Change is powerful. All life is about change. The challenge...do you ignore it and pretend that it is

not happening, or do you embrace it, knowing that a new reality is coming? I see change as a natural

evolution, and one that I soundly embrace.

What stirred us to elation five years or even 12 months ago is, today, the expectation of our guests.

You push us to push the envelope. We often receive comments from our guests using the expression

“life changing.” That, too, has become an expectation, and a challenge my team and I gladly accept.

Big Five’s logo includes the phrase Enriching Lives Through Distinctive Journeys. This thought is

at the core of our company. To us, it means that each journey we plan must reward with experiences

that reach beyond. The word authentic has become a cliché, and the new buzz words of the day are

experiential and sustainable. These are two distinct ideas, but are they really?

Travel is by its very nature something that is experienced. But the difference between experience

and experiential is like the contrast between swimming and scuba diving – both are enjoyable and

rewarding; however, delving into greater depths allows the diver a more complete sense of the marine

world and its connections to the whole. It offers discovery with a purpose. Enjoying an authentic safari

in the private conservancies of East Africa, cooking classes in Peru, fresh market tours with local chefs

in Colombia, bicycling the Chinese countryside, learning to sail in the Whitsundays and meeting

school children in the minority tribes of Vietnam are all forms of diving deeper.

In introducing the Coveted Collection, our sustainability expert, Costas Christ, talks about the genuine

value of sustainable tourism’s three pillars of environmentally-friendly practices, protection of

cultural and natural heritage, and support for the well-being of local people.

The essence of these sustainability practices to me means we as a global community need to act in good

faith. My father did so for me. I am doing this for my children. They in turn will continue carrying

the torch for their children in order to allow them to inherit a world that has the same or even an increased

diversity of landscapes, cultures and historic treasures that we have been fortunate enough to enjoy.

In the end, I believe experiential travel and sustainable tourism are one and the same. And, they always

have been. What does this really mean to you? We travel to explore other worlds, and we hope to do good

along the way. The melding of these dual ideas is a powerful force, and one that will continually evolve

in the coming editions of the Navigator Series™. Stay tuned…

Sincerely,

Ashish Sanghrajka

President

The New Reality

161

“Change is powerful. All life is about change. The challenge is do you ignore it and pretend that

it is not happening, or do you embrace it, knowing that a new reality is coming?”

162