Mexican Riviera -Puerto Vallarta Beach Villa Rentals, Hotels, Resorts

Whats Next: Luxury Travel, Lifestyle & Real Estate Trends -- Life in the Slow Lane: Nostalgic and Expensive

MIAMI (Business Wire EON) April 14, 2008 -- One of the latest lifestyle trends is to incorporate something labeled "slow" into food and fashion, to design and travel - even sex. What does this mean? For one thing, the affluent are looking backwards to a nostalgic past - whether real or rosily imagined - for inspiration. It's the lifestyle equivalent of "comfort food." Those who are detouring along this rarified path fully expect to pay a premium to apply a touch of the brakes in everything they do.

Home-Grown, Handed-Down and Locavores

Some cultural anthropologists trace the beginnings of this burgeoning lifestyle slowdown to Rome's historic Piazza di Spagna. It was back in 1986 that the so-called "slow food" movement was born. Disdaining the spread of American chain restaurants and fast food, as they crossed the Atlantic and began to invade the Old World, adherents of the new credo focused once again on the fresh, the local and the artisanal. In so many ways, it was a back-to-the-future moment.

The idea was to take a U-turn back to the days of farmers' markets, handed-down recipes and, above all, leisurely dining with family and friends. Two decades later, products created in artisanal mode are coveted once more. Celebrity chefs turn to long communal tables in their newest outposts (Bar Boulud) and hotels and restaurants highlight the provider and provenance of products in their fanciest menus. Old-fashioned nose-to-tail dining on all parts of the beast is back in vogue, based on yesteryear's satisfying nostrum: waste not, want not.

This lifestyle reverse even permeates our everyday vocabulary. One use of speech derived from the slow food movement was recently awarded "Word of the Year" by the New Oxford American Dictionary. Are you a locavore? It means someone who cooks with and dines on locally produced foods.

Finding the Right Speed, Not the Fastest

The idea of a slow food movement bears implications beyond simple consumption. It encompasses an entirely new direction in how the affluent choose to live their lives. As writer Carl Honore describes in his best seller, In Praise of Slow, the global slow movement challenges the modern cult of speed. It's about how to live better in a fast-paced world by striking a balance. You find not the fastest speed, but the right speed.

The philosophy is already spawning the notion of Slow Cities, from the UK and Norway, to Brazil. Combustion engine vehicles are strictly limited, walking is encouraged, and mission statements talk about the "serenity" of everyday life and "reflective" living. In Japan, one city's mayor issued a "Take-It-Easy Declaration", encouraging residents to leave work early, take a walk with the family and talk to neighbors. Residents are gravitating towards Slow Homes where bigger isn't always better, quality prevails, design is individual, and care is taken to use healthy building materials, preferably recycled (such as fashionable, old woods). Residents may even engage in Slow Sex, choosing to emphasize spirituality and quality over quantity.

Out With Rock Stars, In With Farmers

In this new slower world, farmers become society's heroes. The new luxury lifestyle status symbol is owning farmland. With slow in mind, a growing real estate trend among second-home buyers is to invest in less urban escapes, such as green-pastured horse farms, ranches, vineyards or olive groves. Even in dense urban areas, such as Manhattan, city dwellers are turning their backyards into mini fruit orchards. In slow food vernacular, they are "co-producers" rather than "consumers." By becoming part of the process, they control the speed, escape homogeneity and enjoy a form of creative self-expression.

Enjoying the Journey

In its most glamorous heyday, travel was slow - of necessity, but also sometimes by design. It possessed sophistication, merely because only the affluent could afford it. Now, the trend is to recapture a bit of this nostalgic haze by savoring the journey once again, not just the destination. Slow leisure is the aim. Instead of pursuing yesterday's extreme adventures, today's slow travelers seek to spend their time contemplating, relaxing and reveling in doing very little or nothing. Witness the growing, global travel trend of transatlantic cruises, luxury trains, and the newest unconventional offering - The Manned Cloud airship. Under development by French designers Massaud Studio, the 700 foot long airship will offer 40 passengers accommodation similar to that of a luxury cruise ship plus a library, gym and even terraces. With a top speed of 105 mph, it's about simply enjoying the view.

Old Foods Are New Again

For those seeking to experience slow foods abroad, culinary tourism, one of the hippest travel trends in 2008, will go well beyond cooking classes. Epicurean adventures will extend to agricultural villages where food is grown, to food lovers markets and to obscure food festivals in the four corners of the world. For example, the annual saffron harvest attracts crowds to Consuegra, Spain. Travelers forage with the pigs at the White Truffle Fair in Alba, Italy. In Cyprus, travelers learn the secrets of making the local Halloumi cheese or how to cure olives - a blending of two larger trends: gastronomy and enrichment travel.

Fashioned From the Fields

No longer a utopian or fringe movement, Slow Fashion is emerging from the uppermost echelons of fashion designers' elite. During New York's Fashion Week, renowned fashion critic Suzy Menkes observed, "We're getting beyond the idea of 'Look at me, look at me.' Fashion today is becoming more about calmness than flash." Classic silhouettes are making a comeback, some with a sustainable or green twist. This year's Academy Awards red carpet saw the appearance of a sustainable gown from designer Linda Loudermilk - a bespoke dress fashioned from hemp silk with organic cotton and "vintage findings" as accents. A trend for jewelry lovers: classic pearls are the new choice over diamonds; sustainable, understated and with shades of nostalgia. For those who want what The New York Times calls "Punk Meets Park Avenue" look, pearls are combined with contemporary chains, beads and estate brooches.

For over 29 years, first in New York City and now in Miami, Karen Weiner Escalera and her firm's KWE group have been among the nation's leading marketing and public relations experts in the luxury travel, hospitality and real estate industries. Her campaigns have been cited as setting the standard in publications including Advertising Age, Nation's Business, and Fortune Small Business. A thought leader in luxury lifestyle, she is the editor of an internationally syndicated luxury travel and lifestyle trends newsletter and blog, and a frequent speaker on luxury travel. KWE group is a founding member of Tourism Trademark, a global network of independent marketing communications firms specializing in travel, hospitality and destinations.

Copyright (C) 2007, 2008 KWE group, Inc.

MORE ARTICLES:

Spring Break Soccer Training and Spanish Language Camp in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Spring break soccer training and Spanish language camp will take place in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

More Vacations at Puerto Vallarta MX
Puerto Vallarta MX is definitely one of the places where people can stay and enjoy more vacations Puerto Vallarta MX is in the state of Jalisco and is one of Mexicoýs premier resort cities

Casa Velas in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Receives AAA Four Diamond Award
Casa Velas Hotel Boutique in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, is again joining the ranks of AAA Four Diamond Award winners. Casa Velas is the only adults-only all-inclusive golf resort in Mexico to receive this AAA Four Diamond award.

Uncovered: A New Resource for Real Estate Investment Opportunities in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
fundVallarta announces a full online resource for discovering real estate investment opportunities in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. With conditions similar to the property boom in California, Puerto Vallarta is poised to become an international performer with a solid return on investment. Visitors are able to access a significant knowledge-based investment resource center at the fundVallarta.com website.

Hawaii Maps and Weather Round out Comprehensive Vacation Rental Site
Hawaiian Beach Rentals, an Oahu based company known for its local knowledge on the vacation rentals they provide, now provides a one stop shop for local information by adding current weather conditions and maps of Kauai and other Hawaiian locales to their site.

Puerto Vallarta Vacation Review
Just returning from a wonderful trip to Puerto Vallarta, I've decided that tropical vacations are good for the "soul". It's important to take the time to get a way from the everyday routine.

Celebrate Grandparents at Grand Velas Resort in Puerto Vallarta
Dolphin Encounters, Spanish Lessons, Mexican Folkloric Night and More As part of the Grandparents Package Available Until October 1st

Livin' La Vida Loca at Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Mexico is in itself a paradise with its lot of places that offer nothing but the best comfortable life to anyone. Out of the several coastal resort-type offerings in the region, Puerto Vallarta is possibly the greatest epitome of wonderland.

In-Suite Spa Treatments Exude Romance in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
New In-Suite Spa Treament and Diamond Bath for Couples at Grand Velas All Suites & Spa Resort

Discount Last Minute Puerto Vallarta Packages To The Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita
We managed a discount last minute Puerto Vallarta package to the Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita. In truth the discount was the bonus, because we fully intended to go there anyway, and pay the full price, but thanks to some work online, we got a huge discount. A quick thank you to The Vacation Bargain Finder, details of which can be found at http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com/pages/Vacation-Bargain-Finder.html

My Holiday Villa Rentals, Vacation Rentals and Holiday Homes by Owner
More and more vacationers are choosing the cheaper, more cost worthy option of renting a home. This is often a way to give holiday makers a larger more comfortable space for far less cost than a hotel room. Sending inquiry messages are free, any commissions are cut out completely as you rent direct from the owners. This is now becoming the most popular way to vacation around the world.

Win a Luxury All-Inclusive Mexican Vacation for a Family of Four in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Family Scavenger Hunt Leads to 4-Day/3-Night Mexican Vacation at Grand Velas All Suites & Spa Resort

New Shop & Spa Money at All-Inclusive 5 Diamond Puerto Vallarta Hotel
Travelers save Over 50% at Puerto Vallarta hotel Grand Velas All Suites & Spa Resort With $250 Credit during Summer & Fall

Dream Destination Wedding in a Puerto Vallarta Villa
Every woman dreams of her wedding at some exotic destination with beautiful white sand beaches, pristine clear waters, magnificent Villa and surrounded by her close ones. If you thought this is just a dream then you could not be more wrong. You can have your wedding with great style and sophistication in a luxury Villa in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

A Mexico Vacation Special To The Maroma Resort In The Mayan Riviera
Some very good reasons for booking a Mexico vacation special and choosing the best of luxury hotels the Maroma Resort in the Mayan Riviera