In December 2023, during the prestigious International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM) event in Cannes, we had the privilege of sitting down with Nicolas Streff, Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Communications at Belmond. Streff, a prominent figure in the luxury hospitality sector, shared his insights into Belmond’s strategic approach to expansion and rejuvenation. He emphasized the importance of destination uniqueness and cultural integration in property selection, highlighting Belmond’s commitment to offering incomparable guest experiences

Words & interview by Kostas Panagakis for Fortune Greece Magazine

Selective expansion

With the recent acquisition of Hacienda Katanchel and the planned expansion into Sardinia, how does Belmond strategically select its properties for expansion, and what role does the historical and cultural significance of a location play in this decision-making process?

So I think the key word here is very much selective expansion. We are not in a race and for us what matters the most is the destination. The destination is to be remarkable, unique but also in the way we select properties intimacy of scale plays a big role. So small-scale hotel, limited number of rooms; we’re talking about 80 to 100 rooms maximum.

Then it’s about also the cultural angle. What is the local culture? And how all the elements can play a role together for us to be able to compare and to create incomparable experiences. So again selective expansion is a key word here and we are very specific about what we need and what we think could become a Belmond brand.

And another dimension that we need to take into consideration is there is not one size fits all. So each project, each new property is unique and that’s how we play the role of property first. So Belmond plays a role of a curator but ultimately we want the property to shine.

So you have a level of saying on what the property will do but it’s always with respect to the surroundings.

It’s the surroundings, the communities, the history and the heritage which I didn’t mention but it’s kind of obvious to us. But also is how we can understand the role in the contemporary culture and bring that property to the 21st century. We’re not stuck in the past. So the idea is how we can leverage the history and the heritage and bring this contemporary touch, while celebrating and honoring the heritage of that property. That’s kind of a, I’m not going to say a recipe for Belmont, but that’s what matters to us when it’s selected.

“The world has rediscovered train travel after the pandemic, but we’ve been doing so for more than four decades since 1982 with the Venice – Simplon Orient Express”.

Train Travel Emphasis

Belmond is known for its iconic train journeys. Could you elaborate on the strategic vision behind focusing more on train travel in 2024, and how do you see this aligning with the evolving preferences of luxury travelers?

The world has rediscovered train travel after the pandemic, but we’ve been doing so for more than four decades since 1982 with the Venice – Simplon Orient Express. Six trains today, for us, is more than a train. We’ve been pioneering this sector. We are the leader, and we are intending to remain the leader and to continue to offer more destinations, more journeys with trains.

Starting with 2024, I think the relaunch of the Eastern & Oriental Express is a great example, from Singapore to Malaysia. And we will continue to elevate the guest experience on board all of our trains. In the Royal Scotchman we’re going to add Grand Suites on board the train. We’re going to also work with new chefs for our two trains in Peru. We keep offering new projects, new destinations and new ways of discovering countries and landscapes through slow travel.

The novelty as well for the Venice – Simplon Orient Express next year is a destination to Portofino. For the very first time there are two iconic cities Paris and Portofino getting linked together with the VSOE. And the most legendary route is Istanbul. We will do Paris – Istanbul twice a year starting from 2024.

Are you going to link the route to Portofino with your properties there: Splendido and Splendido Mare?

Yes. For the first time next year on the basis of our route to Portofino, we also host an event at Splendido. We will have Jean Imbert, the chef on board the VSOE, cooking with our chef at Splendido and we will do an amazing celebration. But overall, you know, the trend of slow travel is very exciting. And it is also exciting to see that we have private and public actors in the field. You see a lot of governments investing in slow travel, in sleeper trains, overall, not necessarily luxury. There is an appetite from travelers around the world to not only take time for traveling but to also connect destinations in a completely different way.

The future of slow travel

Belmont has been a pioneer in slow travel. How do you foresee the future of this especially now that everybody is claiming that they are active or they are going to be active in that segment in one way or another.

The future of slow travel is bright. There are two angles to slow travel for us. There is slow travel, in traveling by train or boat. And then there is slow travel in the way you stay at a destination for longer. So you take time to immerse yourself into the destination. We’ve also seen people staying a bit longer to connect with the culture, the community, the gastronomy, what we were talking about earlier. But coming back to train, I think the future is bright for train travel overall across the world. And yes, we will continue to cement our leadership position and we have interesting projects in the pipeline.

And the final question for the Belmond fans in Greece: given Belmond’s global presence and its strategic expansion plans, are there any considerations or future plans for expanding Belmond’s luxury travel offerings in Greece?

Greece is certainly an incredible destination. We were talking about Mexico earlier with history and heritage. Greece absolutely as well. There are many, maybe too many destinations, that we would love to have properties. But actually we have on the wish list many destinations. We will eventually explore opportunities. Greece could be one, like many other European destinations. But we hope that in the future we will continue to expand our portfolio. Hotel and trains and again always with a selective approach.