Waking up inside an enormous tent in the Sahara Desert in Morocco, you are unlikely to miss any of the luxuries that come with a top-end hotel suite. Private bodyguards patrol the area with guns to ensure that you aren't attacked by wild animals. This reflects a new trend in luxury travel.
Chinese people with deep pockets are increasingly enjoying such kinds of trips around the world, with many preferring to visit places that are less frequented by others.
Popular destinations include the Arctic and Antarctic poles, that could cost between 120,000 and 250,000 yuan ($20,000-40,100) per person, and Tanzania and Kenya in East Africa where wild animals are in abundance.
"Those who prefer luxury tours are very rich and tired of ordinary destinations. They like the Sahara Desert tours," says Cao Xia, a senior tour adviser to Abercrombie & Kent China, an arm of a Western global high-end luxury tour operator. She recently accompanied a group of Chinese tourists to Morocco.
According to Cao, such tours aren't just about extravagant accommodation and food. People get to know about local cultures and lifestyles in a way that feels more authentic.
Yang Mengyue, a publicity manager for the Chinese marketing consultancy HHtravel.com, says high-end customers demand "self-fulfillment", be it through leisurely trips or vigorous adventure travel. HHtravel.com is a high-end brand of Ctrip.com, a major travel website in China.
Other than big foreign companies that focus on luxury trips, there are many domestic tour operators and online agencies that offer them as well.
Yang says these customers are mostly multimillionaires aged between 40 and 55, many of whom are company executives, private entrepreneurs and celebrities - some even with their own aircraft.
HHtravel.com is offering an 80-day luxury tour around the world starting from February, at 1.25 million yuan per person, covering dozens of UNESCO World Heritage sites.
About 10 seats were purchased immediately after the company announced the offer.
"Customers of luxury tours prefer privacy and small groups," Yang says.
According to Chen Chen, marketing manager of Abercrombie & Kent China, VIP services include taking customers to the world's iconic tourist sites before or after the regular hours for visitors so as to avoid large crowds. Local experts on history or art are likely to accompany guests who opt for VIP services to tourist sites and introduce them to cultures.
Chen says that scholars with degrees in art will talk about the exhibits in museums with tourists and professional photographers will show them how to take pictures in the Antarctic region.
Guests can also dine with locals and learn to make local handicraft such as Italian puppets, she adds.
"Customized trips help visitors realize their dreams. Some guests, for instance, want to see the slums in Jordan and only an experienced guide can assure their safety," Chen says.
But not everyone in the business offers such custom-made tours.
"Our standard itineraries are well-designed after market research. They have various themes and can meet the demands of high-end customers," Yang says of HHtravel.com's policy.
Despite the growing trend in luxury tourism, Chen says that more and more Chinese customers are needed to make the business boom. Some Chinese middle-class people are also joining in.
Wang Jingkun, 41, spent less than 200,000 yuan on her cruise to the Antarctic in February.
Now she plans to take another customized trip to catch a glimpse of the aurora borealis near the North Pole.
Although such tours are expensive, Wang says that she doesn't mind paying because of the service.
She cites an example of a trip to Egypt, where riots had broken out on the streets. The local guides took good care of her and asked the police to accompany her through sensitive areas, she says.
In 2017, Wang quit her job as a management staffer at a corporation in Beijing, to travel in China and abroad. She has been unemployed since then, spending her savings on travel.
According to Xu Ting, deputy secretary-general of the Beijing-based International Tourism Studies Association, with people's living standards rising, the demand for luxury and customized trips is also increasing.
"Luxury trips are more than high consumption. It's about humanity and detailed services, from consultations until the end of the tour. Agencies should also have emergency plans," Xu says.
清晨在摩洛哥撒哈拉沙漠里的一顶巨型帐篷内醒来，尽管是帐篷，你也可以享受到高级酒店的全套服务。配枪的私人保镖在周围巡视以保证你不会被野生动物袭击。这是奢侈旅游的一大新趋向。
有钱的中国人正十分热衷于这种周游世界的旅行，他们更喜欢到那些鲜有人去的地方。
南极和北极是比较流行的目的地，每个人大概花费12万到25万人民币（2万到4万美元），东非的坦桑尼亚和肯尼亚也很受欢迎，那里有大量的野生动物。
“那些喜欢奢侈旅游的人大多很富有，他们厌倦了普通旅游。他们喜欢撒哈拉沙漠之游。” 曹霞（音）说，她是乐趣旅游集团的高级旅游顾问，同时也是西方全球高端奢华游运营商。她最近陪同一个中国旅游团前往摩洛哥。
据曹霞所说，这种旅游不仅仅是奢华的住宿和精美的食物，游客还可以以一种更为真实的方式了解当地文化和生活方式。
杨梦月（音），鸿鹄逸游中国市场顾问的宣传经理说，高端顾客需要通过休闲旅游或是充满活力的冒险旅游来“自我实现”。鸿鹄逸游是中国大型旅游网站携程网的一个高端旅游品牌。
除了一些专门关注奢侈游的大型外国公司，许多国内旅游运营商和网上代理也提供此类旅游。
杨说，这些顾客大都是40到55岁的千万富翁，他们中的大多数是公司主管，私人企业家以及社会名流，一些人甚至都有私人飞机。
鸿鹄逸游于二月份开始提供一种80天环游世界奢华游，每人费用125万人民币，包括了许多被联合国教科文组织列入世界遗产的地方。
一经推出就有十人预定。
“奢华游的顾客喜欢有私人空间的小团游。” 杨说。
据乐趣旅游集团市场经理陈晨（音）说，VIP服务包括带领游客避开旺季到世界的标志性地方一游。当地的历史艺术专家可能随行向VIP游客介绍当地文化。
陈说，艺术学者们会跟游客谈论博物馆里的展品，还有专业摄影师教授如何在南极洲拍照。
游客也可以和当地居民一起吃饭，还可以学习当地的手艺，如意大利木偶，她说。
“定制旅行帮助游客实现他们的梦想。比如说，一些游客想看约旦的贫民窟，但是只有经验丰富的导游才能保证他们的安全。”陈说。
并不是所有的奢华游旅行社都提供这种定制游。
“我们标准的旅游活动日程都是经过市场研究后精心制定的。主题众多，可以满足高端客户的不同需求。”杨说。
尽管奢侈游正成为一种趋势，但陈说他们需要更多的中国顾客来繁荣这一行业。一些中国的中产阶级也加入了进来。
41岁的王静昆（音）女士在二月份花费近20万人民币到南极旅游。
现在她计划再来一次订制旅游，她想到北极看极光。
尽管这种旅游十分昂贵，但是王女士说她不介意，因为服务很好。
她用一次埃及行为例，叛乱者毁坏了街道，当地导游对她悉心照顾，经过敏感地区的时候还要求警察陪同。
2017年，王女士离开北京一家公司，在那里她是一名管理职员。辞职后，她开始到国内外旅游。从那时起，她就没了工作，是在花积蓄旅游。
据北京国际旅游研究协会副秘书长徐婷（音）说，随着人们生活水平的提高，奢侈游和定制游的需求也在增大。
“奢侈旅游不仅仅是高消费，它还包括人性化和精心的服务，从咨询开始，一直到旅行结束。旅行公司还应该有紧急预案。”徐说。
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