ideal home.
Richard and Roberta Terapak, from Columbus, Ohio, have booked a villa in Greece to enjoy with their large group of friends
Chicago’s David Bell likes to go to Europe to host a houseful of guests, and he likes to do it in style. For him, that means finding a swanky luxury rental
Industry professionals say people are flocking to Europe, but more of them are choosing to rent sprawling estates
Experts say travelers seek complete privacy not offered by the five-star hotels and resorts they once went to
The pandemic is credited with boosting the growth of the luxury home rental industry as those who can afford it now don’t want to interact with strangers
Oliver Bell, co-founder of Oliver’s Travels, said his businesses have doubled in size since 2019.
He believes the privacy of not sharing a pool or restaurants is the main reason why more people choose a villa.
Luxury rentals, concierge services, excursions and expert local advice are also added benefits.
Demand has been high this summer, and his agency has rented three dozen villas with peak prices in excess of $130,000 a week.
Fischer Travel Enterprises clients in New York City pay a $150,000 application fee and $25,000 in annual fees.
The travel consultancy has booked clients for an apartment in Paris costing $60,600 per night this summer.
The most popular destinations were Italy, France, Greece, but Portugal is now getting more interest.
Clients usually fly to Europe on private planes or use helicopters to get to the villa.
New Jersey couple Evan Gebhardt and Tanya Tuccillo, in their early sixties, have booked a stay in a villa on the French island of Corsica
Cala d’Istria in Corsica is known for its stunning views
The most popular destinations are Italy, but also France, Greece and Portugal
There has been a lot of demand this summer and his agency has rented three dozen villas with peak prices of more than $130,000 a week
The privacy of not sharing a pool or restaurants is the main reason why more people choose villas
“Having a helicopter land near a villa is pretty typical,” said Dee Branciforte, executive vice president at Fischer Travel Enterprises.
For security, guests can use the special services that come with the villa, use their own security staff, or ask her agency to hire some.
She added that another reason for the surge in rental bookings is due to the use of luxury villas in popular television shows such as HBO’s The White Lotus and Succession.
“Some clients come to us and say, ‘I saw this villa on TV,’ and then we start vetting,” Branciforte said.
UK-based Abercrombie & Kent Villas has a 17th-century Tuscan villa near Sienna that was listed on Succession in its portfolio for about $69,600 a week.
It has a garden with antique statues and vine-covered pergolas.
While a 16th century palazzo in Palermo used in The White Lotus is available for $46,500 a week.
The luxury residence has reception rooms with fanciful trompe l’oeil frescoes.