Legacy, Reciprocity and Andean Ancestry at the Heart of REMOTE Expedition
In less than a month, we’ll set off on our very first REMOTE Expedition. And this time, we’re doing things a little differently. A carefully curated group of experienced travel professionals will journey through Peru with a shared purpose: to experience some of the country’s lesser-known corners while coming together to shape a vision for the future of small-scale tourism — one that is responsible, fair and creates positive impact.
This is the most focused and intimate gathering we’ve created so far. And that’s intentional.
REMOTE Expedition is not only about bringing the right people together. It’s about creating the time and space for them to connect: with each other, with the destination and with the questions that matter for the future of tourism in Peru.
From October 23–27, 27 Travel Designers from around the world will experience some of Peru’s more off-the-beaten-path destinations on one of five Expedition Pre-Trips, each designed by one of our Local Experts: Amazonas Explorer, Andean, Coltur Peru, Explorandes and Tropic Travel. Then, from October 27–30, they will join 26 Exhibitors from Peru, including lodges, trains and boats from different regions of the country. We’ll gather at the Colca Lodge in the ancestral Colca Valley, Arequipa, for three days of business connections, experiences and conversations.
PROMPERÚ, Peru’s Commission for the Promotion of Export and Tourism, is our Host Destination and an important partner in bringing REMOTE Expedition to Peru. Through this collaboration, Peru reaffirms its position as a leading destination for high-end, experience-driven travel in Latin America. In recent years, PROMPERÚ has strengthened its strategy to attract high-profile international events, contributing to Peru’s positioning as a leading MICE destination in the region.
From Five Journeys Across Peru to One Expedition
The journey begins before everyone arrives in the Colca Valley. The five Pre-Trips were designed to take our Travel Designers beyond the usual routes and into different landscapes, cultures and communities across Peru — from encounters with artisans, conservationists and community leaders in Chachapoyas, the “City of Clouds,” to the dramatic red rock landscapes of Tinajani Canyon. Each itinerary offers a different perspective on the country, shaped by the knowledge and relationships of our local DMC partners.
Our Expeditioners will receive a Pre-Expedition Journal, designed to guide and inspire the first stage of the experience, sparking questions, reflections and ideas that they can bring to the conversations and collaborative work during the gathering in the Colca Valley.
Learn more: Hidden Destinations in Peru: Six Extraordinary Places Beyond the Guidebooks
By the time the groups arrive in Colca, they will have experienced very different sides of Peru. And that is part of the point. There is no single story that can capture a country as diverse as Peru. The Expedition brings these perspectives together, allowing participants to share what they saw, what surprised them and what they learned along the way. The Pre-Trips are the first chapter of something much bigger.
Who Are the Expeditioners?
For our first REMOTE Expedition, we’re bringing together a carefully curated group of 27 Travel Designers from Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Luxembourg, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States; 21 Lodgings from different regions of Peru; and 5 DMCs: all committed to promoting responsible, tailor-made travel that creates positive impact in Peru — the kind of tourism we’ve always believed in.
It is a smaller gathering by design. With fewer people, there is more room for focused conversations, new relationships and genuine exchange. Participants will have the opportunity to meet not just as buyers and suppliers, but as people with different perspectives, experiences and roles — and to bring those perspectives together to shape something collectively.
Business connections have always been an important part of the REMOTE pillars. But for the Expedition, we wanted to go a little further. The three days in Colca have been designed as an experience in themselves, where business meetings, immersive experiences, social gatherings and conversations come together.
The intention is to create space for relationships to develop naturally — over a meeting, a meal, a shared experience, a story or a conversation that continues long after the official program is over. This is also why we are introducing something new to REMOTE:
REMOTE Circles: Conversations for the Future of Travel
For the first time, our evenings will feature REMOTE Circles: small, facilitated gatherings designed to create space for listening, exchanging ideas, sharing stories and imagining what comes next. The Circles will be led by Peruvian-born strategic designer and facilitator Da Sánchez, who will open each evening with thought-provoking questions and exercises to get the conversation going.
The Circles are inspired in part by ancestral Andean ways of understanding community, cosmovision and reciprocity, including concepts such as Ayni, Pachamanca and Minka. They will connect Peru’s past with its present and future, drawing on ancestral knowledge as inspiration for conversations about the tourism we are building today. Rather than giving participants answers, the intention is to create a space where they can bring their own experiences and perspectives to the table.
A Journey That Continues Beyond Colca
As part of our commitment to caring for the destinations we visit and organizing more sustainable events, we are taking a range of steps to ensure that our presence in the Colca Valley is responsible and supportive of both the environment and the local community. Our approach is guided by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) Standards and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), while remaining grounded in the realities and opportunities of the destination.
As most of the event will take place at Colca Lodge, we are working closely with the hotel as a strategic partner to make the Expedition as responsible as possible — minimizing resource use and waste, ensuring that waste is properly sorted and sent to the appropriate destinations, reducing the use of single-use items, encouraging conscious water use through towel and linen washing practices, and making more sustainable choices throughout the event.
But sustainability at REMOTE is also about the experience we create together. From our partnerships with Local Experts and their Pre-Trips, to the experiences we share and the conversations and collective learning that take place through our REMOTE Circles, we want to encourage a deeper connection with the land and the people who call it home.
As we do at our Immersions, we are also measuring the impacts we are able to calculate in order to offset our event-related emissions. This includes team flights, ground transportation, accommodation and meals for all Expeditioners during the three event days, as well as energy use and waste generation. For REMOTE Expedition Peru, our offset initiative is being developed in partnership with ECOAN – Asociación Ecosistemas Andinos, supporting the restoration of high-Andean forests in the Vilcanota Range, together with the community of Abra Málaga.
