Luxury that lasts: Rethinking premium travel from the inside out

Are we chasing chandeliers, but missing connection?

The illusion of luxury

In a recent Helsingin Sanomat column, Verna Vuoripuro wrote:

“In Finland we don't really understand what luxury is.”

She continued:

“We won’t truly understand ultra-luxury until we start caring about how the experience feels.”(“Emme kuitenkaan ymmärrä ultraluksusta ennen kuin kiinnostumme myös siitä, miltä kokemus tuntuu.”)

She was reflecting on Hotel Maria, a Helsinki-based “ultra-luxury” hotel that launched in 2023 with grand promises and a polished exterior: 159 chandeliers, 31 types of champagne, marble surfaces, thick mattresses, and PR quotes in The New York Times. Less than two years later, the hotel had changed ownership, and the original backers had exited.

Now, we don't claim to know what happened exactly: which decisions were made, at what point, or why. Our reflections aren’t about that specific business. They’re about the broader pattern. One we’ve seen, felt, and heard across the field.

Because what the case represents is bigger than one address. It’s about a misunderstanding in the premium travel space: Luxury isn’t about more. It’s about meaning.

It’s not about how expensive the premises look. It’s about how a guest feels when they arrive. And how long that feeling stays with them after they’ve left.

The quiet pattern: When small brands think big but feel empty

The mentioned story may be high-profile, but it reflects something we’ve seen play out in quieter ways across the industry.

The same challenges surface in smaller, boutique-level companies far from city centres: There’s a hunger to grow. A desire to be perceived as “premium.” The branding looks as impressive as the shiny bathroom surfaces. But there’s little clarity on the emotional core of the brand.

• Who is this really for?

• What is this experience supposed to feel like?

• What do we want guests to remember beyond the scenery?

And seasonality adds another layer. Teams often change from one winter to the next. The people holding the guest experience this year may not be the same next year. When that happens, much of the soul – the tone, the atmosphere – gets lost.

If a company hasn’t clearly defined what it stands for – what kind of emotional environment it wants to create – how can new team members carry it forward?

Too often, new staff are taught procedure, not true presence. In short: They’re told how to carry a tray, but not how to carry the brand. And when even leadership can’t clearly articulate the “feel” of the experience, it becomes impossible to train for it.

The result? Service that’s polite but hollow. Impressive spaces without emotional depth – and without long-term loyalty, trust, or responsibility embedded in the experience.

Sustainability begins within. In how we care for our people, our communities, and the places we call home. Not just for the guests, but for everyone and everything involved.

What real, sustainable luxury travel looks like in practice?

We believe premium isn’t about polish, it’s about presence. And we help build it from the inside out.

Here’s what that looks like in real terms:

Designing guest journeys that respond to emotional states

Not just building itineraries, but designing rhythms. That might mean creating grounding space for arrival decompression, or unstructured, soft time between activities.

It’s about knowing when your guest likely needs to feel energised, and when they might just need a warm silence and no questions asked.

This is where sustainability meets empathy: it’s not about packing in more activities. It’s about choosing better ones, the locally rooted, less extractive, more emotionally aligned with what the guest needs.

Building operational systems where the best feedback is: “I didn’t even have to ask”

Emotional awareness shouldn’t be silenced – it should be celebrated.

Noticing when a guest needs stillness instead of chatter. Offering a quiet moment instead of a cleared table. Having allergy-friendly or vegetarian options already in place. Spotting when a parent needs five minutes to breathe – and making it happen without fuss.

These moments don’t require extra budget. Just permission to care. Care for the guest, for the team, and for the footprint the business leaves behind.

Creating staff confidence through care, not just rules

Seasonal or not, staff are the soul of any premium experience.

When they’re rushed through onboarding and trained only in mechanics, they don’t have the confidence or capacity to care. But when they understand why the experience matters – and what their role in it is – they show up differently.

We help companies build team rituals, values-based training, and micro-moments of ownership that lift everyone’s emotional commitment.

Marketing with soul: knowing exactly who your experience is for

Premium marketing isn’t about attracting everyone. It’s about calling in the right ones.

This means digging deep into client psychology, designing your tone and message with emotional accuracy, and building identity-driven experiences that say: “This is for you, not the masses.”

Where luxury meets responsibility

We don’t believe in surface-level upgrades. We believe in emotionally intelligent growth that aligns with long-term responsibility.

At Flow Forward, we help our clients ask better questions – and build better answers into everything they do:

• Who are we really designing this for?

• What do we want them to feel?

• Where in our journey do we leave the impression that lasts?

  
  

We work behind the scenes on strategy, guest experience, team clarity, and brand tone.

We partner with premium travel brands that want to show up with care, intention, and real staying power – for their guests and for the places they operate in.

Because for us, sustainability isn’t a feature. It’s the context.

Closing thoughts: Rewriting the rules of premium

Tourism is growing up. The question isn’t whether premium will survive, it’s whether it will evolve.

The future of luxury travel isn’t louder, shinier, or more exclusive.

It’s sharper. Deeper. More emotionally intelligent.

It’s rooted in meaning, and built to last.

And the brands who choose to lead with connection, care, and responsibility will be the ones remembered.

The guests may be dazzled by the dozens of chandeliers. But that’s not why they come back. And it’s rarely what stays with them.

The real dazzle? The care you show – not just for them, but for your team, your community, and your place.

What lingers is the feeling of being met and cared for in ways they didn’t expect.