A notable shift is reshaping international travel: lured by luxurious amenities and suites in the sky, globetrotters are increasingly bypassing coach in favor of business- and first-class tickets. International premium demand, both in business and first class, surged by 11.8% last year, according to the International Air Transport Association.
The continued evolution of luxury air travel, especially post-pandemic, confirms that leisure flyers are eager to experience the crème de la crème of commercial aviation—no matter the cost. But it’s not only legacy airlines that are drawing them in.
A new breed of premium carriers—often referred to as boutique airlines — is aggressively entering the market, aiming to disrupt the established order and capture travelers’ attention.
Take Magnifica Air, a Florida-based startup airline gearing for takeoff in 2027. Magnifica says it’s catering to a niche in the increasingly crowded premium air-travel space, toeing the line between private jet and commercial first class. It will operate as a fully scheduled carrier with a communal bar area at the tail end of the plane and leather seats. Initial routes are expected to link key business and leisure markets, including New York, Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas and Houston.
Halfway across the world, Beond Airlines has transported vacationers to the Maldives since its debut in late 2023. The two-aircraft carrier operates charters and select scheduled flights between Maldives capital city Malé, the Middle East and Europe. Onboard, Beond features an all-business-class cabin with lie-flat seats.
Taipei-based Starlux Airlines is a newer entrant into the industry, offering both short-haul service within Asia and long-haul flights to the West Coast of the United States. While most U.S. travelers won’t recognize the name Starlux, the carrier has lofty ambitions to eventually become a powerhouse—and a premium brand—across the Pacific.
While it offers four classes of service—from economy to first class—Starlux bills itself as a luxury airline that is “the Emirates of Asia.” A signature, wood-and-leather scent is pumped throughout the aircraft cabins and lounges as part of an experience that showcases details other airlines would likely forgo. (That also includes branded toilet paper and calming music in the lavatories.)
Set to debut soon, Riyadh Air will operate a fleet of Boeing 787s from the airline’s main hub in Saudi Arabia. The upstart carrier was established in 2023 as part of a plan to turn the country into an aviation and tourism hub.
Riyadh Air will feature an understated, 28-seat business-class cabin in a palette of indigo, lavender, mocha gold and stone accents—loosely inspired by a Bedouin tent.
“We want a modern-day version of Pan Am at its height, like Leonardo DiCaprio in Catch Me If You Can, but with a modernistic twist and obsessional level of detail,” Tony Douglas, Riyadh Air’s CEO, said earlier this year.