The Informed Traveler
The Informed Traveler
Explora Journeys & Smithe House, Vancouver BC
We've got a special guest joining us this week as Lisa Willey from Explora Journey's will join travel expert Onanta Forbes and I to talk about cruising with Explora Journeys. Then we'll head to Vancouver to chat with one of the managing partners with Kalido Hospitality Group. That's the group that operates Smithe House, a place that calls itself an aparthotel. So we'll find out more about that.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_01:Well, hello and welcome to the Informed Traveller podcast, a weekly travel podcast where our goal is to help you become a more informed traveller. I'm your host, Randy Sharman. We've got a special guest joining us this week as Lisa Willey from Explora Journeys. We'll join travel expert Onanta Forbes and I in just a few seconds to talk about cruising with Explora Journeys. And then we'll head to Vancouver to chat with one of the managing partners with Kalido Hospitality Group. That's the group that operates Smythe House a place that calls itself an apart hotel. So we'll find out just what an apart hotel is and more about Smythe House later in the podcast. But first, let's kick things off chatting with travel expert Onanta Forbes, who joins us each week to discuss some of the travel news and travel trends. You can follow her on Instagram, Facebook, and X at Onanta Forbes. Onantaforbes.com is her website. And this week, we have a special guest joining us. She's Lisa Willey, business relationship lead in Western Canada for Explorage. journeys. ExploraJourneys.com is their website. Hello, Lisa, welcome to the show.
SPEAKER_03:Hi, thank you for having me on.
SPEAKER_01:And of course, hello to Onanta. How are you?
SPEAKER_03:I'm well, how are you?
SPEAKER_01:Very well, thank you. Thanks for doing this, Lisa. We're going to talk about ExploraJourneys. I'll start it off just with the basic question of tell me about ExploraJourneys and your role.
SPEAKER_04:Wow, there's lots to talk about. It's a fantastic ocean experience. We're a brand new cruise line. We launched our first ship in August of 2023. So we just celebrated our second anniversary in operation. And it's just been a spectacular ride. We have two ships in the water now. Explorer Journeys, we were created by a family over in Geneva. They have many, many generations of in the maritime industry. They're also the owners of the largest privately owned shipping company in the world, the Mediterranean Shipping Company. And we're their passion project. So we've really created Explore Journeys to stand out in the luxury cruise industry, really reimagining what a high-end ocean experience can be like. You feel like you're on your own private yacht and sailing in ultra elegance. There's spacious oceanfront suites. They all have a private terrace. The culinary experience is just amazing. Really, the way we're styled and operated is more like a luxury boutique hotel versus a traditional cruise ship. So it's been a lot of fun for me to be representing this brand out in Western Canada and talking about it and introducing people to it. It's been
SPEAKER_01:fun. It looks pretty amazing. I am looking on your website, explorajourneys.com. I just want to to know like what's the onboard experience like because when you say luxury cruising sometimes people kind of get it in their head of oh it's a little bit intimidating sometimes you don't know it's
SPEAKER_04:actually it's it's very relaxed um and casual it has more of a european vibrant um atmosphere we don't have any formal dress codes at the hosts that look after you are very relaxed as well and And pretty much every time I've been on board, the guests are very relaxed. There's no snobbery or formality. It's just you feel like you're in a resort. The ocean just happens to be our address. It's beautiful. Vibrant and fun. There's lots to do. I
SPEAKER_01:like how you put that. The ocean is our address.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, that's great.
SPEAKER_01:Go ahead on that.
SPEAKER_04:Instead of a beach, it's the ocean out your front door.
SPEAKER_03:And one of the things that I'm quite enjoying with sharing Explorer with my guests and learning from our colleagues that have been on board Explorer is the itineraries because it's not just back to like going back and forth to the same places, you actually are navigating the world. Is that right?
SPEAKER_04:Yeah. The journeys, we call them journeys, have been carefully curated to provide that in-depth experience for the guests and be a little bit more immersive as well, having more overnights, late-night departures. And it isn't that rinse-repeat cycle. They're created so... maybe a younger traveler who doesn't have as much time off work can go on a shorter journey, seven nights, but then the next one, might be another 10 nights. And so you can back to back them, or we call them extended journeys. And they just kind of keep traveling and navigating around the world instead of, as you said, just kind of repeating the same itinerary over and over again. And with two ships in the water, but we have a fleet of six that will all be out and sailing the world by the end of 2028. So we are very quickly coming out with journeys that will take us expand where we have been operating, which has primarily been focusing on the Mediterranean and the Caribbean. It's perfect places to showcase the ships. But then we will be now going to places like Iceland and Greenland. And there's South America that goes up the Amazon River. Our third ship, Explorer 3, is going to be coming through the Panama Canal and up the West Coast and joining us in Alaska and doing some very unique Alaska content in 2027 as well and then she's going to head out further west so it's exciting to see the growth for sure.
SPEAKER_03:Right and it's good to see that we can book far in advance right like it's up to a couple years now right so good planning and something to focus on. One of the One of the nicest compliments I think I've heard of explorers from a guest who said that they just didn't have to do anything. They just enjoyed it. They just enjoyed their deck if they wanted to or enjoyed the shore excursions or enjoyed the shopping on board. Yeah,
SPEAKER_04:it was actually good shopping. There is 12 bars and lounges. We have entertainment activities every day. So yeah, you treat it like a resort. And if you choose to get off and explore, you have that option as well because we stop in so many wonderful, amazing hidden little
SPEAKER_03:ports. One of the itineraries that you just launched this week was an F1 itinerary that looks amazing. And I know there's a lot of F1 fans out there.
SPEAKER_04:Yes, Formula One Monte Carlo 2026 just went live for bookings last week. We did have our first year this May and it was, we have a reaction, I'm going to send it to you, a beautiful little video with highlights of this year's race and our participation because we are the only ship that actually docks. So we're right there. front and center to the race, to all the events. People can just come and go. You can choose to book just suite only and just enjoy the atmosphere. Or for the true race fans, we were also selling tickets to cover grandstand tickets, our highest and highest suites will also have access to buy paddock tickets.
SPEAKER_03:That's amazing. That's truly something to look forward to. It's a bucket list for a lot of people. Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01:The fact that you said that you could dock for Formula One tells me that your ships are probably smaller than some of the mega ships that are out there. So it probably, and I'm assuming this as well, allows you to go to different destinations that some of the other cruise lines can't go.
SPEAKER_04:Exactly. So we have our ships. They're kind of a midsize ship, but we have a small ship capacity. So we put fewer guests on board. So everybody has a very large capacity. space ratio our suites start at 377 square feet which is very large for industry standards and but the size of the ships that's what really makes our journeys unique and stand out is that we can go into the places that the larger ships aren't going off the beaten track and and just providing more of an authentic experience like I've gone to places in Greece that we that no one I've never heard of before and no other ship goes into instead of just flying focusing on those big iconic islands that everybody goes to.
SPEAKER_02:So yeah, it's
SPEAKER_04:nice. No crowds,
SPEAKER_03:no crowds at all. Yeah. And I think that's wonderful because that, that definitely creates that customer journey that you speak of and it not only just during the journey, but it's also pre and post that you can also enjoy with Explorer, right?
SPEAKER_04:Yeah. Yeah, exactly. We have some pre and post options and, and it, it does it, I have had many guests come up to me or like your clients, Sonanta, like guests come up and talk about their experience and how they did really feel like they were on a private yacht. Because even though the ships were near full capacity, they never felt like it was full. And having that experience is amazing. is very special, and it also attracts a new type of cruiser to us, people that have never cruised before, that are just really curious about explorer journeys, and they're hearing a lot more about us from all of the different industry awards that we've been receiving in our first two years of operation. We've had over 29 industry awards, including from Condé Nast and Travel and Leisure, so... It's getting the awareness out there for sure.
SPEAKER_01:And I think it also helps that for new cruisers, it debunks some of the myths of cruising in the past where you have to queue up to line up for almost anything on some of the bigger mega ships, right?
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, line up to get on the ship, line up to get off the ship. And we don't have any buffets. We have a beautiful restaurant called the Emporium Marketplace, which is all, there's no self-serve. Everybody is serving you and it's a more sophisticated atmosphere, 18 different So even that appeals to a non-cruiser that just doesn't want that traditional structured feel of a cruise ship.
SPEAKER_01:And with that, tell me a little bit more about the onboard experience. I know you touched on it a little bit, but I've never sailed on with Explorer. So tell me about that.
SPEAKER_04:Well, we do have, you know, some traditional aspects. People come on board and they want to have activities and entertainment. So we do provide all of that. But we don't have a cruise director per se, nobody that is making all of these announcements to say, hey, bingo starting in five minutes. We do not have bingo. We're a little bit more sophisticated. We do have enrichment programs, luminaries, they're guest speakers, kind of more storage. storytellers, leaders in their field of interest. They'll be doing talks throughout the day, especially on sea days. We will have throughout all the public areas with the eight indoor bars and lounges, there's live music. We really lean in heavily to the live entertainment versus Broadway style production shows. It's more musical. So we do every evening have different entertainment. If you like dancing and you're more of a late person, Then we do have that later entertainment, dancing and stuff as well. There is a malt whiskey bar. There is a cigar bar on board. We do have a very small casino, but a lot of it is also wine. really centers around wellness. We have 7,500 square feet of ocean wellness. So there is, of course, all the different kind of spa facilities, the treatments that you can have, but we have a thermal area in the spa where we provide complimentary for our guests access to go in and just relax in the Himalayan salt cave or the sauna and steam rooms, all of that experience. We have a pickleball court and basketball court Now
SPEAKER_01:there would be a lineup for that,
SPEAKER_04:I would think. It's fun to watch. People do get pretty competitive. So it's a smaller court. And there's an outdoor walking and running track, an outdoor fitness area. We have all sorts of fitness classes throughout the day as well. There's yoga and Pilates classes. So there's plenty to do depending
SPEAKER_03:on what people's interest revolves around. So what's included? I like to say all
SPEAKER_04:your essentials are included. And to touch on the Wi-Fi a little bit more, we really... I have focused in a little bit on a younger demographic with the way we have some shorter journeys. And the Wi-Fi was a really huge one that attracts that working professional because you can work from anywhere around the world if you have good Wi-Fi. So we... We have the Starlink, but we also have a secondary provider. So we ensure that strong signal. There's a private router in every suite. We also permit our guests to connect three devices per person, which for working professionals is huge if you need to be on your phone at the same time with your laptop. So you do have all those wonderful inclusions.
SPEAKER_01:So who's your ideal guest then?
SPEAKER_04:Somebody that's fun. We, we really, we're European. So we were not a North American brand. So we really attract, uh, uh, wide demographic from around the world so which makes it really interesting as well it's not just your North America guests we have a lot of guests that are from Italy from the UK from Australia from Germany from all over the world so having that international flavor we have a younger demographic we get all ages we welcome families as well so we do have family friendly facilities multi-gen families are attracted to us our average age kind of trends be between 57 and 60. But for sure, as we get more journeys out and more ships, there's talk that in 2029, I mean, this is quite a ways ahead that we will have a world cruise as well, which will attract an older demographic that's retired. So we really are, we're open,
SPEAKER_03:we welcome everyone, we attract everyone. And one of the good things about on your ships right now that you have connecting suites. So that can accommodate families or groups that want to travel with you. And as you say, multi-generation travelers are huge right now.
SPEAKER_04:There is. And we have a lot of focus and interest right now on our, we call them festive journeys over Christmas and New Year's. So for families that are looking to get away, this is in the value of cruising versus, you know, sometimes hotels where you pay high costs, but nothing's included. And this for a family makes it even more affordable.
SPEAKER_01:Anything else you want to add, Donanta, or ask?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, well, I'm just sometimes gobsmacked at all the lovely things that we can enjoy on an explorer journey because it is, it kind of touches, well, touches all my pulses as far as, you know, all the different places that you can go. I like the wellness aspect of it, you know, with the fitness or the spa. I like the entertainment. I like that you have a personal cruise program. connoisseur assigned to each guest so that they can tailor their experience. So, you know, it's, yes, you're new, but I think it's, you're growing in awareness just through your own, the clientele you have. We're seeing people that are retreats already on your cruise ship. Yeah.
UNKNOWN:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:And we
SPEAKER_04:actually just launched a loyalty program because of how high our repeat factor is, guest factor. So we call it the Explorer Club. So we're rewarding people that are coming back to cruise with us time and time again, so they can build up their status and their points. We also have a status match. So people that are curious about us, but are fairly loyal to other brands out there. We match status to make it a little easier for them to cross over and try something different.
SPEAKER_03:Awesome. I think that's amazing. And, you know, within our office, we have a couple of ladies, Julie and Terry Jo, that have been on your cruise ship. So, you know, call me and we can talk, you know, and get you some, you know, firsthand experience and knowledge about the ships and explore our journey and just in general, like it's going to be, it's very enriching, I would say, and immersive. So, Something to consider.
SPEAKER_01:Lisa Willie, thank you for joining us. She's the business relationship lead for Western Canada with Explora Journeys. Explorajourneys.com. The ocean is their address, as they like to say. I like that line. So I appreciate you joining us and doing this, Lisa. Thank you.
SPEAKER_04:Thank you. My pleasure.
UNKNOWN:Thank you.
SPEAKER_01:This is the Informed Traveler podcast. I'm Randy Sharman. Just want to remind you of our website, theinformedtraveler.org. That's where you can find our contact page if you have any questions or comments about the podcast. You could also email me too with any questions you might have. My email address is randy at theinformedtraveler.org. And if you want to get up-to-date travel info through the week or just see a few amusing travel stories and links, you can like us on Facebook at facebook.com slash informedtraveler, on Instagram at informedtraveler, or on X at Informed Traveller. Plus, you can now sign up for our monthly newsletter. It's released at the beginning of every month. Our August issue is now available. Just go to our website, theinformedtraveller.org, click on the newsletter button, and it'll take you right there. Or better yet, subscribe to it and have it arrive in your inbox each month. So let's head to Vancouver now to learn about a place that calls itself an apart hotel. It's called Smythe House in Vancouver. So joining us now to share what Smythe House is all about is Javier Cepeda. He is managing partner with Calido Hospitality Group. That's the group that operates Smythe House in Vancouver. Their website is smithehouse.com. Hi, Javier. Thank you for having me, Randy. Tell me about Calido Hospitality Group. I don't think I've ever heard of it. So tell me more.
SPEAKER_00:A new company that we launched here in Vancouver with our partners last year. We started the company in February 2024. We launched our first property on September. It's when we received our first guest. The property is located in Vancouver, in Yalta. It was the first office conversion to apartment hotel in the city of Vancouver.
SPEAKER_01:Well, I was looking on the website, smithehouse.com. It's spelled S-M-I-T-H-E, house.com. Looks amazing. Vancouver is a very popular city. So tell me, the website calls it an apart hotel. So is it a traditional hotel? Is it like a VRBO? Tell me how it operates
SPEAKER_00:first. Absolutely. It's a tech-forward apartment hotel. Okay. Well, it was a space that was basically an office space that was not leased by the owners. And our partners and I, we approached them and saw a beautiful opportunity. The location is unbeatable in Yeltown. And we saw an opportunity to transform this space into technology. It became 37 beautifully designed studios, one and two-bedroom suites. They are full-size apartments. They have full-size kitchens, laundry, everything that you will find in a regular apartment in downtown Vancouver. So what we added was smart access so people can digitally check in and check out. So it's a completely contactless property. So we don't have a 24-7 concierge. We don't have front desk or bellman.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, so no lobby or services like that or front desk or anything that you check into. You have your passkey and you just go to your place, right?
UNKNOWN:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:That is correct. So very easy and smooth service. You go onto our website, you make your booking, you get your confirmation. The day before your arrival, we will send you a confirmation with a code and your apartment number. That code will provide you access to the building, the elevator, and of course, we use smart locks in every suite, so we'll give you access to your apartment for the duration of your stay.
SPEAKER_01:It seems to me, and I've done a lot of topics about this, but people are looking for more of this type of accommodation. Is that what your research has found? They want, especially if you're traveling with families, it's nice to have your own little kitchen area so you can at least do a few meals there, maybe a breakfast or a lunch or something, and then find some dining later. Is that the kind of thing that your research has found too?
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely. I think that, to be very honest, I think that more and more people have been looking into that, and I think that I hate to bring it back up, but I think that COVID-19 brought the need for looking for more space and having contactless options. And it's something that basically got stuck and people like it, people enjoy it. It's not for everyone. Some people are still looking for your typical regular hotel services, but families especially are looking for a space where they can have privacy, they can have their own space where their kids have their own beds And absolutely, kitchen and laundry is something that families definitely enjoy, appreciate, and definitely I request more and more. It's hard. I mean, when you're traveling with kids, it's difficult. It's quite expensive when you're ordering breakfast in a hotel. So here with the location that we have, it's very, very convenient for families to go do a small grocery shop, bring it to their apartment and just live in the city. So it also gives you that sense that you're enjoying and living in the city rather than being just a guest in it.
SPEAKER_01:Very true. I'm kind of familiar with Vancouver, but tell me about the area. You mentioned it's in Yaletown, and I'm looking at some of the images around. It looks like a beautiful part of Vancouver, but tell me a little bit about the area it's in, and then we'll talk about the different types of accommodation you offer.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. Yaletown is what you would consider as where industrial paths meet its modern upscale present. Lots of New Horizons, a lot of young professionals living in this area. We are located two blocks away from Busy Place, as well as Rogers Arena. So we see a lot of people coming for different events. Taylor Swift was a big one. I bet. It was unbelievable. The city, the vibe. It also gave me, even though I completely understand it's a completely different vibe, but it also gave me a sense of what the FIFA World Cup is going to be like. The vibe was unbelievable. People were super excited with the fact that they only had to walk two blocks away to go to the concert. And I think it will be very, very similar when people are coming here for the games. In Yelta, you'll find the best restaurants in the city or some of the best restaurants in the city, bars, shopping. We are only... half a block, maybe a block away from Robson Street, which you can find a plethora of small restaurants as well as tons of shopping. It's a place where when I get the opportunity to speak with our guests and they ask me if they need to rent a car, most of the time I tell them no. Unless they're looking for a longer trip where they're thinking to potentially visit Victoria or Whistler, I tell them you're in such a great location that everything is walkable.
SPEAKER_01:Mm-hmm. Well, and if you really do want to venture out, there's always the metro too, right?
SPEAKER_00:Yes, we have three different stations close by, probably within 10, 15 minutes walk, walking distance.
SPEAKER_01:So let's talk about the different accommodations you mentioned. There's everything from studios to two-bedroom apartments. So tell me what you offer.
SPEAKER_00:So we managed to get 37 apartments in the building. So we have to work. Of course, it wasn't designed necessarily to be an apartment building, neither a hotel. So we work with interior designers, and we really came out with very interesting floor plans, and they are very interesting. great in a way that serves the purposes of whatever people are looking for when they're staying with us. So we have studios, as you mentioned, one bedrooms and different styles of two bedrooms. One of the most popular ones that we have is what we call our family apartment, our family suite. So it's a two bedroom apartment that has access to a balcony. And as well in the second bedroom, we put bunk beds. People are loving it. Besides the studios, we also added a sofa bed. So it allows, again, a little extra space for the little ones if they want to have more spaces to sleep.
SPEAKER_01:So now, because it's not a full-service hotel or anything like that, if someone has questions or, I don't know, something goes wrong, something's not working, is there a customer service line? How does that work?
SPEAKER_00:The one thing that we say is we are tech-based, and we love technology. One of the things that we spend the most time when we're launching our different products was to try to figure out what was the right tech stack that was going to be able to help us deliver the type of service that we wanted. but being contactless. So we found a couple of different products and they're working extremely well. And as much as I'm a huge fan of AI, I'm excited. I read about AI every single day. I know it's changing. I will change the world rapidly. I still believe, and this is just a little break here, Calido, the name of our group, means warmth in Spanish. So we go about that intentional hospitality and warm hospitality. And I believe that right now, AI is not there yet. Will it get there? I believe it might get really close, but we have a team of people that will answer any texts, any calls, or anything that you need. So we are not present yet. We're not in your way, but if you need us, we are there. Currently, and it's a fun stat that I like to share, our response time to any text or email The average response time right now is just under two minutes, approximately 1.5 right now. So it's very fast. We have a team that is keeping an eye on all texts, emails, and phone calls. So people feel when they're staying with us that even though there is no front desk, there is no concierge, we are there to help them. So we are very proud what we have been able to achieve in terms of providing that hospitality service without being present.
SPEAKER_01:Do you think we're going to see more and
SPEAKER_00:more of that type of service? 100%. I have no doubt, and I hear more and more. I have spent quite a bit of time touring other developers and people that are interested in the business model that we're running. We just launched in September, as I mentioned. It's a small property. We have amazing reviews online. So I think that the word is getting out, and people are interested in what we're doing.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, I think so too. It's one of those things that's right up my alley. I have two teenagers, so space is always something that you're looking for when you're looking for accommodations. So this is always top of the list. And
SPEAKER_00:it eliminates a lot of barriers. The more and more you think, and this is not a new thing, but the more you think about the processes of an old hotel is that you're coming to the front desk. If it's a busy day, you are lining up. for them to ask you for a credit card, your ID, which most of the time you're already provided to the hotel, and then a signature, and then they hand out your keys. That process depends on the hotel, depends on the property. I've been into hotels in Vegas that might take a long time. We completely... take that away, and then people do the online checking. They do a selfie, they put the credit card information, and they don't have to do anything else. At that point, they get their code, as I mentioned the night before, and they walk in. No lineups, straight to your apartment. And no hidden fees. No hidden fees at all.
SPEAKER_01:Great stuff. It's the Smythe House in Yaletown in the heart of Vancouver. Beautiful spot. And well, SmytheHouse.com. And again, it's S-M-I-T-H-E. House.com is the website. You can go there for more information. Javier Cepeda is the managing partner with Calido Hospitality Group, which runs Smythe House. So I really appreciate your time, Javier. Thank you so much. No, thank you. And that is our show for this week. If you have comments or questions, we'd love to hear from you. If you have a show idea, send that along as well. My email is randy at theinformedtraveller.org. And if you like what you heard, tell a friend. You can check out our website too at theinformedtraveller.org. In the meantime, thanks for listening. Travel safe and be an informed traveller.