As a travel company looking to attract high-end clients, your website is the first impression potential customers will have of your brand. You want a design that conveys luxury, sophistication, and excellence. However, building an attractive yet functional travel website requires technical skills and can be time-consuming. With Unicorn Platform, you can create a stunning luxury travel website design without needing to code.
If you're looking to build a landing page for your travel app, check out our article on how to build your travel app landing page in minutes to learn how to create an engaging and effective landing page for your app.
Choose a Visual Style for Your Luxury Travel Website Design
To design a luxury travel website, you must first choose a visual style that evokes elegance and sophistication. There are a few options to consider:
- Minimal and Clean: A minimal design with plenty of white space and clean lines conveys a sleek, high-end feel. Use stylish sans-serif fonts, a muted color palette of grays and tans, and high-quality images of exotic destinations. This simple yet polished style is perfect for a luxury boutique travel agency.
- Vintage and Retro: For a touch of nostalgia, incorporate Art Deco elements like metallic geometric patterns, stylized travel posters from the 1920s and 30s, and a retro font. Keep the color scheme relatively minimal with burgundies, forest greens and gold accents. This glamorous vintage style is well suited for river cruises, luxury rail travel, and Gatsby-inspired getaways.
- Tuscan and Mediterranean: For a warmer luxury esthetic, use terra cotta tones, olive greens, and Mediterranean azure blues. Include graphics of Italian tile patterns, vine motifs and destination photos of villas, vineyards and Mediterranean coastlines. A stylish serif font like Garamond complements this look. This style conveys the indulgence of la dolce vita and works well for culinary, wine and European villa tours.
By selecting a cohesive visual style for your luxury travel website and using high-quality photos that match your chosen look, you'll create an elegant user experience that portrays your brand as sophisticated, exclusive and chic. With the right style in place, you can then focus on crafting persuasive copy and an intuitive user flow to convert your exclusive clientele. By following these tips, you'll have a luxury travel website design that rivals the finest resorts and charter yachts.
Selecting High-Quality Templates on Unicorn Platform
To create a luxurious travel website design, selecting high-quality templates is key. The Unicorn Platform offers professionally designed templates to get you started.
Choose a template tailored to the luxury travel niche. Options include:
- Resort and Spa - For beach resorts, mountain lodges and spa retreats. Includes images of pools, spas and upscale rooms.
- Tours and Expeditions - For safari tours, adventure travel and exotic expeditions. Includes images of jeeps, jungle scenery and outdoor activities.
- Private Jet and Yachting - For private air travel, luxury yachting and exclusive island hopping. Includes images of private jets, yachts and secluded beaches.
Next, customize the template to suit your brand. You can:
- Change the color scheme to match your company colors using the built-in color picker.
- Add your business name and logo which will display prominently at the top of your site.
- Include high-quality images that evoke a sense of luxury like marble bathrooms, infinity pools or premium cocktails.
- Share details on the lavish experiences and amenities you offer using the page builder to add text, images and videos.
- Provide visitor information and booking details for your luxury villas, tours or transport services.
With a professional template and custom features tailored to your business, you can quickly build an eye-catching travel website on the Unicorn Platform. Visitors will be enticed to book their next upscale getaway with you. Launch your site today and start receiving reservations from discerning travelers seeking an opulent escape.
Choosing a Color Palette That Evokes Luxury
To convey an air of luxury and high-end elegance on your travel website, selecting an appropriate color palette is essential. Some recommendations for color schemes that evoke opulence and sophistication include:
Rich, Vibrant Hues
Deep colors like burgundy, emerald, and gold embody lavishness and wealth. Using jewel tones, metallic, or bold accents in your header, buttons, or other key elements creates a dramatic, luxurious effect. However, be careful not to oversaturate the site with intense colors, as this can seem garish and distracting.
Elegant Neutrals
Cream, beige, light gray and muted olive shades are polished and refined. When combined with metallic or gold touches, a neutral color scheme can appear very luxe and fashionable. These muted tones allow vibrant images to stand out while keeping the overall feel of the site calm and composed.
Monochromatic Scheme
A monochromatic color palette utilizing various shades, tones and tints of a single color, such as midnight blue or forest green, cultivates a stylish minimalism. For contrast, incorporate metallic or white space. A monochromatic scheme needs texture, dimension and highlights to avoid seeming flat or drab.
- Use color psychology to your advantage. Deep red, for instance, signifies prestige and wealth.
- Pay attention to color trends in high-end retail, hotels, vehicle or interior design. Incorporate popular hues from luxury brands into your site.
- Test different color palettes using online tools to visualize how they appear together before implementing them. Get a second opinion from others as well.
- Keep accessibility in mind and ensure good contrast between text and background colors. Not all luxurious color palettes may be ADA compliant.
By selecting rich, dramatic colors and high-quality images that align with luxury travel, your website design will mirror the indulgent experiences and exclusive ambiance you aim to convey to visitors. With the right color palette, you can create a website that looks as opulent as the destinations themselves.
Use Stylish Fonts for Headings and Content
To create an elegant luxury travel website design, use stylish fonts for your headings and content. The typography you choose directly impacts the esthetic and tone of your site.
Serif Fonts for Headings
For headings, consider sophisticated serif fonts like Georgia, Garamond, or Century Schoolbook. Their classic, polished look conveys a refined sensibility perfect for a high-end travel brand. Size your primary heading (H1) quite large, around 48 to 60 pixels. Your H2 headings should be 2/3 the size of H1, H3 headings half the size of H2, and so on.
Sans Serif Fonts for Body Copy
For your main content, opt for a crisp, clean sans serif font like Arial, Helvetica, or Calibri. These modern fonts make long sections of text easy to read on both desktop and mobile devices. A font size of 16 to 20 pixels works well for most website content.
- Use font pairing tools to identify font combinations that complement each other. Two fonts from the same overarching typeface, like a serif and sans serif together often work nicely.
- Consider using a font service like Google Fonts to access stylish, web-optimized fonts for your headings and body copy. They offer many elegant serif and sans serif options ideal for a luxury brand.
- Make key terms, phrases and CTAs stand out by using a slightly larger size, different color, or all caps for those text elements. But don’t overdo it, as too many font variations can seem cluttered.
- For high contrast, pair a lighter font with a darker background. Or vice versa, a bold font on a light background. Either way, make sure there’s adequate contrast for easy reading.
By paying close attention to typography, you can craft a travel website design that looks polished, upscale, and instills confidence in your brand. Carefully chosen stylish fonts that convey your brand essence will make a lasting impression on visitors and set the right tone for a luxury experience. Focusing on these details will yield a design that appears custom-tailored for your discerning audience.
Include White Space for a Clean, Uncluttered Look
To create a luxurious travel website design, incorporate plenty of white space for a clean, uncluttered appearance.
Leave Empty Space Around Page Elements
Add padding, margins, and line height to give elements on the page room to breathe. This makes the content easier to read and gives an upscale impression. For example:
- Increase the line height of text blocks to at least 1.5 times the font size.
- Add padding of at least 10-15px around buttons, images, and other page elements.
- Use margin to separate sections from each other. A bottom margin of 30-50px creates nice separation.
Minimal Page Layout
A minimal layout with few elements gives an elegant feel. Some tips for a minimal luxury travel website design include:
- Use a simple, uncluttered page template with few sections. Focus on quality over quantity.
- Limit the number of fonts used, sticking to a single serif or sans-serif font family. Using multiple font families can seem cluttered.
- Avoid overloading pages with a multitude of large images. Select high-quality images and limit use to 2 or 3 per page.
- Use muted, natural colors in a complementary color palette. Bright colors seem cheap and cluttered. Neutral and earthy tones are luxurious.
Strategic Use of Empty Space
Don't feel the need to fill every inch of the page. Intentional use of empty space helps create balance and guides the viewer's eye. Some suggestions:
- Leave the area at the top of the page (above the header) blank. This creates a nice open feel.
- Use asymmetric page layouts, with more space on one side. The imbalance is visually interesting and chic.
- Add extra vertical space between page elements like text columns, images, and CTA buttons.
- Leave the area at the bottom of the page (below the footer) empty rather than filling it. Open space is luxurious.
Following these tips will result in a travel website design that is minimal, balanced, and upscale. Strategic use of white space and a clean uncluttered layout communicate luxury and sophistication. Keeping the page simple and uncrowded ensures an enjoyable experience for visitors.
Add Custom Graphics and Icons for Visual Interest
To give your luxury travel website design visual appeal, incorporate custom graphics and icons.
Photos
Include high-quality photos of luxury destinations, accommodations, transportation, and experiences. Use photos of scenic natural landscapes, historic architecture, posh hotel rooms, first-class cabins, gourmet meals, etc. Photos help convey the lavishness of the destinations and pique interest.
Icons
Icons are a simple way to visually represent amenities, services or interests. For example, include icons for spa, golf, skiing, butler service, etc. Icons make information quick to locate and comprehend. You can find many free icon libraries online or hire a designer to create custom icons for your brand.
Color Palette
Select a color palette in line with a luxury feel. Gold, burgundy and navy are classic, elegant options. Use the colors in your photos, icons, fonts, buttons and other design elements for a cohesive look.
Badges
Badges are a popular way to highlight amenities, services or certifications. They are essentially labels that help quickly inform users. You might include badges for things like "5-star", "Forbes rated", "condé nast approved", etc. Badges build credibility and trust.
Maps
Stylish maps help users visualize destinations and routes. Include an interactive world map highlighting luxury locations. You can also incorporate maps within destination pages or travel itinerary suggestions. Look for map designs and color schemes consistent with your luxury brand.
Fonts
Select fonts that evoke an upscale feel. Avoid anything too flashy or gimmicky. Classic serif fonts like Georgia or Times New Roman, or clean sans-serif fonts like Avenir or Helvetica, are elegant options. Use larger sizes and weight for headings and smaller, lighter sizes for body text.
In summary, photos, icons, color schemes, badges, maps and typography are all simple ways to give your luxury travel website design strong visual appeal and effectively convey your brand image. By incorporating custom graphics tailored to your niche, you'll create an experience that piques interest and builds trust in your company as a leader in luxury travel.
Include Engaging Visual Content Like Videos
Include High-Quality Photos
Luxury travel websites should feature professional photos to showcase destinations and experiences. Use photos of:
- Natural landscapes like beaches, forests, and mountains
- Iconic architecture such as historic buildings, castles or places of worship
- Unique cultural elements like traditional clothing, food, arts or landmarks
- People engaging in an activity at the location like sailing, skiing, or wine tasting
Choose photos that evoke an emotional connection and sense of adventure. For the best results, use high resolution images with vibrant colors. Photos should capture the essence and ambiance of the luxury experience you want to convey.
Include Short Video Clips
In addition to photos, include short video clips to help bring your luxury travel website to life. Some ideas for video content include:
- A highlight reel of activities, scenery and culture at the destination
- Interviews with travelers sharing their experiences
- Virtual tours of luxury resorts, spas or other amenities
- Clips of unique events like festivals, rituals or wildlife in their natural habitat
Videos are engaging and help visitors visualize what it would actually be like to visit the destination. Keep videos under 2 minutes in length and be sure to use high quality footage for the best presentation.
Embed an Interactive Map
An interactive map is an essential feature for a luxury travel website. It allows visitors to see the exact locations of destinations, attractions and points of interest. You can embed a custom Google Map on your site which allows visitors to:
- Drop pins at specific locations
- Add descriptions, photos and links for each pin
- View locations in either map or satellite imagery
- Get directions and estimated travel times between places
- Filter by the type of destination or experience they’re interested in
An interactive map gives your luxury travel website a highly useful tool for trip planning and inspiration. Visitors can easily see proximity between places that interest them and determine an itinerary for their perfect getaway.
Write Convincing Copy That Sells the Luxury Experience
To create a luxurious travel website design, compelling copy that sells the experience is essential.
Focus on benefits and transformation
Rather than listing generic features and amenities, focus your copy on the benefits and transformation of experience. Describe how guests will feel pampered, rejuvenated and inspired. Touch on the exclusivity and personalized service. For example:
“Escape the ordinary and immerse yourself in an unparalleled luxury experience. Our secluded beachfront villas and tailored amenities are designed to relax, renew and redefine.”
“From the moment you arrive, every detail of your stay will be meticulously curated to deliver a transformative luxury travel experience.”
Share the story
Help visitors visualize the experience by sharing stories and anecdotes. Describe the sounds, scents, textures, tastes and esthetics they can expect. For example:
“As night falls, the gentle lap of waves lulls you to sleep in your master suite with panoramic sea views. Awake at sunrise to the aroma of fresh island spices and locally-grown coffee, delivered with your gourmet breakfast.”
“Our sommelier handpicked the finest vintages from our cellar to pair with your private chef’s culinary creations, enjoyed al fresco under a blanket of stars.”
Focus on your unique differentiators
What sets your experience apart? Is it the location, service, amenities or all of the above? Highlight what makes your property truly one-of-a-kind. For example:
“This secluded paradise is home to the only overwater bungalows in the archipelago, featuring glass floor panels so you can admire the thriving reef below in privacy.”
“Our devoted staff take service to new heights, curating unforgettable experiences and anticipating your every need before you know to ask.”
Keep your copy concise yet compelling, with a luxurious and exclusive tone that matches your brand. By focusing on the multi-sensory experience, unique differentiators and benefits to guests, you’ll craft copy that fuels the desire for your luxury travel services.
FAQs About Building a Luxury Travel Website Design on Unicorn Platform
What page builder does Unicorn Platform use?
Unicorn Platform utilizes a drag and drop page builder, allowing you to easily create and customize pages for your luxury travel website design without any coding required. The page builder includes pre-made sections, elements and templates to help you get started. You can then customize everything - from colors and fonts to column layouts and spacing - using the intuitive visual editor.
Do I need to know how to code to use Unicorn Platform?
No, you do not need any coding experience to build a beautiful luxury travel website design with Unicorn Platform. The drag and drop page builder and other site design tools are extremely user-friendly, allowing you to create a polished website through an easy point-and-click interface. If you do have some coding experience, you have the option to access the code editor and make custom CSS or HTML changes to further customize your site. But coding knowledge is not required to get started.
How much does Unicorn Platform cost?
Unicorn Platform offers affordable monthly and annual subscription plans to suit any budget. Pricing starts at just $12 per month for the basic plan, which includes everything you need to create a luxury travel website design - from the website and blog builders to integrated ecommerce and email marketing tools. For larger businesses and travel brands, Enterprise plans with additional features and dedicated support are available. Nonprofit organizations can apply to use Unicorn Platform for free.
Can I create a multilingual website?
Yes, Unicorn Platform supports building multilingual luxury travel websites. You can easily translate your entire site - including pages, posts, products, and email newsletters - into as many languages as you need to reach your international audiences. The built-in translation tools allow you to translate content directly in the editor with machine translation, then manually review and edit the translations. You have full control over what content is shown on different language versions of your site.
How long will it take to build my luxury travel website design?
The time it takes to build your luxury travel website design depends on several factors, including:
- How many pages and what types of content (blog posts, images, videos, etc.) you want to include
- The complexity of your site design - simple vs. multi-page layouts, number of sections and elements, etc.
- How much customization you do to colors, fonts, spacing, etc. vs. using pre-made templates
- Your experience level with website building tools and the Unicorn Platform editor
On average, you can have a basic 5-10 page luxury travel website design up and running in 1-2 weeks. Complex sites with extensive content and customization may take 3-6 weeks or more to complete. The Unicorn Platform team is also
Conclusion
After reading this guide, you now have the knowledge and tools to create an eye-catching luxury travel website design with ease. Using a landing page builder like Unicorn Platform, you can choose a stylish template, add enticing images of exotic locations, and include a simple yet elegant color scheme. With a few clicks, you'll have a professional website up and running to promote your luxury travel company. Your clients will appreciate a website that matches the high-quality experience you aim to provide. With minimal time and effort, you can achieve a design that conveys sophistication and helps you stand out in this competitive industry. Launch your new website today and start attracting discerning travelers seeking bespoke getaways. Success is now within your reach.