These tour businesses are redefining holidays

Why Singaporean travellers are selecting intentional journey, and paying extra for it

For years, journey was about effectivity: tick off as many sights as you possibly can, squeeze as a lot worth as potential into a hard and fast variety of days, and transfer on shortly to the subsequent vacation spot. However for a rising group of travellers, particularly post-pandemic, that system now not satisfies.

As a substitute, extra individuals are turning in direction of intentional journey, a time period that refers to curated journeys designed past the standard packaged excursions. Such excursions place significance on that means, depth, and mindfulness at their core. These travellers are keen to decelerate, return to the identical place a number of instances, and even pay a premium—not for luxurious, however for care, context, and connection.

Corporations like V People, Kitabi Journey, and SoulTrips by Druk Asia are assembly this demand, providing plant-based culinary immersion, hands-on cultural craft, and spiritually aware journeys. We spoke to the founders to uncover why Singaporeans are more and more drawn to journey that strikes past ticking containers — and the way small, curated journeys are reshaping what it means to discover the world.

V People: Plant-Primarily based Journey with function

One firm leaning firmly into values-led journey is V People, a curated journey firm based in September 2023 by 39-year-old Jay Yeo. Specialising in premium vegetarian and vegan journey, V People builds itineraries round cultural immersion, hands-on experiences, and slower-paced journeys. Whereas plant-based travellers type the core viewers, 25% of its company are non-vegetarians, drawn by the standard of meals and the depth of experiences supplied.

Earlier than beginning V People, Jay labored throughout finance, venture coordination, and volunteering, together with with Youth Corps Singapore Nationwide Council. A post-COVID interval of soul-searching and backpacking – mixed along with his personal plant-based life-style – led an in depth buddy to counsel he channel his expertise for planning significant journeys right into a full-fledged journey firm catered to individuals with plant-based diets. 

“At its core, V People was began to breathe a contemporary air of life into individuals worn down by the each day grind,” Jay shared.

Jay believes V People is Singapore’s first journey firm devoted totally to plant-based itineraries. Beforehand, the co-founder shared that vegetarian/vegan travellers typically relied on Malaysia-based operators or mainstream businesses that struggled to ship on dietary and experiential wants. Whereas preliminary scepticism about V People existed, word-of-mouth shortly grew, with many shoppers returning alongside household and mates.

As we speak, V People runs two to 4 Malaysia journeys month-to-month, starting from day excursions to a spanning a number of days, other than common abroad departures to Thailand, Vietnam, and China. Visitors vary from their 30s to 70s, with greater than half being over their 50s, plus a rising variety of households and youthful travellers drawn to climbing and nature-based experiences. Advertising is produced in each English and Chinese language to achieve a various clientele, together with members of church buildings and temples, reflecting broader shifts in direction of health-conscious, plant-based journey.

Even V People’ brief journeys carry depth: a one-day Kulai journey below $90 features a go to to the Hakka affiliation to be taught native historical past, whereas abroad itineraries characteristic tea-plucking in Hangzhou or family-style cooking lessons in Guangzhou to revive hands-on bonding typically misplaced in city life. 

What units V People aside is its unhurried tempo and immersive method, Jay shared. In Yunnan, for instance, company go to the Naxi tribe, getting into the house of a former village chief—an area hardly ever accessible to typical tour buses. Travellers can select to decorate in conventional apparel, be taught Dongba scripts, and take part in historic food-making practices. Tie-dyeing with the Bai ethnic tribe permits company to go away with a tangible, handmade reminiscence reasonably than a mere memento.

“Being youthful than mainstream journey planners, we’re extra adventurous in exploring deeper corners and experiences that almost all vacationers miss,” Jay defined.

Each itinerary is personally scouted by Jay and his co-founder, from eating places that cater to strict dietary necessities to immersive cultural actions that foster connection. Native companions and guides play an important position; their vitality and vitality form the visitor expertise, making even routine moments significant.

Non-public journeys are a rising phase, starting from household getaways throughout college holidays to religious teams or company bonding journeys, all aligned with the plant-based philosophy. Throughout all journeys, mindfulness and acutely aware intention information planning, guaranteeing that members return refreshed, invigorated, and shifted in perspective.

Jay shared that though his excursions are sometimes 10–15% pricier than typical vegetarian excursions, V People emphasises transparency and worth by way of its specifically chosen vegetarian eating places. Jay shared that there aren’t any hidden fees or coerced spending stops, with all prices included upfront. For instance, a typical eight-day journey begins at S$1,899.

Trying forward, V People plans to develop brief getaways and hiking-focused itineraries, reflecting Jay’s view that trendy society’s lethargy and burnout create a rising want for journey that reconnects individuals with nature, group, and themselves.

SoulTrips by Druk Asia: Journey for the soul

If V People displays values-led residing, SoulTrips by Druk Asia embodies the emotional and religious dimension of journey — what its founder calls “journey for the soul.”

Based in 2010 by Joni Herison, Druk Asia started by selling Bhutan, a rustic that resists guidelines tourism and encourages travellers to decelerate, replicate, and reconnect. In line with Joni, again then, solely round 200 Singaporeans visited Bhutan yearly; as we speak, that quantity has grown to 7,000–8,000, helped by direct flights and Druk Asia’s position as Normal Gross sales Agent for Drukair since 2012. About 95% of Druk Asia’s journeys to Bhutan are personal excursions, whereas its public tour teams are capped at 10–12 company.

For Joni, success is measured not in numbers however in transformation. In line with Joni, many travellers typically return with a slower notion of time, renewed priorities, and a lighter emotional state. Bhutan’s old-school depth and authenticity – from centuries-old suspension bridges to passionate native guides – are central to this shift. 

Since 2010, Druk Asia has introduced 21,000–22,000 travellers to Bhutan, starting from younger adults to retirees, typically travelling as households. Many describe profoundly shifting moments, from quiet reflection to tears at Tiger’s Nest, overwhelmed by Bhutan’s unfiltered vitality. Some experiences have even been life-changing, comparable to a traveller leaving her consultancy job to work with Mountain Hazelnuts and later co-creating hands-on agricultural excursions. An 11-day journey to Bhutan begins at S$4,890 per individual, excluding flights.

“I believe that’s the journey that we want: to carry individuals surprises that they didn’t even count on on a visit… typically chances are you’ll even stumble upon the King of Bhutan and have a brief dialog with him,” founder Joni mentioned. 

By 2023, in response to demand for transformative journeys past Bhutan, the corporate launched SoulTrips, providing curated experiences in Asia, Central Asia, and Europe. Every itinerary takes six months to a yr to plan, with moments of shock intentionally in-built to protect the enjoyment of discovery.

SoulTrips works carefully inside native ecosystems, collaborating with tourism boards, information associations, and communities. Aside from their very own curated excursions, SoulTrips additionally companions with worldwide journey company Europamundo, permitting travellers to discover Europe with guided flexibility reasonably than ticking off sights on a guidelines.

Nearer to house, SoulTrips’ S$870 Penang: Neighborhood & Wellbeing Tour (4D3N) blends heritage, custom, and wellbeing in Malaysia’s multicultural island state. Organised with the Ningpo Guild Singapore, the itinerary frames Penang’s social material as a residing system of care—from clan homes and temples to philanthropic establishments and Chinese language associations. Travellers discover historic websites comparable to Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion (aka Blue Mansion) and Penang Buddhist Affiliation, take part in conventional Chinese language drugs classes, and expertise ancestral clan heritage — all in a intentionally slower, reflective approach. 

“Folks ask why Singaporeans would need to go to Penang with us after they can simply eat Penang meals,” added Florence Ang, Advertising Director. The reply is the distinction: understanding why locations matter, not simply what they provide.

Psychological wellness, for SoulTrips, isn’t a retreat added on however cultivated naturally by way of aware presence in every journey, Joni mentioned. Every journey sparks curiosity, pleasure, and consciousness of the second, serving to travellers reconnect with themselves, others, and the world round them.

Trying forward, SoulTrips is increasing thoughtfully, with philanthropy-driven journeys to Bhutan and a holistic wellness partnership with Oriental Cures launching in 2026. Travellers will obtain pre- and post-trip wellness assessments, framing wellness as a journey reasonably than a vacation spot. Throughout all initiatives, the ethos stays the identical: to maneuver travellers away from ticking containers and in direction of journeys that go away them lighter, extra curious, and quietly reworked.

“That’s the work of human being, proper? We should always simply be being within the second however we find yourself changing into human doing, in order that our 24 hours a day is doing issues as a result of that’s what we’re educated to do,” mentioned Florence.

Kitabi Journey: Curating Japan past the guideboookay

One other company embracing intentional, deeply curated journey is Kitabi Journey, based in 2023 by Heidi Tan, the previous founding father of FLOR Patisserie. A educated pastry chef, Heidi ran FLOR for 15 years, crafting Japanese-inspired pastries that celebrated seasonal fruits and constructing shut relationships with Japanese farms and artisans — casual connections that now type the spine of Kitabi Journey’s distinctive itineraries.

Kitabi Journey grew organically from a 2019 baking class in collaboration with Japanese pastry cooks in FLOR, organised in partnership with the Kobe prefectural authorities that needed to share Japanese fruits in Singapore. Visitors have been fascinated by the artistry behind the Japanese seasonal pastry, and with a view to have entry to brisker elements, urged meals journeys to Japan be held as a substitute. 

Even when the collaboration paused throughout COVID-19, demand for extra collaborations continued after the pandemic. 

Then, within the spring of 2023, Kitabi Journey was formally born, with Heidi internet hosting the primary abroad tour to Kobe, the place travellers made and sampled a variety of conventional Japanese sweets.

In sweets excursions, members immersed themselves in making sweets comparable to cookies, desserts and different daifuku (candy rice desserts). Different excursions that Kitabi Journey affords embody Sake & Meals, Meals & Crafts, Fermented Meals throughout Japan.

Reasonably than counting on conventional journey brokers, Kitabi companions with a Japan-based PR specialist embedded within the native F&B scene, granting shoppers entry to experiences most vacationers by no means see: studying straight from skilled cooks inside their kitchens, reserving complete small eating places, or visiting rural pottery studios the place artisans educate personally. Heidi personally scouts venues, liaises with artisans, and together with her fluency in each Japanese and English, ensures language and cultural limitations are bridged.

The philosophy at Kitabi Journey is easy: immersive, out-of-the-ordinary experiences. Excursions journey in small teams, preserving interactions intimate and versatile. Visitors would possibly make miso in Kobe and take it house to ferment, harvest tea leaves in Nagoya below a farmer’s steerage, or craft pottery in countryside studios. Every exercise is tactile, memory-rich, and designed to have interaction all of the senses, leaving members with lasting private connections to each craft and tradition.

“We will probably be ingesting tea, residing tea, respiration tea… it’s about the entire course of, not simply the tip product,” Heidi explains.

Since its inaugural spring tour in 2023, Kitabi has expanded to seasonal choices comparable to early summer season tea harvest and autumn pottery excursions. By 2025, Kitabi had hosted 152 company throughout 9 excursions, with almost half returning for a second expertise. The company attracts higher-income travellers searching for depth, tradition, and authenticity over commonplace sightseeing. For instance, the five-day Kagoshima tour, priced at $4,600, sometimes attracts older travellers of their 30s to 50s searching for a extra luxurious, refined expertise.

Heidi additionally famous that Japanese prefectural governments have more and more proven sturdy curiosity in Kitabi’s excursions, which they understand appeal to aware travellers who reveal respect for native tradition — a distinction to mass, low-cost tourism.

Working intimate excursions requires cautious planning: Japan’s punctuality tradition, inaccessible rural areas, and conventional ryokan lodging demand pre-trip steerage and versatile preparations, comparable to personal onsen home windows to steadiness consolation with authenticity.

Every itinerary is designed to encourage curiosity, reflection, and private engagement, Heidi shared. Visitors aren’t simply visiting Japan — they’re assembly individuals, sharing tales, and understanding native traditions in ways in which foster deeper appreciation.

Trying forward, Kitabi is launching a Children Camp in rural Kagoshima in September, bringing dad and mom and first college youngsters collectively for bamboo harvesting, cooking bamboo rice, and rice planting. This system displays the model’s ethos: journey as schooling, connection, and shared progress. 

“I need to see extra aware Singaporeans residing deliberately and appreciating nature, beginning younger,” mentioned Heidi.

Reflecting on her entrepreneurial journey, Heidi shares that zeal accounts for under 10% of success; the remainder comes from onerous work, perseverance, and figuring out when to stroll away from what isn’t working. 

Extra that means, much less mileage

Throughout these three businesses, the message is evident: intentional journey isn’t nearly doing much less — it’s about doing issues otherwise. Whether or not it’s tasting, crafting, climbing, or meditating, travellers are searching for experiences that go away an enduring emotional and mental impression reasonably than a group of photographs or stamps on a passport.

As travellers develop extra discerning, they’re selecting depth over density, that means over mileage, and journeys that linger lengthy after they return house. And for a rising variety of them, that distinction is value paying for, in a cozier, curated group setting that prioritises connection, discovery, and aware presence.

• Study V People right here.
• Study Druk Asia’s SoulTrips right here.
• Study Kitabi Journey right here.
• Learn extra tales we’ve written on Singaporean companies right here.

Featured Picture Credit score: V People, Druk Asia, Kitabi Journey