Season two of Karryon’s luxury podcast Luxury Unpacked is about to kick off, and this time we get first-hand insider insights from the people shaping luxury travel about how they’re evolving to meet a changing HNW traveller.
“We don’t need to define what luxury is now; we all know it’s about time, space, access and experiences,” says Luxury Unpacked host Fiona Dalton.
“This season has moved to working with insiders around an idea, and asking them to help us unpack and, importantly, prove that idea, so every episode is around identifying the genuine question, and we’ve put the affluent Australian traveller at the centre of that conversation.”
Catch up on season one here:
Series two of Luxury Unpacked includes conversations with industry leaders from across the globe.
From the USA, we chat with West Hollywood’s CEO Tom Kiely about the jewel in Los Angeles’ crown.
“It’s a tiny walkable community and a place that only emerged in 1984,” says Dalton. “Created to protect the LGBTQI+ community, it’s a global leader in inclusive hospitality. We get insider tips about how to navigate West Hollywood and why it’s the best place for affluent Australians.”
Cruise is also having a moment, and we have episodes from both ocean and river cruises with two of the industry’s best. Hurtigruten and AmaWaterways.
AmaWaterways managing director Australia and New Zealand, Steve Richards, explains the shift to a younger river cruiser, challenging the status quo about who chooses to take a river cruise.
“Steve and I talk about the elephant in the room, which is that the river cruising image for many affluent Australians hasn’t caught up with reality,” says Dalton.
“The data is genuinely showing average age has fallen from 66 in 2019 to 55 in 2024, and continues to offer broad appeal to the luxury traveller, so this idea that the uninitiated have that river cruising is just for the elderly is far, far from the truth, and brands like Ama continue to do a fantastic job at tackling that ongoing misconception.”
Hurtigruten Expeditions’ managing director of Australia and New Zealand, Damian Perry, chats about how it has changed the idea of cruising to a sense of belonging.
“Guests can now see Norway through the eyes of a Norwegian local.
“The sense of welcome they can offer is second to none, and he talks about the experience of leaning into the software; the hardware is the ship, but the software creates the difference between visiting and belonging.”
“Virtuoso are the experience dealers,” says Dalton of her episode with Virtuoso SVP Global Markets Michael Londregan and Y Travel founder Yvonne Verstandig.
“It’s around human expertise being today’s true luxury. This idea is that advisors have moved from information to insights; it’s the reason why the best relationships in travel happen when the advisor sits on the same side of the desk as the client, and that’s what Virtuoso does so well.
A two-part series, Dalton also talks to Y Travel founder Yvonne Verstandig.
“What I love about Yvonne’s story is that she was a pharmacist before she came to travel and learnt her diagnostic skill through the art of listening.
“Now, she brings that same skill to her clients and can qualify her clients the way she did in pharmacy. She has become a real expert at listening and uncovering what the real intention is.”
The series also includes APT CEO David Cox. APT moves about 60,000 passengers each year and is a masterclass in how to evolve to meet the ever-discerning luxury traveller.
“APT is approaching its 100th year in 2027, which gives us a really compelling lens,” says Dalton.
“We discuss how a century-old, family-owned business stays relevant, innovative and growing by continually reshaping itself around the customer, not the other way around. It’s a story about legacy meeting reinvention.”
Luxury Unpacked recently attended Virtuoso Travel Week in Las Vegas, and Dalton says it was an opportunity to learn first-hand what’s available to luxury travellers.
“We took the podcast to the world’s largest luxury travel conference so we could continue these conversations with experienced advisors and leading luxury travel brands from around the world, and it’s the dream start to season two to bring these five conversations to life because they are so diverse and relevant.
“And this is just the beginning because access to a global conversation is so important. As time moves infinitely, so do travel trends and new opportunities come to the table, and that can only help luxury travellers with their considerations around their travel.”
For more information, partnership opportunities, or to be a guest on the show, contact Karryon’s partnership manager, Carolyn Nightingale, at [email protected].
