NEW YORK — River cruising is one of the fastest-growing parts of the travel industry and it has bumped multi-generational travel as the Top Trend in the 2015 Virtuoso Luxe Report.

This annual survey of travel advisors in the luxury sector forecasts luxury travel trends and favoured destinations while offering insight into the patterns and decisions of the world’s wealthiest travellers.

For the first time in five years, river cruising trumped multigenerational travel as the number one trend and Croatia secured the top spot in the ‘Emerging Destinations’ category (the country didn’t make the ‘top 10’ in 2014).

Iceland is on the rise while Cuba, Myanmar and Bhutan continue to be favoured emerging destinations.

‘Adventure travel’ surfaced as a dominant trend for 2015 with Costa Rica and South Africa sweeping the top two spots, respectively, proving travellers are less interested in sitting still.

The love affair with Italy continues as it reigned supreme for the ‘Top International Destination’ as well as the favourite country for family travel and honeymoons. France, Mexico, South Africa and Australia follow as top international locales, respectively.

Within the U.S., New York City maintained its top spot, followed by Maui, Napa Valley/Sonoma and Las Vegas. Miami/South Beach climbed three places to reach the ‘top 5’, bumping Hawaii’s Big Island to ninth place.

Honeymooners showed they are seeking romance at tried and true favourites, as well as some more exotic locales. The most popular honeymoon destinations included Italy, Maui, French Polynesia, France, and the Maldives.

Exploring new destinations, seeking authentic experiences, rest and relaxation and spending time or reconnecting with loved ones prove to be the key motivators behind high-end travel.

A record breaking total of 599 travel advisors from Virtuoso member agencies in 25 countries throughout North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia-Pacific and Europe participated in the survey.