The global travel industry has been challenged in 2020. Companies who had debt to pay off or negative balance sheets were the hardest hit, and many have a long road to go. With different safety standards in place, a lot of travel itineraries have changed for a lot of people. People, especially those who travel for business and have their livelihood circled around the travel and tourism industry.
Fortunately, Catherine Heald, the Co-founder & CEO of Remote Lands had some excellent years recently, so she was able to save for a rainy day like this pandemic, and that cushion has helped her get through 2020. “When business returns in 2021, we will be stronger than ever and in an even more powerful position to dominate our niche of ultra-luxe Asia travel and private jet expeditions,” says Catherine.
A Distinguished Personality
Catherine enjoys her work daily and it is very important for her to dive into the little things and simple pleasures of life. “I have a ‘glass half full’ attitude and I am always striving to find the silver lining in everything, even during this terrible pandemic,” she says. She looks up to the great explorer Sir Ernest Shackelton and reveres him as her hero. What astonishes her the most is how his Antarctica expedition in 1916 was a success and none of his men died, against all odds, due to his superb leadership.
“Like Shackelton, I hope my genuine eternal optimism, even during a depressing time like this, has a positive effect on the team and the whole office environment,” shares Catherine.
Talking about the big changes in the travel and tourism industry due to the pandemic, she portrays her opinion about the world borders to be opened so that the people can travel safely. “Vaccines are coming soon, but it will take some time before they are widespread,” Catherine expresses.
The thing that needs to be put into practice right now is rapid, accurate testing to be performed almost everywhere, from airports to restaurants to stadiums to wedding and party entrances. All people permitted inside will have been tested negative for the virus, so everyone will feel safe and comfortable. “After 911 we all got used to new security rules at airports, and this will be yet another new modus operandi that we will all accept,” she conveys.
She expects that in the long term, people will need to have a more thoughtful and reflective approach towards life after emerging out of this pandemic. People around the world have had time during quarantine to do some real soul searching and thinking about what and who is really important in their lives. They will seek deeper meaning in everything, and this will be reflected in the types of travel experiences they seek.
Sharing Her Wisdom
Guiding aspiring and emerging women entrepreneurs, Catherine explains, “Figure out what it is you absolutely love doing, that you are really good at doing, and more than happy to do seven days a week.” She had spent over a decade in the technology industry and started three software companies, but technology was not actually her calling in life. She did not realize what her actual calling was until she stepped into her early 40’s when she combined her lifelong passion for Asia along with her love for planning extraordinary luxury travels.
Catherine used to do the planning for her family. This excited her the most which led to Catherine’s Eureka moment and evidently, the birth of Remote Lands. Since cofounding the company in 2005, she has worked seven days a week and has always remained enthusiastic about her work by starting at her computer at daybreak. “Despite the hard work, I have a well-rounded and balanced life with many interests and friends and an active social life,” describes Catherine proudly.
She doesn’t place ‘boundaries’ between her work life and personal life and believes that many of the people who are happiest in life do work that blurs the separation between professional and personal.
Enabling Bespoke Journeys
Remote Lands facilitates an experience where the clients find serenity in a journey that fits their pace and follows their heart by accommodating any diversion effortlessly.
The team of Remote Lands say, “Seek the remarkable. Seek it in the world you know. But also, in a world that you don’t – Asia.” The company under the guidance of Catherine, provides various services that spell luxury in a different way. The enhanced premium experience makes the customers’ travel plans so fantastic, that they always choose Remote Lands as their trusted travel partner for Asia.
In brief, Remote Lands’ travel itinerary includes more or less a distant, idyllic archipelago, explored by luxury yacht, or unforgettable landscapes viewed from a private chopper in palatial hideaways on secret shores. You might find yourself in the natural habitats of the world’s most famous wildlife parks or in the lap of most welcoming remote mountain ranges among the oldest villages and ancient communities.
Remote Lands provides a journey not only for the body and mind, but also for the soul. It creates an opportunity for deeper, prevailing connection with different places and people for you and the people close to you including the ones you meet along the way. “Seek the soul of Asia with Remote Lands,” invites Catherine, to have an ever-lasting experience in a memorable way.
Catherine Heald, Co-founder & CEO, Remote Lands
