From high-end wildlife reserves in Africa to viewing art without crowds: Here's what rich travellers are into

Clad in a blue jumpsuit and dangling from the side of a skyscraper 366m above New York City, billionaire Richard Branson urged viewers on Twitter last week to live life to the fullest and try new things.

As the founder of space tourism company Virgin Galactic, Branson is among a handful of ultra-wealthy entrepreneurs pushing the limits of exploration and experiences. Branson and Virgin Group did not immediately comment on the risks of space tourism.

Some billionaires rocketed into space, as Branson and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos have. Other rich travellers journeyed on a submersible to explore the wreckage of the ocean liner Titanic. Five who made that trip last week lost their lives. But most very wealthy people want a less extreme but exclusive experience, according to Wall Street investors, bankers, lawyers and those who look to sell exotic vacations.

“Our public already has access to luxury hotels, what they want is a different experience and personal development,” said Alexandre Cymbalista, CEO of Brazilian travel agency Latitudes Viagens. His trips feature a photographer to memorialise the event and a doctor for immediate first aid.

Geoffrey Kent, founder of 61-year-old luxury tour operator Abercrombie & Kent, spends more than a year planning bespoke trips ranging from safaris in Botswana, to a Himalayan trek.

For $250,000-$300,000 (about R4.7m-R5.6m) a trip, Kent sometimes fields unusual requests including helping a Saudi prince fulfil his dream of flying a plane onto and off an aircraft carrier. But Kent said certain modes of travel were too risky.

In the wake of booming stock markets and entrepreneurs cashing out of family businesses, the ranks of millionaires are growing. Credit Suisse said the number of people worth more than $50m (R935.5m), for example, expanded by more than 50% between 2019 and 2021. And IT services and consulting company Capgemini estimates there are 210,000 people with more than $30m (R561.3m) in net worth worldwide.

As portfolios grow, so does the demand for experiences — from staying in high-end tents in wildlife reserves in Africa, access to a Sotheby’s auctioneer to explain the trends in watches, to viewing world famous art, without the crowds.

SPECIAL ACCESS

Goldman Sachs, for example, offers their highest net-worth clients trips around the Art Basel fair in Miami, organised by in-house art expert Monica Heslington, who heads the family office art and collectibles strategy, according to a source familiar with the situation.

A spokesperson for Goldman said its clients went to an event last year focusing on diverse artists in residence at the Rubell Museum in Miami as part of Art Basel.

Bank of America has established a partnership with luxury travel agency Indagare to cater to people with more than $50m in assets. Bank of America did not immediately comment.

Melissa Biggs Bradley, Indagare's CEO, expects to have around 1,000 travellers this year. For about $20,000 (about R375,000), Indagare offers a three-day stay at a boutique hotel in Modena owned by Italian restaurateur Massimo Bottura, combined with a visit to Ferrari headquarters and chance to test drive the cars.

Trips to the south and north poles are in vogue, as well as remote places such as Mongolia for eagle hunting with nomadic tribes, she said.

LOWER RISK

As entrepreneurs and money managers pursue hobbies, some more dangerous than others, some investors raised concerns about the risks and said they might even pull money if a fund manager, for example, pursued death-defying feats.

Eight years ago, billionaire investor Bill Ackman and his college friend and fellow fund manager Whitney Tilson organised two dozen fund managers and others to participate in a gruelling training camp led by former Navy Seals.

The men bobbed in wet suits in the cold Pacific Ocean, hurled themselves into surf in boats and performed physical endurance tests on the beach in California, according to several people who went.

The experience was so demanding that Ackman's father expressed concern about the intended trip, not for his son but for another fund manager who had signed up to go. All men returned safely to tell about the experience.

Tilson and Ackman declined to comment.

One person familiar with that excursion said it probably wouldn't happen again, in part because it was such a potentially risky undertaking.