TravTalk India Online Magazine
India is rapidly emerging as a powerhouse in global luxury and expedition travel, and 7 Continents Explorer is sharpening its focus on this high-growth market, says Pushparaj Shetty, Founder. He highlights India’s rising demand for immersive, transformative journeys, driven by affluent travellers seeking rare destinations, deep exploration, and personalised experiences—supported strongly by India’s influential travel agent community.
Surbhi Sharma
India’s outbound luxury travel market is undergoing a dramatic transformation, and 7 Continents Explorer is positioning itself at the centre of this shift. According to Pushparaj Shetty, Founder, 7 Continents Explorer, India is not just an emerging source market, it is becoming one of the most influential drivers of ultra-luxury experiential and expedition travel globally. The company sees it as a priority market where traveller aspirations are now perfectly aligned with the philosophy of deep exploration, authenticity, and transformational journeys.
Shetty observes that a new generation of affluent Indian travellers is moving beyond conventional luxury vacations. These travellers are seeking meaningful, immersive experiences — from polar expeditions and rare wildlife encounters to culturally rich and remote destinations untouched by mainstream tourism. This growing appetite for adventure, storytelling, and purposeful travel is redefining the luxury segment and placing India on the global expedition map.
Tailored experiences for India’s diverse luxury traveller segments
7 Continents Explorer is curating its offering around the diversity of the Indian luxury traveller. UHNWIs increasingly prefer private, customised journeys featuring charters, exclusive landings, and bespoke routes designed around passions such as photography, gastronomy, or culture. Adventure seekers gravitate toward off-grid destinations, adrenaline-fuelled activities, and specialist expedition leaders.
There is also a sharp rise in “checklist travellers” aiming for rare destinations and milestone achievements such as Antarctica, the Arctic, Patagonia or Galapagos. Meanwhile, wellness-led experiential travel is gaining traction, with Indian guests seeking mindful voyages, detox-focused itineraries, and nature-driven healing environments.
To meet these expectations, the brand integrates “Indian touches” into its journeys — curated Indian cuisine options, flexibility for multi-generational families, child-friendly enrichment modules, and even fellow Indian travellers onboard select departures to create cultural resonance. Shetty emphasises that expedition travel should feel “extraordinary yet effortless,” blending global discovery with personal warmth and comfort.
Indian travel agents: Backbone of expedition travel growth
A defining element of the company’s India strategy is its deep partnership model with travel agents. Stressing that in India, travel agents are not intermediaries — they are “trusted advisors, storytellers, and the backbone of the experiential travel ecosystem,” Shetty said, “The firm invests in real-time partner engagement, providing agents with storytelling tools, digital toolkits, departure calendars, and VR-driven client showcases.”
Joint destination presentations, immersive events, and private client evenings are central to their India outreach. The brand also supports partners through personalised product briefings, in-office training, virtual masterclasses, and detailed route-mapping sessions to match each traveller with the right expedition.
Relationship-led support forms the core of their B2B model. Indian agents receive 24/7 assistance, fast turnaround times, guidance on traveller profiling, and transparent communication — elements crucial in a market where trust and personal connections drive decision-making. While FAM trips are selective, the company offers opportunities such as FOC berths for high-performing partners capable of influencing the experiential category.
Pure B2B strategy: Building India’s next decade of expedition specialists
Unlike many global brands that adopt hybrid B2C models, the company is committed to a purely B2B growth path in India. This means no parallel consumer outreach, no channel conflict, and complete reliance on specialised Indian travel professionals. The aim is to build a nationwide network of highly trained expedition specialists over the next decade — professionals who can advise, educate, and inspire travellers to embark on complex journeys across polar and remote regions.
Looking ahead, Shetty is confident that Indian travel professionals will play a transformative role in shaping global expedition travel. Their understanding of client needs, ability to handhold families, and skill in weaving narratives around destinations will help bring more first-time expedition travellers into the segment, driving long-term demand and awareness.
