What’s to Come in 2024 From The Luxury Collection Portfolio by Marriott International

With more than 100 hotels and resorts around the globe, The Luxury Collection by Marriott International offers advisors a formidable portfolio of dazzling properties to consider for clients, from Solaz, a Luxury Collection Resort, Los Cabos in Mexico to The Naka Island, a Luxury Collection Resort and Spa, Phuket in Thailand.

Chosen with “global explorers” in mind, properties in the collection are singular in their design and made to reflect the destination at every turn, so that travelers feel immersed in the locale — even if that happens to be the hotel’s parlor or garden. 

Now, The Luxury Collection is growing in response to increasing demand for distinct and characterful properties. We spoke with Philipp Weghmann, vice president and global brand leader for The Luxury Collection, to hear about his journey to the role and what’s in the pipeline for the brand’s portfolio.

You have been with The Luxury Collection since 2021, and previously worked for Preferred Hotels and Resorts, but what drew you to the travel industry even before those positions?

My father worked in the steel industry and traveled a lot, and my mother was a travel agent — and still is, at age 75 — so I had the travel bug from an early age. I traveled all over Europe, where I grew up. And my mother specialized in Australia and South Africa, so I spent time adventuring in South Africa with her. That’s how I decided, ‘I’ve got to get into this business.’ Hotels are one path to it, and that’s the route I took.

I studied hotel management at Hotelschool the Hague in the Netherlands, and my first job was at Table Bay resort in Cape Town. I worked in all different departments there, including housekeeping and bartending — I was even the pool boy for a few months. It was cross-training that got me familiar with every facet of a hotel. Then I moved into consulting, and then into the brand side of things and running portfolios.

What makes the hotels within The Luxury Collection portfolio stand out from the crowd?

The advisor community knows our brand well because it’s been around for so long. Really, it’s the original collection brand, by any of the chains, and it’s a wonderful mix of two worlds. You have the substance that a name like Marriott ensures, such as brand standards and training for all the staff — this may be back-of-house stuff and not as obvious, but it has to be there for a great guest experience. Then, the guest-facing experience is unique to each hotel, as you’d find at a truly independent hotel.

And for advisors, it’s a portfolio for clients looking to explore; those who want a property that’s a bit more representative of the destination. The way we think about everything, from food and beverage to design and programming, is hyper local. You are truly immersed in the place you’ve traveled to, so the memory imprint will be deeper. And the quality assurance is there — it sits at that intersection, and that makes the portfolio a great solution.

Tell us about the portfolio in terms of numbers and growth. 

We have 115 properties open, and almost 30 signed deals in the pipeline — last year was a record year, with 17 new signings. It’s a luxury brand, so we’re not signing and opening 50 hotels a year, and that probably won't happen in the future. 

RELATED: Travelers Are Likely to Maintain or Increase Hotel Stays in 2024

But the growth momentum is there, because there’s a lot of demand from consumers, so owners are more interested in the brand and want to develop. This is a big opening year — we will have 10 to 12 properties opening, and that's a lot for any brand in the luxury space. We’re moving the needle by adding completely new markets and growing previous ones. We stand out because, if you like our brand, our footprint is good; you can stay with us in lots of places, in interesting destinations for soft adventure or gateway cities.

What markets and properties should advisors look out for this year?

We’re re-entering Germany in June, with Koenigshof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Munich. We are entering Sri Lanka, with a very modern newbuild in Colombo, and toward the end of the year, we’re entering Barbados. Those are three new countries for us.

Then, we have lots of great additions in places where we already have a wonderful portfolio, but we’re filling a gap. For example, in Turkey, we have three Luxury Collection properties but not one in Istanbul, so we’re set to open there this month with Sanasaryan Ha, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Istanbul. In Saudi Arabia, we already have Assila, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Jedda, and we’re opening a resort on Sindalah Island in Saudi this year, too.

In Greece, we’re adding Patmos, a lesser-known island. And we’re adding in Indonesia, as well — we’re already in Bali, but now we will open in Labuan Bajo, which is again lesser-known, but it won’t be 10 years from now. We’re the pioneering brand there, if you will. Then, in Mexico’s Isla Mujeres, we’re opening the second all-inclusive property of the brand. And we’re opening in Macau, China, and in Nice, France.

RELATED: These Are the Top Luxury Destinations for 2024

The Nice property has been in the making for 10 years, and it may be the most interesting of them all. It’s in an old convent in the old town of Nice, and it’s spectacular, with just under 100 keys. The architecture and people who live there have been considered. The community around has been supportive, because the hotel will have deep ties to it — we’ll even host the farmers market in the convent twice a week.

That’s a diverse list for travel advisors to keep handy.

It really is. If advisors have clients who like to go off the beaten path, we’re a good brand, with properties in dozens of places that aren’t your classic vacation spots. For example, in Indonesia, you can go to Bali — and you should — but just an hour away is the incredible Labuan Bajo, where komodo dragons live. So, stay with us and explore Indonesia in a different way. In the Greek islands, we’re in Santorini and Mykonos and Crete, but two years ago we opened in Paros; it’s a little more affordable, and not as busy as Mykonos. And Padmos is next, which is even less known. 

The brand’s Global Explorer program is also intriguing. Can you tell us about that?

Many brands have ‘brand ambassadors,’ but we don’t call them that, because we don’t really think of them as people who just show up at events twice a year and lend their name. Instead, we want people who are aligned with our brand’s values, and who are really interested in one of the spaces we are most passionate about — local experiences, the arts, cuisine — and all ideally looked at with the lens of sustainability. When we partner with people, it’s usually a long-term partnership. Global Explorers travel to some of our hotels, and we don’t tell them where; they choose places they’re passionate or curious about.

Global Explorer Laila Gohar, for example, chose Los Angeles, because she’d lived there before; Paris, where she spends a lot of time; and Japan, because she had a deep interest in learning more about the country. So, our Global Explorers go, get inspired by the destinations and then create products for us, which we use and retail, as well. Laila created a beautiful barware collection for us — martini glasses inspired by our hotel in L.A., an incredible cobalt Champagne coupe inspired by Paris and sake glasses inspired by Japan.

Is there anything else you’d like to draw advisors’ attention to?

We’d love advisors to note that the iconic Royal Hawaiian, a Luxury Collection Hotel on Oahu, is celebrating 100 years in 2027, and it’s kicking off a major renovation soon. The hotel is great as it is, but this renovation will make it even more of a shining star. Also, we just reopened the Solaz in Los Cabos, which closed in the pandemic. And then, a property that sometimes gets overlooked is Las Alcobas in Mexico City. This is one of my favorites — a 30-room hotel in one of the best neighborhoods of the city — so keep this one in mind for clients.