Global luxury travel network Virtuoso has signed a partnership with one of the most dynamic lifestyle brands now entering the cruise marketplace: Virgin Voyages.

The Asia Pacific division of luxury travel network Virtuoso was the fastest growing region for the company in 2018, with business up 24% year-on-year.

Virtuoso’s new 2019 Best of the Best is every luxury traveller’s dream book. Lined with more than 1,300 of the globe’s top luxury hotels as well as the hottest trends for the coming year, readers will find special benefits at each property valued in excess of $500 per night.

History has been made and a long-anticipated dream realised in Mojave, California, as Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo, VSS Unity, landed from her maiden spaceflight to cheers from Richard Branson and the teams from Virgin Galactic and The Spaceship Company.

Virtuoso has given a sneak peek of the hottest upscale hotels debuting worldwide over the next few months. From Asia to Africa to Europe and beyond, these properties will dazzle with scenic settings, stunning design and impeccable service. Beachside escapes, historic properties, modern stunners and nature retreats are awaiting travellers, who will return home with the greatest souvenir: a transformational experience courtesy of these hotels that are raising the bar.

Luxury travel network, Virtuoso, has released its 2019 Virtuoso Luxe Report for inspiration. The annual survey taps into the group’s elite force of 17,500 travel advisors from around the world to share their top selections for next year’s most compelling peak experiences.

Virtuoso recently honoured its highest performing travel agency members and advisors, each of whom earned the opportunity to experience a different look at one of the world’s most beloved and visited cities: Venice, Italy. Virtuoso hosted the group during a time that is increasingly more popular with luxury travellers, the off-season, which opens up more cultural experiences and opportunities that are not available during busier, more congested parts of the year. Italy has proven itself a favourite among upscale travellers, having been rated the network’s top destination for the past 10 years according to Virtuoso’s annual Luxe Report, prompting participants to add visits to locations throughout the country to round out their Venetian experience.

Richard Branson has announced the reopening of his private island in the Caribbean, Necker Island, part of the Virgin Limited Edition portfolio, featuring a new Balinese-style house called Leha Lo.

Virtuoso has entered into a strategic partnership with Luxury Retreats, a full-service villa rental company dedicated to creating authentic travel experiences. With an increased preference by upscale travellers for greater personalisation and flexibility – as well as the more immersive experience that comes with villa stays – Virtuoso’s affluent clientele will now have access to Luxury Retreats’ more than 4,000 private villas in hundreds of the world’s top destinations.

Virtuoso is inviting the world’s most exciting new travel technology companies to apply for its 2019 Incubator program. A pioneer when founded in 2015 to fulfil a need in the industry, Virtuoso Incubator helps startups strengthen products to enhance advisor productivity and client service.

Tourism Australia has really done a great job. Instead of just looking at the destination as a whole, [it has] created these verticals, and identified that luxury was one of the fastest growing verticals. It’s kind of like a greenhouse; Australia had these seedlings and Tourism Australia put the sun lamps on them. It brought the world’s attention to what you had.

Virtuoso’s Senior Manager, Global Cruise Programs, Tony Logan was in the region last week hosting a series of one-day ‘Cruise Host Training’ programs in Melbourne, Sydney and the Gold Coast.