Day of luxury lined up with Ultratravel and ttgluxury

Now entering its third year, the relationship will see the creation of three separate events – the Ultratravel Forum in partnership with ttgluxury; Luxpo, the meetings event for agents and suppliers; and the Ultimate Luxury Travel Related Awards, or ULTRAs.

The awards will be presented at a dinner in the presence of Sarah, Duchess of York and HRH Princess Eugenie of York, who will attend on behalf of Children in Crisis, the nominated charity for the ULTRAs this year.

The events will be co-located at The Savoy on May 22 and will kick off in the morning with Luxpo, the one-to-one meetings event, with 25 luxury suppliers meeting 25 agents.

Among the exhibitors at Luxpo for the first time will be Anguilla Tourist Board; Rocky Mountaineer; STC Switzerland Travel Centre; Australis; Anand Collection; and Kenyan air safari operator Scenic Air Safaris, which is new to the UK market.

They will join other companies such as Anantara Hotels, Resorts and Spas, Banyan Tree, Gran Canaria Tourist Board, Velas Resorts, Los Cabos Tourism Board, Kurtz-Ahlers, Melia Hotels International, Palladium Hotel Group, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Lux Resorts & Hotels, SunLux Collection by Sun International, and Tourism New Zealand.

Travel agents who attend Luxpo will also benefit from a complimentary place for the Ultratravel Forum in partnership with ttgluxury, which will take place in the afternoon on May 22.

The forum will start with a session by David Mattin, head of trends and insights for TrendWatching, who will explore the impact of important changes on the travel industry and luxury consumers.

The President’s Panel at the forum will then see those trends and more explored by Jennifer Cronin, president Niccolo Hotels & Marco Polo Hotels; Stefan Leser, group chief executive officer, Jumeirah Group; Duncan O’Rourke, chief operating officer Europe, Luxury Brands, Accor Hotels; Simon Palethorpe, senior vice-president sales and marketing, Cunard; and Richard Singer, president Europe, Travelzoo.

There will also be a session chaired by ttgluxury editor April Hutchinson looking at innovation in the luxury sector and a panel with celebrities, chaired by Charles Starmer-Smith, editor of Ultratravel.

The day will culminate with the 11th annual ULTRAs, which have become an industry benchmark.