Oceania Cruises has introduced discovery tours – Go Local, Culinary and Wellness – that are designed to embed travellers in the lives and homes of local families for an authentic taste of the different communities’ ways of life.
For Go Local Discovery Tours, experience a taste of village life in Dubrovnik, Croatia with The Panoramic Dubrovnik, Village Life & Wine excursion, which showcases time-honoured techniques in a family’s wine cellar and olive press room, followed by a chance to share juicy local figs and brandy together.
Or get up close to locals making a living with The Life on the River excursion in Nha Trang, Vietnam. Discover how expert craftsmen build wooden fishing boats while cruising past villages, farms and rice paddies.
The Culinary Discovery Tours lets visitors unearth new tastes and traditions, such as the Shop for Dinner and Set the Table in Buenos Aires, Argentina – a fun and engaging guided excursion that begins with foraging at the local market for the best daily cuts or catch before retiring to enjoy dinner at a home setting.
The Wellness Discovery Tours immerse travellers in the unique natural customs of local communities. The Yagna Encounter and Mumbai’s Ancient Temple Complex in Mumbai, India, includes a Hindu prayer ritual and a visit to a sacred healing water tank. The more adventurous can join The Unusual and Non-Touristy Valencia by Bike in Valencia, Spain. This involves a two-wheel tour through local neighbourhoods, along beaches and past farmhouses and fields, with a break for a paella lunch and a seaside promenade.
More information on other discovery tours can be found here.
Domestic business travel across India is fast gaining pace, driven by IT, FMCG and banking companies.
The strong uptick in corporate movements has enable Thomas Cook (India) & SOTC to close its March business at 90 per cent of 2019 levels, revealed Indiver Rastogi, president & group head – global business travel.
“Corporate travel is witnessing a definitive acceleration (due to) easing of travel restrictions and economic growth gaining momentum,” he said.
According to some Indian hoteliers, the hybrid work arrangements undertaken by Indian companies are helping to fuel the rise in domestic business travel demand.
Sarbendra Sarkar, founder & managing director, Cygnett Hotels and Resorts, said the “hybrid style of working…has opened the doors for cross-city meetings”.
Sarkar is confident that business travel bookings will continue to gain pace and “reach a high by year-end”.
Clear signs of improving business, according to Sarkar, are the “good ADRs” commanded by hotels now as well as rising airfares.
Key metro cities like New Delhi and Mumbai are leading the demand for corporate travel.
Rastogi also pointed out that while uptick is evident across key Indian hubs, Mumbai is witnessing the fastest recovery for his company’s business travel segment.
Sarkar noted that business travel is a critical component of the hospitality business, as it “eases the pressure of inconsistent leisure traffic”.