Hit enter to search or ESC to close
VRCO

LUXURY TRAVEL AND YACHTING TRENDS OF THE FUTURE

Clean Tech Expeditions

Our Luxury Travel and Yachting Trend Report has been designed to be a resource and a foundation for trend-based strategy for the next five years of luxury travel. Over the next five years and beyond, Pelorus will be investing in companies and kit that help minimise the environmental impact of getting from A to B, especially in wilderness locations. With the emergence of various forms of emission-free electric transport – both on the ground and in the air – luxury travellers will soon find they are able to avail of a fleet of new Clean Tech toys on their adventure. What this means is that, finally, there will be tangible ways to make journeys more sustainable, allowing responsible travellers to align their beliefs with their behaviour.

Jimmy Carroll, Co-founder of Pelorus, says: “Moving around the planet is an unavoidable aspect of travel. It’s often the most difficult to justify when looking at the environmental cost of ultra-bespoke experiences and is a long-standing issue that we – along with the rest of the industry – are acutely aware of. Thankfully, we are seeing transport and logistic providers on land, sea and in the air working incredibly hard to develop cutting-edge technology that allows for massive improvements in this area, whilst also maintaining the standards that UHNWIs are used to. In the very near future, we expect more and more of these clean transport options to feature heavily in luxury travel itineraries and have already started to work with innovative partners to bring these new technological capabilities to market.”

A huge amount of innovation is already happening in the “clean mobility” space, including the development of “sustainable aviation fuel” (SAF) that can be made from the likes of used cooking fats, algae or (controversially) palm oil. (Palm trees are often planted in place of rainforests.) Many airlines such as British Airways, Emirates and United are investing in SAF, and when Boom Supersonic brings back planes that can fly faster than the speed of sound before the end of the decade, they will be powered by SAF too. For those flying privately, jet charter company Victor is leading the way by enabling customers to buy SAF, via a partnership with Finnish oil refining company Neste. We will also see the debut of entirely new modes of emission-free transport such as the Virgin Hyperloop train, stratospheric balloon flights from Space Perspective and even airships from OceanSky Cruises.

Travel Bucket List Foiling Maldives

“Bringing these new, more sustainable innovations to clients and supporting the mass adoption of such practices is something that we at Pelorus see as our duty and a key role we can play in ushering in a more conscious age of luxury travel. We know that our audience wants these things and they have the means to become early adopters. Alongside these advancements in core travel logistics, we are also starting to see a number of exciting experience-based technological advancements come to the fore.”

Jimmy Carroll
Co-founder of Pelorus

In addition to the arrival of electric aerial taxis (aka eVTOLs – electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles) from companies such as Vertical Aerospace, Jetson, VRCO and Airspeeder (the last of which has developed a flying racing car), we will also see companies such as Vita bringing electric tenders and jet skis to the sailing community. Proving that marine toys don’t have to have a negative impact on our oceans, both Xfoil and Fliteboard have built electric eFoils that look like surfboards and allow riders to fly quietly across the water while standing on them.

Yachting will also come with a lower carbon footprint – Rolls-Royce and Italian yacht builder Sanlorenzo, for example, plan to build a large motor yacht with a methanol engine propulsion system able to run on carbon-neutral green methanol. Then there is Cake, which has designed lightweight, high-performance, solar-powered electric motorbikes that have already been adopted by anti-poaching squads in South Africa because they move so quietly. All these innovations will be made available to Pelorus clients for Clean Tech Expeditions over the coming years.

CASE STUDY: OCEANSKY CRUISES

Recognising the dawn of emission-free flight, Pelorus is partnering with Swedish company OceanSky Cruises, which will launch aerial Clean Tech Expeditions from Longyearbyen, Svalbard, to the North Pole aboard next-generation Airlander 10 airships. (Tickets will go on sale in 2023.) Built by Hybrid Air Vehicles in the UK, zero-emission aircraft will be filled with lift-giving helium gas which is lighter than air, and powered by four propellers, allowing the airship to fly continuously for days. With no need for a runway, it will be able to take off and land almost anywhere – hence its suitability for remote locations such as the Arctic.

Inside, OceanSky Cruises’ airships will be fitted like a luxury hotel with spacious cabins featuring large panoramic windows that maximise the view from the beds. Capable of carrying 16 passengers, guests will be served Arctic-inspired cuisine by an award-winning chef. As the cabin isn’t pressurised, the flight will be peaceful and quiet, and because it drifts along slowly, there will be no need for seat belts.

Following the footsteps of explorer Roald Amundsen who flew from Svalbard and over the North Pole in 1926 aboard the airship Norge, Pelorus and “airline of airships” OceanSky Cruises will be spearheading a next generation of air travel. Upon landing at the North Pole, travellers will embark on a day-long excursion across the Arctic plains. During OceanSkyCruises’inaugural season, a number of its expeditions will be led by Arctic expert and climate activist Robert Swan.

oceansky

“The future of travel must be sustainable. There is no other alternative. I believe comfort and elegance is neglected, and combined with true sustainability, it’s where we’re heading. Airships will lead the way to that future. That’s why we partner with the best experiential companies in the world: to make sure we execute the future of airship travel in the most excellent way possible. Pelorus is a leader in the market curating bespoke adventures, and together we’re pioneering this unique expedition to the North Pole.”

Carl-Oscar Lawaczeck
Founder and CEO of OceanSky Cruises
oceansky cruises

“The airships themselves have the ability to cruise to previously difficult-to-reach places on Earth and allow people to do so whilst enjoying spectacular scenery in a level of luxury normally associated with super yachts. As OceanSky Cruises’ official ‘Expedition Partner’, Pelorus will be supporting in the execution and delivery of some of the company’s first voyages.”

Jimmy Carroll
Co-founder of Pelorus

EXPLORE MORE FUTURE TRENDS

Sign up to our Newsletter join our newsletter submit

PELORUS NEWSLETTER

Join our community to receive the latest travel and yachting inspiration from our team of inhouse experts.

I am interested in receiving newsletters about *(Required)
¹ The Pelorus Foundation is a charity that empowers communities to preserve and protect the world’s wildlife and wild places for future generations’

I agree to receive Pelorus newsletters. I can opt out at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in any Pelorus newsletter. My information will be protected as per the Privacy Policy.