The Future of Experiential Hospitality with Paul Boldy

In this paper, Paul shares his knowledge and experience of designing for the experiential traveller, delving into subtle differences in mindset across different generations and demographics. Paul explores the importance of placemaking and honouring the identity of a destination to allow for cultural immersion. He also discusses integrating wellness into a guests journey, and blending wellness with culture to create deep emotional loyalty.

“As we re-imagine what the future of travel and tourism looks like, we arrive at a profound truth, and that is that experiential travel is no longer a niche, it is fundamental to the future of tourism.”

Read the full whitepaper here.

Experiential travel is not defined by age or budget. It is a mindset that spans generations and demographics. From Baby Boomers to Gen Z, the experiential guest seeks meaning, connection, and depth. They want to participate in culture, not just observe it, they crave wellness as a lifestyle, not a luxury, and they expect personalization, authenticity, and purpose led travel at every touch point. There is also a segment that we must not ignore, and that is the corporate traveller, and the bleisure seeker. This group is reshaping how we think about business travel, as the traditional segmentation between work and leisure is dissolving. Although there are common goals, the mindset does manifest itself differently across the generations. These subtle differences impact how we think about design and operational service for a hospitality asset.

"Ultimately, experiential hospitality design is about crafting emotional resonance. A hotel should do more than impress, it should understand its sense of place."

Baby Boomers (1946-1964)

Seeking meaningful cultural enrichment and comfort, they value well-curated experiences that deepen their understanding of heritage, cuisine, and history, often with a touch of luxury and personal connection.

Gen X (1965-1980)

Independent and pragmatic, they prioritize authentic, off-the-beaten-path adventures with flexibility, often blending family travel with opportunities for personal discovery and local immersion.

Millennials (1981-1996)

Experience-driven and purpose-led, they crave immersive, social media worthy moments that align with their values, from wellness and sustainability to community engagement and self-expression.

Gen Z (1997-2012)

Digital natives with a social conscience, they seek bold, interactive experiences that foster creativity, identity exploration, and real-time storytelling, often choosing destinations that reflect inclusivity and environmental awareness.

Gen Alpha (2012-2025)

Shaped by tech and sustainability from birth, they are beginning to engage in travel through multi-sensory, educational, and gamified experiences, which connect fun with learning and global awareness.

Bleisure Seeker (Business travel with leisure time)

Blending work with exploration, they seek seamless transitions between productivity and personal enrichment, and value curated local experiences, wellness options, and flexible stays that transform business trips into purposeful journeys.

Although the mindset across the generations and demographics varies in terms of the nuances of their preferred travel, they all share four core expectations:

• Authenticity (local culture, traditions, and community engagement)

• Personalization (bespoke experiences tailored to their interests, curated spaces, and flexibility)

• Wellness (integrating wellness into daily routines through sleep, nutrition, movement, and mindfulness)

• Sustainability (ethical sourcing, regenerative tourism, and environmental responsibility)

Hospitality design must evolve to serve these values. The hotel is no longer just a space to sleep, or eat, it is a platform for engagement, healing, and storytelling. This requires a rethink as to how we design, develop, and deliver hospitality space.

The future of hospitality design is grounded in the key principles of placemaking, cultural curation, wellness rooted in place, and community integration.

Cultural immersion begins with placemaking, the intentional shaping of spaces that honour the identity of a destination. Hotels and hospitality assets must go beyond being passive observers of culture, they must function as cultural curators by amplifying and celebrating the unique narrative, heritage, and spirit of a place.

international trends, these elements tell stories that no catalogue can reproduce. Design that responds to its surroundings fosters a sense of emotional connection and deepens the guest’s cultural immersion.

But design must go beyond representation, and it must enable participation. This means designing spaces that invite engagement, not just observation. Imagine open artisan studios, storytelling amphitheatres, or rooftop spaces re-imagined as cultural gardens. Regional music and dance can be celebrated through interactive workshops, even scent and sound design can evoke heritage. The experience is no longer peripheral, it is central to the experience.

We must create interactive environments where guests can make, move, reflect, and learn. In this regard, culture becomes the foreground of the experience, not a backdrop. The hotel becomes a steward of its surroundings, a connector between visitor and community, and a contributor to the living legacy of the destination. This is not simply about aesthetics it is about building belonging, understanding, and transformative encounters that endure long after checkout.

Wellness in experiential travel is not defined by spa menus or the latest wellness trend, it is holistic, ambient, and often invisible. Hospitality design must therefore integrate wellness into the very fabric of a guest’s journey, using spatial, material, and sensory cues.

Experiential travellers want to align with the tempo and rhythm of the destination and therefore hotels should be designed to respond to seasonality, festivals, climate cycles, and cultural calendars. Temporal design principles in hospitality spaces can reveal different atmospheres at various times of the day, month, or year, and create a rhythm and resonance in a guest’s memory.

Cultural immersion is often impossible to achieve without the community. Hotels must therefore be designed as bridges between guests and hosts, and not as enclaves. This

approach often starts at the public areas and public realm, with activated streetscapes, public cafés, maker spaces, and event plazas that are open to all. This approach is about designing for exchange, not exclusion.

With community-centric design, food and beverage spaces can double as cooking schools, lobbies can function as cultural galleries, and even back-of-house areas can include community kitchens or co-op supply chains, with procurement prioritising local artisans, farmers, and producers.

These moments of connection foster empathy, break stereotypes, and create value on both sides of the check-in desk.

Experiential travellers care deeply about their footprint. They want to know that their presence is contributing to local livelihoods, preserving culture, and protecting nature. Hotels must be more than revenue generators, they must be regenerative, and hospitality design plays a pivot role in this approach.

Regenerative tourism, where guests give more than they take, is increasingly important. Low-impact construction using regional materials, water-conscious strategies, and grey water reuse contribute to this cause, as do local partnerships that extend into employment, artisan support, nature preservation, and micro-enterprise. These are not extras in experiential hospitality design, they are essentials.

Hotels that demonstrate full circle economies, with ethical sourcing, low[1]impact design, waste minimization, and active community partnerships are more likely to earn guest loyalty.

"As we re-imagine what the future of travel and tourism looks like, we arrive at a profound truth, and that is that experiential travel is no longer a niche, it is fundamental to the future of tourism".

Experiential travel is not a trend, it is a transformation, and hospitality design is the translator of the meaning. To truly deliver cultural immersion, holistic wellness rooted in place, and community engagement, hospitality design must shift from spectacle to significance, from consumption to connection, and from service to stewardship.

The future of hospitality design lies in spaces that are as emotionally intelligent as they are beautiful, places where guests feel more connected to the land, the people, and themselves. In a world saturated with places to stay, we must create places that stay with you. And the benefits are real, for developers, owners, and operators alike, with these initiatives unlocking real return on investment (ROI). Properties with cultural programming enjoy higher average daily rates (ADR), and repeat visitation, community-integrated wellness concepts outperform generic spa offerings, and experiential travel often mitigates seasonality, by giving guests more reasons to travel off-peak. As we re-imagine what the future of travel and tourism looks like, we arrive at a profound truth, and that is that experiential travel is no longer a niche, it is fundamental to the future of tourism.

Paul Boldy
Head of Hospitality Futures

If you would like to explore any of the points raised in this paper, or discuss our experience in hospitality, or if you simply want to get in touch, please contact Paul at: paul.boldy@pragmagroup.com.