KATARZYNA MACEK: What fascinates you most about traveling?
AGNIESZKA LEWANDOWSKA: Constant changes, every day is different when travelling. Even the best-planned trip brings surprises, unusual meetings and experiences.
K.M.: Why is it often better to use services of the luxury travel companies rather than organize them on our own?
A.L.: Organizing travels can be exciting! However, if we want to see as much as possible in the shortest possible time, I definitely recommend using travel agency’s services. Preparing the route earlier means that during the trip we move very smoothly. Travel companies cooperate with hotels and airlines much more often than an individual tourist and thanks to that they have got special rates negotiated. If you want to make changes, the contact is definitely faster via the travel agency than as an individual tourist. Activities of travel companies are supported by their professionalism, experience and knowledge. We are often unable to find such extraordinary and beautiful places on the Internet by ourselves. Not without significance are also safety and the feeling that we can rely on contacting the office at any time. A group of tourists is most often accompanied by a Polish guide who knows the place and the realities very well and has got great knowledge. Travelling with such a person is much more valuable. We learn a lot of interesting things about a given country.
K.M.: Our readers will certainly be interested in how mass tourism differs from the luxury one. Could you please explain this issue?
A.L.: The most important difference is the privacy. Unique, often very personal emotions are associated with the journey. It is easier to explore them in a smaller group, reaching places inaccessible to large tourist groups. Mass tourism means usually ‘charter’ trips, where several hundred people fly to the same place. After landing, waiting for the coach to depart takes sometimes longer than the flight itself, because everyone must pick up their luggage and find the right coach. Every stop in a large group takes almost an hour. Tourism in smaller groups is the comfort of moving quickly, not wasting time for stops, but above all it is a great privacy, reaching small, boutique hotels that have got their own history. During the trip with a small group, we can spend the night in a place where there are only 10 rooms, and the owner will tell us extraordinary stories from his life during dinner. Such a hotel does not have to be more expensive than a big one. These things are not possible when travelling with a large group. Another difference is the Customer service and the fact that Customer receives a detailed response to their every question and professional advice.
K.M.: What were the origins of the AFRICA line company?
A.L.: The founder of the company is Grzegorz Kępski, who went on his first trip to Africa in the 90s. Grzegorz was the chairman of the Cracow Mountaineering Club, together with his partners he marked a new climbing route on Mt. Kenya (five-thousand meters tall in Kenya). After this expedition, he stayed in Kenya and Tanzania for a few months, won the Klilimanjaro and lived in the village of Maasai. He fell in love with Africa! He returned to Poland and stated that he wanted to inspire others with this love.
As a travel company, we started from organizing even monthly expeditions through off-road Africa, we travelled by local buses, then the tourism looked different... Since 1998, that is, since the establishment of our office, a lot has changed, we have a huge experience base and many Customers served, but the passion remained. It is still most important for us that the Customer falls in love with the journey! Is it to Africa or elsewhere, because we organize trips all over the world.
K.M.: What distinguishes you from other luxury travel companies?
A.L.: Passion! Currently, 12 people work in our team, each of us has got extensive travel experience, although we have got our beloved directions. By calling us, the Customer can be sure that he / she will be redirected to the appropriate person who will answer all questions. In our office we have got specialists in mountain and bicycle trips, people who have been in many luxury hotels for instance in Mauritius, in the Seychelles and are able to advise a Customer which one to choose to satisfy his / her needs. We always try to add something from ourselves. We have got friends all over the world and we like to come back most to such intimate, boutique, often luxury hotels. There are no mass places in our offer. We travel responsibly, with respect to local communities. For instance, if we want to visit the village of Maasai, we choose the one far away from tourist routes, the one that is not visited every day by several other groups. We bring gifts for the residents: tea, sugar. It is always nicer to pay a visit with a gift. When entering the village, the guide advises the group to refrain from taking pictures for the first 30 minutes of the visit. It sounds strange, but the first meeting is the most important time. It runs smoothly without pictures, there is time for a proper greeting, a conversation. There will be a plenty of time for pictures later. In addition, it is much nicer to take a picture of ourselves with someone we already know.
We can also take pride in our numerous awards.
In 2013, AFRICA line company received the Golden Arrow award in the Incentive Programme category for the ‘Kilimanjaro Mission’ project. In 2015, we received the same award for the ‘Namibia Expedition’ programme. Golden Arrow is a direct marketing contest, and we received the prizes for travels for companies and corporations. In addition to individual tourism, we also organize incentives under the Incentive Care brand -
www.incentivecare.pl .
K.M.: Which destinations and types of travels have you got on offer?
A.L.: We have the whole world on offer. On our website you will find only a part of the programmes. We organize travels everywhere, we organized expeditions even to Antarctica and Greenland. We have been several times to New Zealand, Bhutan or Easter Island, this is a part of our unusual directions.
Australia, the red rock – Uluru - Ayers Rock.
K.M.: Do you organize travels by luxury trains - for instance Rovos Rail?
A.L.: We organize travels not only by Rovos Rail, but also by Orient Express in Europe. This is an amazing journey in time, a return to the style of travelling from many years ago. When travelling by train, you can see completely different regions. In the programme with Rovos Rail you travel by night and only partially by day, during the rest of the time various trips are organized, including safari by cars.
VIDEO
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGDz3zH8Gig
VIDEO
www.youtube.com/watch?v=uo_ng1S2OxE
We also recommend watching the document entitled ‘Amazing Train Journeys’, episode 12, France 2011, directed by William Japhet.
K.M.: You are a partner of the Wilderness Safaris company. Could you tell us please about this offer and luxury lodges?
A.L.: AFRICA line is a representative of the luxurious network of camps in Africa – the Wilderness Safaris. Our brands have got a similar operating philosophy. Protection of virgin lands together with the fauna and flora that live on them and support for local communities, in order to be able to share the beauty of the African nature with visitors from around the world.
Wilderness Safaris operates in 7 African countries. It has got over 40 unique camps and lodges, which are located on the area of 30 000 square kilometers of private nature reserves and are available only to Wilderness Safaris’ Guests! They determine the new face of luxury not understood in the category of stars, but through unavailability, the wildness of the places in which they are located and the closeness of nature. At the same time, the standard of service, comfort and attention to details are at the highest level in them.
Let me quote a few facts about Wilderness Safaris that will bring the company closer:
• a new dimension of luxury measured by unavailability and uniqueness of visited places, proximity of wildlife,
• 3 million hectares of unspoilt nature in Africa exclusively for Wilderness Safaris’ Guests: savannas, tropical forests, deserts and the ocean,
• 30 years of experience,
• own fleet of light aircraft that enable reaching distant camps and lodges,
• all camps are exceptionally located, they have got the highest standard of service, are characterized by attention to detail, the price of the stay includes activities and meals, as well as alcoholic beverages,
• 3 standards of camps and lodges: Premier Camps – the highest level of luxury, Classic Camps and Adventure Camps – an option for adventurers.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lL_Hyv8hdO4
K.M.: Could you mention the original types of tourist accommodation?
A.L.: It can be a private island – for instance Frigate in the Seychelles, it can be a luxury tree apartment - for instance TreeTops Lodge in Tarangire Park in Tanzania or colonial properties in the Naivasha region in Kenya. We strive to offer our Guests real experiences, it happens that we spend the night with tourists in a Masai village or in a cave. The conditions are primary, but the impressions remain with us for the rest of our lives.
We also own a lodge in the North of Kenya - the Desert Rose Kenya. This is one of our most original places to stay. Located in quite inaccessible terrain, high in the mountains, one reaches it by a steep road that runs sometimes along the dry river bed. Desert Rose is a real rose in the middle of the desert. The lodge is maintained in an exceptionally original style with every decor element hand-made. Open bathrooms, bathtubs carved in stone, wooden sinks are just a few items from the surprising architecture of the property. For more information, visit
http://desertrosekenya.com/ .
www.desertrosekenya.com
K.M.: How do you care about the local natural environment?
A.L.: In AFRICA line we want the magical sunsets over the savanna, vast mountain landscapes and rare species of plants and animals to delight subsequent generations of travellers.
We belong to tourist organizations supporting the preservation of local ecosystems: the East African Wildlife Society, the Wild Clubs of Kenya and the Kenya Association of Tour Operators. As part of the ‘Travel with us - help with us’ programme, we have been developing charity activities. We have been working closely with the AAR Beckmann Trust Foundation, led by a longtime friend of AFRICA line - Maryjka Sapieha-Beckmann, daughter of Prince Eustachy Sapieha. We have taken over the patronage of the Wasu Rongai village in the North of Kenya, which we have provided with solar lamps. A weblink to the movie from this aid action:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAsGdnQKF6w
VIDEO
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAsGdnQKF6w
K.M.: On your website I have noticed useful information regarding, among other issues, travel destinations, care of travel guides and necessary insurance. Do you attach great importance to the mental comfort and safety of travellers?
A.L.: One can say that this most important to us! During holidays peace of mind is a key issue for a good rest. We strive to ensure that our Guests receive all the necessary and practical information. Before the departure we send a very rich package of information about the journey. During expeditions we rely on professional equipment, and we reach places that are inaccessible to the average tourist, using a network of trusted contacts developed over the years.
We have learned local conditions, customs and specific, African lifestyle from the inside - as the only Polish travel company we have got our own branch office in Kenya. Thanks to this, for the local citizens we are not just another mzungu (in Swahili language: white or strangers), but the natives.
K.M.: Who are the AFRICA line company’s Customers? What do they usually look for when choosing your company's offer?
A.L.: Our Customers look for authentic impressions, professional service and, above all, knowledge of the regions, which they want to visit during their holidays. We are approached by lawyers, doctors, private entrepreneurs, business owners. More often, Poles living abroad also benefit from our offer. We have got many Customers who travel with us on holidays every year, we can talk about them as friends of our office.
Cambodia – Silver Pagoda - a complex of templebuildings in Phnom Penh
K.M.: Which destinations are most often chosen by couples, which by families with children and which by small groups of friends or companies?
A.L.: An interesting question. Couples usually choose elegant safari in Tanzania, Kenya and South Africa. The islands of Mauritius and Seychelles are also popular. Families with children usually choose the USA, Tanzania, Kenya, but also Thailand and Indonesia. We have recently organized a journey to Uganda and Argentina for a group of friends, but in this case there are no specific destinations, the whole world is popular. Likewise with incentive trips for companies. We organize travels to all continents, but the most popular choice are the USA, Japan, Spain, Mexico and our favorite Tanzania.
India- women in traditional costumes.
K.M.: What are the current trends in the exotic travel market? What is changing? Which tendencies are most noticeable?
A.L.: Currently, authentic experiences are more and more sought after. I have noticed that some people are able to give up travel icons such as Machu Picchu or Iguzau Waterfalls during their travels in favour of less commercial places. I observe a tendency that getting to know a specific region is becoming more important rather than moving quickly from one place to another. There are more and more requests for 3 or 4 nights in one place rather than changing rooms almost every night.
Sri Lanka
K.M.: Which corners of the world are your favorite?
A.L.: In this matter I will not be original! Africa, Africa and once again Africa. Mountains are also my passion, in Africa I like Mt. Kenya’s surroundings in Kenya.
K.M.: Which journey signed up particularly in your memory and why?
A.L.: From my travels with AFRICA line’s Customers I most often recall the one to Malawi. I was then a tour guide for a group of four tourists (two couples). We were watching amazing places, which are still reached by a small number of tourists. We were resting on the Likoma Island on Malawi Lake. During our stay at the tea plantation in Satmewa, we were invited for afternoon tea and refreshments to a British family who immigrated to Malawi in the 1950s. An amazing meeting and conversations.
From private travels an adventure of my life was a cycling journey through the Central African Republic within the framework of the ‘Nowak’s Africa’ project. Together with my friends we travelled over 1000 kilometers through this wild corner of Africa, a trail that Kazimierz Nowak travelled in the 1930s. I share the impressions from this yourney on my blog http://agamamap.pl/. I invite you to read it!
An interesting experience was also trekking in Greenland. We walked 120 kilometers within 9 days. In Greenland I experienced one of the most pleasant moments in my life - my husband proposed to me. Such moments and travells are not forgotten!
K.M.: Will you also tell us which places in the world you would like to visit yet?
A.L.: Yes, despite so many travels to Africa, I have not been to Uganda yet, this is my goal for year 2018. I would also like to get to the top of Margherita in the Ruwenzori mountains and see the mountain gorillas.
At the top of the Kilimanjaro.
K.M.: Could you list your favorite book authors and interesting travel movies? The exoticism of Africa show for instance ‘Out of Africa’ book and movie and the series about Indiana Jones.
A.L.: I have got my favorite list of books about Africa, a part of them about romantic adventures and some reporter books. Below are a few examples:
Daphne Sheldrick ‘Love, Life and Elephants: An African Love Story’
Kuki Gallmann ‘I Dreamed of Africa’,
William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer ‘The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind’,
Dariusz Rosiak ‘The Heat’,
Peter Godwin ‘When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: a Memoir of Africa’
On the equator in Kenya.
K.M.: R. Elliot said: ‘If you can visit only two continents in your lifetime, visit Africa ... twice.’ Do you agree with this statement?
A.L.: Definitely yes, Africa is a continent full of breathtaking views. Landscapes of green Tanzania are completely different from the South of Africa, desert Namibia or Botswana. I recommend Africa to everyone who likes space and nature.
Mrs. Agnieszka Lewandowska
K.M.: Thank you kindly for the interview. I wish you further successes and fascinating journeys.
A.L.: Thank you very much for the interview and interesting questions.
Author:
Katarzyna Macek
Marketing director at the A&K Luxury Group company. An expert in luxury goods marketing.
A graduate of the daily studies in the field of 'Services Management' at Lyngby Business Academy
in Denmark, the daily Bachelor's Degree studies 'Philology in the field of the Business English'
at Business Language College of the University of Silesia, the daily Master's Degree studies in the field of 'MSc Marketing' at Oxford Brookes University in Oxford, England, as well as postgraduate studies in the field of 'International Business Negotiations' at Silesian International School of Economics.
She has been operating in the luxury goods market for many years, serving demanding and wealthy customers, VIPs and companies which offer luxury products and professional services.
She is interested in business subjects, travels, foreign languages, nature, cars and sports.
She is a great art lover - especially the lover of classical music, ballet, theatre, movies, fashion, architecture, historical real estate and retro style.
She values a healthy lifestyle in harmony with nature - the so-called 'slow life'.
Her passion is the promotion of the luxury, top quality, beauty, class, culture, good manners, Poland, luxury goods companies, corporate social responsibility and young talents.
Contact:
mobile.: +48 509 185 195,
e-mail: contact@luxuryexpo.pl
Comments: