4 minute read
The Making of a Private Jet Journey
An interview with Ann Epting from Abercrombie & Kent
by Nancy Hellmrich
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All Photos Courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent
Few experiences are more exceptional for serious travelers than world tours via private jet. Yet, little is known about what goes on behind the scenes to assemble these extraordinary journeys and ensure every detail is just so. To paint a clearer picture, we caught up with Abercrombie & Kent’s Ann Epting, SVP of Private Jet & Special Interest Travel.
Q: What goes into an A&K Private Jet Journey?
A: A lot of planning and forethought. These trips are literally years in the making. There are usually about five or six of us. We review guest ideas, we brainstorm, and we investigate new destinations that are just opening up. Then it's just a matter of getting in a room with a big world map and saying, “Okay, is this doable?” We look at the map and kind of whittle it down.
All Photos Courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent
Q: Does Geoffrey Kent get involved?
A: Of course, Mr. Kent has a big hand in it. He's very well-traveled, but there still are some places he hasn't been. He has a big say in the trips he hosts, obviously. And in his travels he meets people. I will very often get emails from him saying, “Oh, Ann, look into this.” There's a lot of back and forth, then we put together a final recommendation for him to sign off on.
Cartagena (Colombia)
All Photos Courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent
Q: What happens when the locals say no?
A: A great example is in Cartagena, in Colombia. We found this lovely little square and thought, why don’t we have a dinner set up here? They said, “Absolutely not. The government would never allow it.” It took months of negotiating. Ultimately, persistence paid off, they issued the permit, and it was a really, really beautiful evening.
Archery in the Gobi Desert (Mongolia)
All Photos Courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent
Q: So “impossible” just takes a little longer?
A: That’s what we do. When we were in Mongolia, we bypassed Ulaanbaatar and went straight out to the Gobi Desert. We brought acrobats and a throat singer in from the city so our guests could experience them. And local villagers recreated the traditional Naadam Festival competitions for us.
Amboseli guide (Kenya)
All Photos Courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent
Q: Was Mt. Everest another tough negotiation?
A: When we told them we wanted to land our guests at 19,000 feet they said, “There’s no way.” No one had ever asked them to do it before. We started a year ahead of time working with the helicopter pilots and the airport to have air traffic control clear some space for us. We had a lot of meetings, drank a bunch of coffee, talked it through, and got them to agree.
A privileged landing on Mt. Everest (Himalayas)
All Photos Courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent
We also set up a base operating camp and sent an advance team with our chef and, of course, the espresso machine. Behind the scenes, we had a medic, oxygen tanks, a refueling zone. We had our own photographers and a Buddhist lama up there who offered a blessing. We rotated the helicopters in and out. All that was done by noon and then we came back down. Our guests had lunch with the Bhutanese royal family the next day.
Q: What goes into the transportation aspect?
A: We partner with Iceland Air for the chartering of the jets and the pilots. The crew is typically Icelandic or Scandinavian. There's a pretty intense interview process for the cabin crew. Everybody wants to do it.
During every operation we are on the ground in advance to make sure everything is ready before the guests arrive. We use police escorts to avoid traffic delays. In some destinations, we charter helicopters or small aircraft. We do a lot of helicopters. And it’s window seats only. No matter how many helicopters it takes, everybody has a window seat.
Greeting from a Buddhist lama (Nepal)
Q: What about accommodations in remote areas?
A: If it's something we think the guests really can't miss, we go in and create the luxury experience. We paint rooms, bring in furniture, luxury linens, toiletries, espresso machines. We do extensive training with the staff. One couple wanted eight feather pillows, so we brought along eight feather pillows. We have a high repeat rate and that sort of attention to detail has a lot to do with it. Q: Does covering so much territory take a toll?
Forging new friendships (Tanzania)
