600+ luxury travel aficionados joined Travel Associates for the inaugural Luxury Travel Event on Sunday 30 April 2023.

The exclusive event, hosted by Australia’s leading network of luxury travel advisors, saw guests connect in person with hand-picked travel partners, including ultra luxury cruise lines, boutique tour operators, first class airlines, and 5-star hotels and resorts.

Heralding a new age in consumer travel events and without a single trade stand in sight, guests enjoyed one-on-one time with these one of a kind travel partners and with the personal support of Travel Associates expert travel advisors to find their next inspiring travel destination.

Danielle Galloway, Flight Centre Travel Group’s global managing director of Luxury Leisure and Independent Brands, praised Travel Associates’ handpicked luxury product collection that is tailored to each client.

“Our experiences cannot be googled and we offer an exceptional and highly personalised service,” Galloway said.

“The Luxury Travel Event is the first of its kind, and designed to really showcase how we work and who we are as a brand. Our DNA speaks to our desire to truly connect with guests, and we love nothing more than bringing this to life by working with our incredible partners to connect them to future clients in a way that is both personal and immersive.

“When it comes to travelling in style, we are seeing client trends change. Our clients are tending to be younger, time poor and also keen to really experience the world after the challenges we’ve all faced in the pandemic. Our clients know that the best advice and those ‘one of a kind’ magical moments can only be delivered by a trusted and expert travel professional,” Galloway added.

A boutique cinema hosted a line-up of immersive presentations from the best of the best suppliers, showcasing desired destinations and one-of-a-kind experiences. Attendees were also treated to wellness massages by Chiva Som and COMO Shambala, cultural exhibitions, canapes, champagne, and luxury gift bags.

Attending the event was Justin Southern, the national BDM of Virgin Voyages, who reflected on the importance of this event for the cruise line.

“With over 600 eager travellers attending Sunday’s Luxury Travel Event in Sydney, it really does highlight the deep passion that Australians have for unique luxury travel experiences like Virgin Voyages,” Southern told Travel Weekly.

“Virgin Voyages recently won all 5 categories at the Cruise Critic Awards for best service, best food, best cabins, best value for money and best overall cruise experience. To be able to share the luxury and quality of our brand with the premium and engaged clients of our FirstMate partner, Travel Associates at their Luxury Travel Event was remarkable. The polished experience for all who attended is the benchmark for all future events.”

Celebrating 25 years designing bespoke travel, with a focus on a seamless end-to-end customer experience, Travel Associates is the leading luxury travel agency in Australia & New Zealand. The heart of the brand is the Best of the Best, with 250 advisors across AU & NZ and a network of 65 businesses.

Around 70 per cent of guests at The Luxury Travel Event were new to the Travel Associates brand.

Event Exhibitors: Captain’s Choice, Ahoy Club, Explora, Qatar Airways, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, COMO Hotels, Abercrombie & Kent, 50 Degrees North, Shangri-La, FIJI Tourism, Seabourn, Chiva Som and Zulal Wellness Resorts, Luxury Gold, Viking, Exotic Destinations, Keith Prowse Travel, National Geographic Journeys (G Adventures), Hawaii Tourism, Silversea Cruises, Western Australia Tourism, Windstar, Bench Africa, Avalon, Experience Morocco (represented by Unique Tourism Collection), Etihad Airlines, Scenic, Chiva Som Wellness experience, Lindblad Expeditions, Cunard, Skimax & Swiss Tourism, Adventure World, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, Soneva Resorts (represented by Slojourn Studio), United Airlines, VIRGIN VOYAGES. Additional partners also include: Covermore, Travel Money OZ, and Lula Eye Masks.

Check out some photos of the event below: