The Staying Power Of Expensive Vacations
The Four Seasons-branded Boeing 757 known as the Four Seasons Jet was created as a way to revolutionize travel. In 2015, the Four Seasons Jet set off on two globetrotting trips: Around the World, which took off in February, and Around the World, which departed in August. A third trip — Backstage With the Arts tour — took off to several popular European cities in April. The luxury trips included multiple stops in multiple cities, like Paris, Milan, Istanbul, and St. Petersburg. But a recent New York Times T magazine editorial begs the question: Is it too much of a good thing?
The editorial, penned by David Brooks, discusses the issues with returning to life in the real world after a Four Seasons trip. “Then there’s the luxury of service — having people around at each instant to take care of stuff so you can think about something else. This trip had a lot of the latter luxury. When I left the tour and returned to real life, I endured shambolic security lines, inexplicable delays and a four-hour layover sitting on the floor of the Casablanca airport, thinking it was nothing like the movie.”
Touting both the benefits and the pitfalls of luxury travel, Brooks’ discussion morphs into an existential conversation of the merits of high-class travel. Brooks writes: “For most people on this particular trip, money did not backfire. They were enthusiastic about the experiences and happy to be making new friends and traveling in this self-contained luxury caravan. Plus, it’s important not to romanticize hassle. It’s one thing to say you should have an authentic travel experience with the people, but sometimes sitting for four hours on the floor of the Casablanca airport is just a useless pain. If you’ve got money, one of the best ways to spend it is on things that will save you time.”
