Aurora Expeditions UK & Ireland MD Jos Dewing explains how the line is using its expedition expertise to protect the environment.

What key tips can you give agents to convince clients to choose Aurora Expeditions?

Our mission is to have our passengers (or expeditioners) disembark from an Aurora Expeditions voyage knowing far more than when they embarked, returning home as true ambassadors of the regions we have taken them to and influencing and enriching the knowledge of their friends and family.

Many clients are now looking for an immersive experience when they travel and our popular Citizen Science programmes enable them to give back while on tour, guided by subject matter experts.

Citizen Science is the collection and analysis of data provided by the public in collaboration with polar scientists. Our aim is to have passengers leave our expedition as ambassadors of the planet.

How do you intend to improve trade relationships?

The knowledgeable sales team offers regular, comprehensive, and practical product training to the travel industry.

In addition, our website has a dedicated section for travel agents filled with useful content from detailed destination information and expedition leaders’ expert tips to detailed itinerary trip notes, regular newsletters, flyers and infographic options for co-op marketing opportunities.

We also develop dedicated brochures, such as photography or birding, to assist with specialist marketing and are now finalising an agents’ hub, offering much more functionality to support agents directly.

We have built up a small but growing base of loyal travel agents and tour operators who continue to increase the number of their clients sailing with Aurora.

Agents are further supported by the sales team, who constantly attend trade shows, expos, and in-agency sale events. We also offer numerous familiarisation voyages to Antarctica, the Arctic and beyond.

As for 2023, how are you keeping your expedition itineraries fresh and interesting?

Our 2023 Arctic expeditions are rich and diverse, with awe-inspiring landscapes, mesmerising wildlife encounters and a plethora of exceptional activities such as polar diving, rock climbing and kayaking.

The Arctic encompasses Greenland, Iceland, Norway’s Svalbard, and the Canadian Northwest Passage – each with an unparalleled highlight. Aurora Expeditions is offering a range of 11 curated itineraries from 11 to 24 days, each showcasing many of these highlights.

Tell us more about Sylvia Earle, and what makes the ship unique?

Sylvia Earle is a floating ambassador for the planet. The ship honours Dr Sylvia Earle, who the United Nations dubbed the ‘Champion of the Earth’.

In a world first, each of the vessel’s public decks have the names of other pioneering women in conservation – Dr Carden Wallace, Joanna Ruxton, Sharon Kwok, Bernadette Demientieff, Dr Asha de Vos, and Hanli Prinsloo – along with a deck dedicated to Dr Earle herself.

The scientists are inspiring leaders in their fields, and as part of the deck theming, will educate our expeditioners on the impressive and important conservation work they continue to do.

You have your climate expedition cruise in February 2023. What do you hope this will achieve?

Aurora and Dr Sylvia Earle will host an Antarctic Climate Expedition to drive public and government awareness of the importance of the Antarctic, and to address the warming climate and loss of sea ice in the southern polar region.

Expeditioners will help formulate 23 resolutions to inspire transformative changes for global net-zero emission targets by 2035.

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[Main image: Dan Stavert]