'Big Fish', one of the new breeds of "ultimate adventure boats"

The article looks at the recent phenomenon of luxury consumers swapping their holidays in warmer climes such as the Caribbean for adventurous ‘ice cruises’. Passengers about vessels equipped for navigating icy waters even have the option to explore ‘off road’ waters.

Neil Cheston, Director of Yacht Sales ad Charter at YCO Yacht explaines that one of the reasons there he is seeing a rise in the popularity of ice sailing is its exclusivity.

“…luxury has evolved to mean more than just expensive, the emphasis is also on exclusive. Our clients want to get off the beaten track, to discover something that all their friends haven’t seen and, equally important, to find somewhere where they can be totally alone with friends and family.”

Passengers on these $235,000 a week chartered cruises are said to get a thrill from visiting areas which have rarely seen human exploration. This ties into the recent trend of building custom yachts to seek alternative and exclusive cruising grounds.

I think that this idea of luxury as something exclusive and private, not just expensive, certainly mirrors my research and experience. As global wealth rises and luxury spending increases in Asia and the BRIC countries, luxury can no longer be defined simply by a hefty price tag. This can particularly be applied to Lambdas personalities, who seek achievement and uniqueness as an ultimate end goal. For them, to holiday somewhere that few people can claim to have been is likely to be appealing, as it would be seen as an experience to help them stand out from the crowd.