My first piece for Voyeur, Virgin’s inflight magazine, was published in the September 2018 issue. Another, longer piece is in the works.

This time it’s personal

Travel is becoming less about star ratings and more about authentic, tailored experiences. 

Words MEGAN HOLBECK

The way we travel is changing: gone are the days of ‘doing’ a place, sleeping in a bland but very pleasant bubble and venturing out for snippets of sights and culture. Now we want immersion, authenticity and experiences that align with our interests and circumstances. (Call it the Airbnb effect – we’re not tourists, we’re temporary residents…) Tour companies are catching on, offering tours for everyone from teenagers (and their parents), to adventurous women channelling their inner goddesses. Even airport hotels are getting in on the trend, injecting jet-lag friendly fun and frivolity into a stopover. 

Parents planning a family holiday wish for three things: friends for their kids, adult time (please!) and a break from life’s endless organisation. Intrepid have listened, organising a range of tours specifically for taking the tribe, from safaris in Africa to Croatian island hopping. Closer to home, families with teenagers can explore Bali on an eight-day trip packed with activities from the cultural to the adventurous: highlights include riding flying-foxes through lush forest, white-water rafting and Balinese cooking classes. Best of all, it’s all planned for you, and with group sizes from 2-16 there’s a good chance of forging (or forcing) friendships! 

World Expeditions are another company offering small tours designed to make specific groups very happy. Their range of women-only offerings was introduced in 2016 after female participation on their active adventure tours hit 54%, an increase of almost 20 per cent in two decades. The trips are designed to foster safe and supportive environments for females getting their adventure on, whether that’s mountaineering in the Canadian Rockies or multiday walks around Australia. The Larapinta Goddess Walk even combines three-days of exploring the desert track with yoga and meditation, creating fitter and more mindful deities.

It’s not just tour companies who are ready to play with their punters: a couple of recently opened airport hotels are injecting quirk, personality and pleasure into their flight-path locations. As well as a cocktail bar with runway views and a rooftop cinema, Sydney’s Felix Hotel has a 24-hour self-service shop with salads, sandwiches and pastries: perfect for the jet-lagged traveller with ill-timed meal cravings. Naumi Auckland Airport’s outdoor pool lets you adjust your body clock with a dip, a putt on the green and yoga on the deck, or you can wind down with a cocktail while you wait for sleep. (Both hotels have awesome soundproofing, comfortable beds and black-out curtains.)