Pop-up hotels and 'braincations' to trend in 2013

According to analysts at Hotels.com’s trendspotting spring report, “experiential travel” will be top of mind among globetrotters this year, as consumers seek out itineraries that follow the roads less traveled.

Belgium-based company Sleeping Around converts 6-meter sea containers into self-contained luxury hotel rooms complete with a box-spring bed, rain shower, iPod docking station and air conditioning. The pods travel around Antwerp.

Similarly, travelers are also predicted to bypass commercial cruise lines in favor of smaller river boat options that sail along less predictable waterways, such as the Mekong Riverin Cambodia and Vietnam, or the Danube River between Prague and Istanbul, says Hotels.com.

Hotels are also responding to consumer demand for bespoke travel itineraries that go above and beyond concierge service.

The Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts’ Imagination Initiative is built to indulge guests’ wildest fantasies with add-on experiences that include elephant rides through the jungles of Thailand, or a VIP on-field meet-and-greet with the International Polo Club at Palm Beach.

And in response to the pressures and stress associated with staying connected 24/7, the Marriott and Renaissance Caribbean & Mexico Resorts has begun to offer tech-free zones for those craving a ‘braincation.’

The collection of the chain’s nine resorts across the Caribbean and Mexico began offering tech-free zones last December where cell phones and electronic devices are banned. Instead, guests are encouraged to disconnect, read, or pursue other “tech-free” activities.