Escape to wide open spaces and quiet hideaways

IN a world filled with uncertainties, luxury travel companies expect travellers to turn to them for their expertise, flexibility, and safety and financial assurances. Even when travel bubbles are established and border restrictions are lifted between countries, travellers will need expert guides on the ground who can recommend and help decide where and how they should travel.

"Ultimately, 2021 will be more about how they can travel rather than where they can travel to," says Trafalgar's CEO Gavin Tollman. "The appeal of being able to get out there and enjoy one's holiday without having to feel stressed with all the 'what ifs' make guided holidays a good option."

He adds, "2021's travellers, not surprisingly, want the outdoors - places that deliver on wide-open spaces, fresh air, a chance to get into nature, and a way of avoiding crowds. When borders open, I am confident we will see a resurgence in destinations such as New Zealand and Switzerland that will shoot to the top of the 'must visit now' lists."

What's becoming trendy is "multi-generational travel" - or groups of family and friends forming their own "travel bubble". Trafalgar has seen a growing number of small private group bookings globally - as has luxury travel operator Scott Dunn.

Mike Harlow, general manager of Scott Dunn, says: "We've experienced an increase in enquiries for private villas and exclusive-use properties, which not only are some of the safest ways to go on holiday right now, but are also spacious enough to host families and bigger groups."

While staycations and domestic travel may be popular among the middle class, "our guests from the high and ultra-high net worth segments are not keen on staycations and would still prefer to travel to destinations abroad. We have guests who are working with us to plan trips for the festive 2021 season, as well as some 'bucket list' destinations or experiences, such as exclusive private yacht/boat charters on a guntu in Japan, or private lodges and island holidays in the Bawah Reserve in Indonesia."

Besides these, other exotic destinations that are seeing early recovery are Mediterranean countries such as Turkey, Greece, Egypt and South Africa, which do not require quarantine for travellers from Singapore. "Turkey and Greece have policies that take care of travellers should they be stricken by Covid-19, while Egypt is a bucket-list destination," says Anthony Lim, president of The Travel Corporation, Asia.

Because of the added hassle in travel arrangements and the widespread use of Zoom, trip durations might now be longer. Mr Harlow says: "Covid-19 has proven that many of us are able to work remotely and this will also influence the way we travel and holiday in future. This year has seen some of our guests taking advantage of remote working/learning and opting for a change of scenery by booking secluded hideaways and exclusive use properties for a few weeks at a go to make themselves a home away from home."

As for cruising, a popular option for older travellers, cruise operators are slowly finding ways to welcome guests again. Ellen Bettridge, Uniworld's CEO, says: "We are hoping to restart our first cruise in April with our Europe cruises. River cruising is very different from ocean cruising as the ship stays close to land, and have on average of only 120 passengers versus the large number of over 2,000 is passengers on ocean ships."

The recent Christmas season was less than festive due to the surge of Covid-19 cases in the West. So Uniworld boutique river cruises are giving those grounded a chance to have a "holiday do-over" with their "Christmas in July" sailings, complete with replicated Christmas markets onboard for guests who miss strolling through the Christmas markets that were cancelled in 2020. There'll be festive décor and holiday-themed activities such as holiday cocktail mixology classes and gingerbread house decorating.

Mr Tollman says: "There are three key themes for travellers in 2021: (1) to have a great time still, of course; (2) to have peace of mind with regards to their well-being, and (3) to make sure their hard-earned money is safe when they invest in travel."

To that latter end, luxury travel companies are working with their partners to ensure that whatever 2021 brings, there is sufficent flexibity in the travel arrangements to postpone itineraries or refund monies where possible.

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