August 9, 2016
Shanghai; image courtesy Remote Lands
Asian tour designer Remote Lands and The Peninsula Hotels are teaming up for a venture into Asia’s contemporary art world.
Taking place Feb. 19-March 5 2017, the trip will offer 16 travelers an opportunity to explore the contemporary art capitals of Asia, staying in Peninsula hotels and accessing exclusive experiences along the way. Heavily curated, luxurious trips boost the profile of all brands involved as they demonstrate high-end service to paying clients.
"Peninsula has hotels in all the major Asian contemporary art capitals, so they are an ideal partner for this trip with Remote Lands," said Catherine Heald, CEO and co-founder of Remote Lands. "In addition, Peninsula is already a very close business partner of Remote Lands for our custom clients. All their hotels are luxury and amongst the very top properties in each market."
Art capitals
The 15-day “Journey Through Asia’s Contemporary Art Capitals” itinerary will take consumers to Bangkok, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing and Tokyo, with Peninsula providing hospitality in each city. The trip will include tours of art museums, galleries and private collections, as well as meetings with renowned artists and panel discussions and other informative sessions.
Peninsula Bangkok
The journey will begin in Bangkok, where a private lunch will be held with local gallery owners in the Yenaka Art Village. Clients will also stop at Souled Art Studio, founded by renowned street artist Chris Bowden, and participate in a helicopter flight around the city.
Moving on to Hong Kong, guests will be welcomed to the private studio of artist Joao Vasco Paiva, winner of the Hong Kong Emerging Artist award. A visit to the collection of William Lim, an award winning architect and artist, will also be included.
At the next stop in Shanghai, the lucky few will be welcomed to enter the private apartment of Pearl Lam, one of the world’s most acclaimed collectors and dealers, to explore her private collection.
Peninsula Hong Kong
In Beijing, clients will spend a morning with Zhang Deli, one of the country’s first and foremost street artists who has also crossed over into sculpture, photography and painting. A private tour of an upcoming sale by the Guardian Auction House featuring a sneak peek at the lots of an upcoming auction that has not been made public yet is also included.
Still in Beijing, the tour will include a survey of the Faurschou collection with curator Xu Gao, including works in storage. Outside the art world, excursions will include hiking along the Great Wall of China and participating in tai chi at Templre of Heaven.
The trip will conclude in Tokyo, where the group will tour more collections, including the Mori Art museum, and meet painter Izumi Kato.
In addition to hospitality, Peninsula will provide dining and experiential opportunities that go beyond the art world.
Bei Shui at Peninsula Beijing
“Remote Lands will provide guests on this trip the most insightful experience into the art world within these key cities in Asia,” said Simon Yip, vice president of sales at The Peninsula Hotels, in a statement. “We are proud to partner with Remote Lands and to offer luxury accommodations, as well as incredible dining and experiential opportunities to create memorable moments that will last a lifetime.”
Partnering with travel agencies also positions the hospitality brand as experience-oriented in a consumer marketplace that is demanding more adventurous vacations and turning away from the traditional luxuries of years past.
The full itinerary is available here. Tickets begin at $26,888 per person.
Partners in travel
Remote Lands frequently partners with upscale hoteliers for its trips, allowing the hotel brands to impress high-net-worth clientele and reinforce their own exclusivity.
The ultra-luxury travel agency and hotelier Aman are giving their clients a tour of Asia in their latest private jet expedition.
Remote Lands and Aman's aerial excursion will be taking 16 guests through China, Bhutan, India and Sri Lanka from Oct. 9-26. As travel becomes more accessible further down the income ladder, private jet experiences remain an ultra-exclusive manner of winning over the highest-value clientele (see story).
Hospitality has emerged as a sector of interest for brands with roots outside the sector. For such brands, curated trips abroad hold the same luster, as they create a brand lifestyle that extends beyond the pleasures of the trip itself.
For example, French crystal-maker Baccarat is touting its history for its most affluent clients with a 12-day intercontinental journey.
Run through the Baccarat Hotel New York, “The Heritage Experience” will allow consumers to more closely examine and interact with the brand’s story, spanning more than 250 years. With consumers’ growing taste for experiential luxury, The Heritage Package is an opportunity for Baccarat to sell a lifestyle and an experience that will leave a stronger impression (see story).
"The ideal client for this trip is someone who loves contemporary art and wants to learn more about this art scene in Asia and personally meet the players involved," Ms. Heald said. "They may or may not already be contemporary art collectors, know about contemporary art and the scenes in America and Europe or they may just be a novice with a desire to learn about this space.
"It doesn't matter," she said. "The purpose of this trip is to learn about the contemporary art scenes in each city on a completely immersive level.
"Both the Peninsula Hotels and Remote Lands share a love for Asian contemporary art and indeed Asian art in general. We are excited about sharing that love with the 16 guests on this trip."
Share your thoughts. Click here
