He explained: “People are
focused on ticking off items on
their bucket list, which may include
(novelties like) an African safari.
We see this a lot more in family
travel, with South Africa being our
most popular destination.”
These activities give travellers
a “sense of achievement and
satisfaction”, explained Malcolm.
From 2016 to 2017, Jacada Travel
saw its bookings grow by 35 per
cent, he said.
As experiential touring is on the
rise, new entrant Chan Brothers
Prestige – which launched in
January – is boosting the focus on
service and relationship-building
with clients.
“The luxury segment in
Singapore places great value on
personalised relationships and
dedicated attention.
“Privileges extended with
our services range from curated
shore excursions to having
a personal host on specific
cruise programmes,” shared
spokesperson Jane Chang.
Noting these burgeoning trends,
operators are pumping up the
volume for Singapore in 2018 with
campaigns and content geared
specifically towards this market
segment.
Theng Hwee, CEO, Scott Dunn
Asia, said: “The potential is huge.
The baby boomers in Singapore
(in the 60s) are now entering their
golden age flushed with cash.
The old tycoons in Indonesia,
Philippines and Thailand are
passing their wealth to the second
or even third generations who have
seen the world, thus knowing how
to enjoy the finest things in life…
As a start, we will use Singapore as
a base to service the vast South-east
Asia market.”
Jacada’s Malcolm added: “2018
will be a special year for us in Asia,
particularly for Singapore, as we
will be reaching out actively to
travellers there.”
Plans for Jacada Travel include
new itineraries designed for the
region, new destinations and
experiences that include trips
to Madagascar, a tour based
on Prince Harry and Meghan
Markle’s royal wedding, as well
as integrating more elements
of responsible and sustainable
tourism into its engagements with
the Singapore market.
Malcolm described: “Our ethos
in responsible travelling, effort
and investment in donating to
charities and community projects
to carbon offset, benefiting the
local economy and more, are
something we wish more people
to be aware of and do the same.”
Meanwhile, Amala Destinations
has developed new journeys that
“reintroduce the places, cultures
and peoples of Asia, to the world
and to Asia itself”, said Anand
Pereira, its managing director.
These include living with an
eagle hunter in Mongolia, meeting
artists in Kanazawa, exploring the
holy city of Varanasi and getting
immersed into the untouched
nature of Sri Lanka.
“I believe that it is really
important for the travel industry,
especially the luxury travel
industry, to become more aware
of itself – that is, to be more
conscious of how much of an
impact it has on local spaces and
peoples,” opined Pereira.
He continued: “We cannot let
something like ‘what is trendy’
to be a huge defining factor for
the business of travel… More
businesses like ours should dare to
tell their clients: ‘Forget what you
read on review sites, forget what
you saw on the Internet. Trust me,
you will like this journey that not
many have had the chance to
go on.’
“We find that this is what
delivers more authentic
experiences, not ones with the
anxious, and often unfulfilled,
preoccupation of ‘does this really
match that photo I saw?’”
The
Singaporean
upmarket
traveller…
is taking longer trips
is extending trips
to surrounding
destinations
is out to fulfil his/
her travel bucket list
People are
focused on
ticking off
items on
their bucket
list, which
may include
(novelties
like) an
African safari.
Alex Malcolm,
founder and
managing director,
Jacada Travel
TTG Asia luxury | May 2018 15