View From Afar: A Hotelier Takes the Helm at Explora Journeys

How do you bring ultra‑luxury hospitality to the high seas?

For Anna Nash, President of Explora Journeys, it starts with reimagining ocean travel as a floating boutique hotel experience rooted in European elegance, emotional connection, and slow‑travel sensibilities.

In this episode of View From Afar, Anna joins host Michelle Baran to discuss how Explora Journeys is redefining cruising for a new generation of travelers — from sustainability innovations and destination stewardship to culinary excellence and family‑forward programming that avoids the typical mega‑ship clichés.

Transcript

Michelle Baran: Welcome to View From Afar, a podcast by the travel industry for the travel industry. I’m Michelle Baran, affairs deputy editor, and today I’m chatting with Anna Nash, who last year entered into her role as president of Explora Journeys, a newer luxury boutique ocean line that is part of the European owned and operated MSC Group. Anna knows a thing or two about luxury hospitality, having hailed most recently from the global hotel and resort brand Aman. She also previously held roles at Rosewood Hotels and Orient Express, bringing her background in high-end hotels to the high seas.

Welcome, Anna. It’s so great to have you.

Anna Nash: Hi, Michelle, thank you very much for having me with you on this. Looking forward to our conversation.

Michelle: Yeah. Me too. So first off, for those in our audience who might not be familiar with Explora Journeys and what it is, can you just give us some background on how this relatively new player in the cruise world came to be, and how it’s setting itself apart from other cruise lines?

Anna: Of course, of course. So Explora Journeys was born from a very, very simple idea to reimagine ocean travel for a new generation of travelers. We present Explora Journeys very much as a floating boutique hotel whose address is the ocean. Rather than saying we’re a cruise line, we’re part of the MSC Group, so part of one of the world’s largest shipping organizations, and we’re a privately owned European brand with over 300 years of maritime heritage. So we’re a new brand with a bold mission. We have two ships currently sailing, Explora I and Explora II, and we have four more ships yet to deploy with a full fleet of six by 2028.

Michelle: Ah, you guys are busy! So I’d like to talk a little bit about your role. You’re relatively new to Explora, and your background’s a bit more in the world of ultra luxury hotels. So what is your vision for Explora and how are you bringing what you learned over years at Iman and Rosewood to the seas?

Anna: Very good question. So I’ve been in ultra luxury hospitality for 25 years. Funny enough, I actually started my career on modes of travel that moved. So, Orient Express back then, when I was there, it was trains and cruises. So there’s, there’s a love and a passion that I have about travel that moves you, travel that transports you.

I think there’s a real emotion to that. So have spent a bit of time or over two decades, as I said, really in various realms of hospitality. But I think this is the first time for me, really with larger midsize ships, let’s just say, and our forte being ocean travel. But I bring, I suppose, a different experience and mindset because, as I said earlier, we really think about our ships as floating hotels. So I bring what I learned, this ultra sort of customer-centric approach, really thinking about our guests as individuals, not numbers throughout, to really make sure that we find their emotion, we meet them above and beyond in terms of their expectations and give them an experience that is not possible on land.

Michelle: Absolutely. And that’s such a, you make such a great point about the right that hotels are lovely, but they cannot move. So there’s definitely an advantage there. And I also love the, you know, a few things about what you said. This idea of that you started in slow travel, right. And our readers are obsessed with train travel and slow travel and really taking their time to explore. And so kind of coming full circle back to this, another type of slow travel, and then also bringing that hospitality background, which I think is also interesting. And we can get into this a little bit more in some of our other questions. But this idea of also meeting the passenger where they’re at. And so for a hotel guest who’s maybe what we call at Afar, sort of the cruise averse, right? People who maybe haven’t sailed before understanding what it is they love about the hotel and resort experience and bringing that to sea, I think is so key. And attracting the new-to-cruise customer, right. Those who maybe haven’t tried it before.

So I love that you bring that, that mix of experience to the role. So another thing that’s really interesting about Explora is that it’s owned by a European company, MSC Group. So how does having European ownership influence your approach to cruising? Is there a distinctly European feel onboard? Are the guests predominantly European and how does that work? Sort of with languages spoken onboard like, I’d love to just hear about the whole mix and coming from that MSC background.

Anna: So we’re quite unique in the sense that we are a European born and bred brand, actually Swiss. We talk a lot about Swiss precision in everything that we do. And actually we’ve created Explora Journeys in Geneva, where our headquarters are. And of course, Geneva is, is well-known for its land of, of watches and all things luxury. So I think we fit very nicely in sort of where we’re born or where we conceived the brand.

But I think for us it’s definitely a differentiator because there aren’t many other brands like us that are European. And it definitely brings a different mindset, a different sensibility to the way we think. Of course, we’re backed by MSC, which is part of our brand. As I said earlier, we’re a family-owned brand, and I think that gives us the opportunity to be very agile and be very nimble in the way that we think, the way that we operate, because, you know, we haven’t got realms of boards to go through. We have a family. We make decisions very, very quickly. And I think that definitely puts us at an advantage to some of the other publicly listed companies that are out there.

But I think above and beyond that, we welcome, you know, a global clientele. Our guests are well-traveled. Of course, the American market for us and North American market is key. It represents over 50 percent of our guests onboard. But actually we’re seeing guests coming from all nationalities. And I think that’s really owing to the fact that we have the backbone of MSC and we’ve been able to spread our wings much faster than another brand in our situation would have been if they weren’t backed by such a large family business. So we’re very fortunate in that sense, but it definitely gives us a differentiator, and I think it reflects very much in the way that we think. You know, for me, luxury is definitely an overused term. We really like to talk about European elegance, this refined sophistication. And I think that, again, talks to that feeling and that emotion that we want our guests to have when they sail with us.

Michelle: Yeah. And I think you bring up a good point too. And something I love about the Explora concept and MSC is this idea of the mixing and mingling that takes place onboard, and the cultural connections that are made when you have multiple nationalities onboard, and how much that can add to the experience so that it’s not just all Americans onboard. You’re in Europe with Europeans, and I just love how that can enhance the experience in ways that people don’t realize until they’re, you know, they’re onboard.

Anna: Exactly. And they’re global citizens from all over the world. And it really brings this different cosmopolitan vibe. Lots of lovely conversations on the ship, guests meeting each other. And I think that definitely is a differentiator for us.

Michelle: Yeah, absolutely. And another thing that really fascinates me about European cruise lines and that many people might not realize is that they face stricter environmental regulations under the EU. So what people don’t see that’s going on behind the scenes is that the very nature of these ships is often pushing the envelope in terms of sustainability measures. That’s why we see so much innovation on the seas out of Europe. So how does Explora’s operations take the environment and conservation efforts into consideration?

Anna: I think it’s a really good question, actually. As a family‑owned brand, especially for us, we’re very, very aware of the responsibility that we have for our people, our guests, the planet and of course, the ocean. We take a conscious mindset very seriously in all aspects of the experience, and it’s definitely something that we see resonates with our guests. Our guests are curious, as I said earlier, they’re global travelers, and they want to make sure that they’re also traveling in as responsible a way as possible.

So, you know, for us, things like having renewable fuels, they’re an essential part of our path towards net zero by 2050. Explora III, which launches next year in the summer, will be the first in our fleet to be LNG‑powered. All of our ships, current and future, are equipped with shore power capabilities. And, you know, for us also, we’re very lucky with the family. We have the MSC Foundation, which is a charitable foundation run by the family, and the foundation guides us with environmental stewardship. They emphasize the respect for destinations, local communities, and sustainability. So we really have that foundation to guide us in our path forward.

Michelle: That’s so great. And it brings me a bit to the topic of misconceptions about cruising. So in addition to concerns about the environment, which you’ve addressed, non‑cruisers or the cruise‑averse, as I mentioned we sometimes refer to them here at Afar, often cite things such as overcrowding on ships and the fact that cruising doesn’t necessarily always allow for a deeper dive into the destinations that the cruise ships visit, as among some of the reasons why they maybe don’t want to take a cruise or they’re not interested.

So let’s kind of tackle some of those stereotypes. First off, crowds. Explora’s yacht‑style ships have a capacity of a little more than 900 passengers. While that’s a far cry from the more than 6,000‑passenger mega‑ships operated by your parent company, MSC Cruises, it’s also more than an intimate sort of 150‑passenger river cruise ship. So do Explora’s ships ever get or feel crowded, and what are some of the ways that people can avoid the crowds on your vessels?

Anna: Uh, so I’d say as a trailblazing brand, we’re really redefining those perceptions of cruising through spacious ships, the exceptional sort of guest‑to‑host ratio that we have, and also the space that we offer onboard. But I would say also for me, coming from land‑based hospitality from Aman Resorts, you know, in particular, I’m well aware of those perceptions that exist, the stigma that still exists around cruising. And for me, it represents an incredible challenge to really face head on.

I think being a younger leader, coming from where I have the legacy that I’ve got in terms of ultra luxury, the pinnacle of hospitality can help break down those barriers because actually, I think, you know, ocean travel, as we like to describe it for those reasons, offers such great benefits for our guests. And I think that it’s a misunderstood industry, a misunderstood way of travel. You know, our average guest is 56. We see over 25 percent of our guests are first‑time sailors. So they’ve really, you know, leaned into the marketing that we’re putting out there—the way we talk, the images that we use, the emotion that I’m really trying to bring into the way we speak and behave really seems to resonate. And the NPS that we have for all of our guests is always around 80. But actually we see even higher for the new‑to‑cruise, the first‑time sailors, because I think what they see is this incredible value for money, this investment of money that they have onboard because everything is included.

And I can tell you some examples of when I’ve been in hotels in some of the big cities, like New York and London, where I’ve paid astronomical prices for breakfast that just does not feel value for money, and you don’t go back. Whereas onboard the ship, everything is taken care of, so it doesn’t feel like you’ve spent your money up front, but it’s all inclusive. And then of course, the value for time, because everything is organized in advance. All your decisions that we normally have are taken away from you. And if you look at the behavior of a guest in a hotel lobby on land, you can see they’re running through the lobby, their heads down, they’re on their phones, they’re finding their Uber. They’re rushing for their reservation. They’re stuck in traffic. But actually on the ship, you see this behavior changes. They suddenly realize that time is on their side for once. Maybe it’s the calming horizon. Maybe it is that they’re disconnected from land—they feel physically detached from, you know, the woes and the stresses that, you know, exist.

Michelle: There’s nowhere to rush off to. There’s nowhere to rush off to.

Anna: Exactly! And everything is taken care of. So I think it’s just the way we have to start changing the narrative in our industry. Of course, you know, ships are often judged by size and the number of passengers. But I think for brands like ours—and there are many other brands around that offer a much more personal experience—there are no queues to get on and off our ship. It’s not a hurried experience for us. It’s all about slowing down, enjoying the destination, spending time in port and really having an ability to switch off.

Michelle: Yeah, I love that. And, um, actually, I wanted to just pause for a minute because you snuck in an industry term and I want to make sure our audience knows. You said NPS is over 80.

Anna: I’m sorry. Well, it’s used in the hotel world. It’s a Net Promoter Score. So it’s really about how was your experience and would you recommend that to somebody else. And you know, as a new brand we see our score incredibly high. But as I said, for the first‑time sailors, I think they’re genuinely in awe of what they’re doing, the experience they’re having for the price that they’re paying, and the fact that they’re able just to really feel free of making decisions. And we’re all bombarded with so many decisions that we have to make in everyday life.

This way of travel takes it away. You don’t have to pack and unpack. You’re not going back to the airport every two days to go to a new destination. You’re not checking in and checking out. So it’s just a very frictionless way of travel and a very enjoyable way. When you wake up in the morning, open up your terrace door, step out onto your terrace and look at the view and perhaps see that horizon, that new destination arriving in front of you, and thinking, what have you got ahead to discover at your leisure?

Michelle: So when it comes to the destination experience, how are you getting passengers sort of deeper into this? For those who do want to get off the ship, even though it’s enticing to stay onboard, um, what are the options?

Anna: I think it goes back to the itinerary planning. And really, what is our brand about? What are we trying to offer our guests that they can’t have on land or in their everyday life? So of course, for us, you know, we’re looking to craft itineraries that allow for deeper exploration, longer port calls, overnight stays, and much smaller curated experiences in smaller groups. We also want to combine that, of course, with sea days. People enjoy those days at sea, but there’s got to be a balance between on‑ship and off‑ship. But we know that our guests want to have immersive cultural encounters. Sometimes they want active adventures, sometimes it’s culinary off the ship.

So it’s really looking at the variety of experiences that we can offer for all age groups—multi‑generational, solo travelers, couples—to give them that variety of choice. And some, as you said, might want to stay on or some might want to get off the ship for only four or five hours, whereas others might want a much longer immersion or do a back‑to‑back shore‑based itinerary. You know, for us, it’s simple. It’s choice. You know, we want to make sure that there is something for everyone. But most of all, for us, it’s very important that we give our guests time to really immerse themselves in the local culture, to really understand the people, some of the history, some of the cuisine, so that they take away something with them—memories that tell them, actually, we want to go back and explore more in detail.

Michelle: I also love this idea of how well the land and the excursion experiences complement that relaxing vibe. So it’s like this sort of—you have that time, and that’s another thing, you know, on‑land experiences and hotels and things. You’re just on the go, go, go. And you don’t often set aside that time to just relax and de‑stress. So I love how those two things can really complement each other, like the sea days and the slowing down with the busy port days.

Anna: And that’s it. And we can guide our guests into, you know, the variety of experiences that they can have on land. And I think one of my favorites—and just to again prove the point that, you know, cruising isn’t always about huge numbers and things that you think you would do anyway.

So, for example, for us, we go to Patmos in Greece, one of the smaller islands, and our guests are able to visit and discover the lives of 100 nuns who reside in a monastery, which was built in 1613. So it’s a really, really unique visit. They’re hosted by a nun. They can learn about making fresh honey and sweet fruit liqueurs—it’s not easy to say. And then you can, you know, spend time with them. You can eat with them and really observe their very simple but very humble way of life. And that’s not something you would expect, you know, to hear coming from a cruise brand. But we offer many different excursions like that, much smaller groups that really allow you to discover something you didn’t know existed or didn’t know you wanted to experience.

Michelle: Right. And sort of passion‑based, right? Like, so the things that you’re interested in, then you can pursue those interests. I also love that you brought up culinary, because I think a lot of people assume that you’ll be eating all of your meals onboard and only having the food that is served onboard. And there’s also stereotypes about that—that it’s going to be like a, you know, boring parade of buffets. But this idea that you can go when you get off the ship, that there are excursions that will dive into the culinary aspect, whether that’s, you know, cooking classes or market visits, and so that people understand that it’s not just going to be culinary experiences onboard. But that being said, when you are on the ship, what is the onboard culinary experience and, you know, what’s on the menu on Explora ships?

Anna: Again, it’s, I think, quite unexpected. It would be, you know, as you would find in an incredible hotel on land. So, you know, to set the scene, we’ve got six exceptional restaurants onboard, which is quite unusual, actually. Again, taking away that stigma from cruising where you typically find one main dining restaurant and then perhaps one specialty. We have six individual restaurants onboard, be it Sakura, which is the most incredible pan‑Asian restaurant. We have a sushi counter, an open kitchen, beautiful sakura blossoms in the ceiling. It feels like you’re in a teahouse in Kyoto. So that’s one of our specialty restaurants. We have Marble & Co., which is a European steakhouse. And then, you know, we have Fil Rouge, more of a sort of European French dining experience. Anthology, which would be our sort of only one that we have a supplement for, is more of a sort of Michelin‑style dining experience—very, very fine dining, multi‑course tasting with wines.

But actually, I think one of the most popular restaurants on board is Emporium Marketplace, which is our take on a buffet. We don’t use the word buffet—it’s a food hall. And actually it’s got 18 live cooking stations where everything is cooked à la minute. So you’ve got fresh pasta, you’ve got a rotisserie area, we’ve got fresh pizzas—we make, you know, we’ve got a pizza oven there—salads, desserts. So really anything that you want. And that changes through the duration of the journey. And you know, I know for me, when I was onboard quite recently with my mother, we’d go up at 6 o’clock to Emporium Marketplace. We’d have a slice of pizza and a glass of champagne and take it outside and sort of watch the sun setting.

So there’s something for everyone onboard. And the feedback that we get from the food and beverage is absolutely astonishing. You know, guests really resonate with the variety that we have, the quality, and it’s definitely one of our standout experiences—the food. And one of the reasons why we keep seeing such a high repeat visitation from our guests.

Michelle: Yeah, I mean, you’re making me hungry. If I’m being honest, I haven’t had breakfast yet. So one thing you had mentioned that you’re owned bynullMSC Group, this European brand, it’s family‑owned and operated and you can be very nimble. And one thing that I particularly appreciate—I’m a mother of two younger children—is I think a lot of people will be surprised about how family‑friendly Explora is for this sophisticated product. I think we’re used to, in the cruise world, when we talk about family‑friendly cruises, an industry where big ships are known for, you know, colorful waterslides and go‑kart racetracks and climbing walls. So how does Explora’s family offering and programming differ from those big‑ship bells and whistles? And when can I get my kids onboard?

Anna: You tell me when and we’ll make it happen. But no, seriously, you know, we really are offering something that would suit any generation, any group of travelers, you know, and again, couples, solos, multi‑gen, etcetera. But I think when it comes to families, we have Nautilus, which is our children’s club. It’s all about getting children off their screens, really getting them playing together, enjoying themselves, perhaps learning about the oceans—a bit of education.

We offer a full service there where we can, you know, look after the children without the parents and give the parents the break that they want. We can do mealtimes with them. We can do dinners earlier. So it’s definitely a good chance that children get to meet other children. They get to feel a little bit free and perhaps can grow up and enjoy themselves onboard and feel like they’ve achieved something. But it also gives something back to the parents as well. They know the children are in a safe environment and are perhaps learning something along the way. So we do have the Nautilus. We have a pool that’s for children, and we have one pool that we don’t allow children, of course, because we know that not everyone wants to be around children. And then actually up on one of the top decks, we’ve got outdoor sports courts—padel, basketball, etcetera—so we do have a sports coach that can also entertain the children if they feel they need to burn off some energy.

Michelle: I love that and it really resonates with me because, I mean, I was joking, but the truth is that just because I have kids doesn’t mean I like all the kid things. You know? Like, I don’t necessarily want to be around the loud rides and the—o I love the idea of a very sophisticated travel experience and product that, you know, is welcoming to children but isn’t sort of in that classically over‑the‑top, you know, built‑for‑kids way.

And I’m sure that if I feel this way, I’m sure there are other families that feel the same—where the hotels and resorts that do it well. . . . And, you know, I always say, if you can have successful kids’ programming without a big waterslide, you are actually working overtime because you’re working harder. It’s easy to have a big waterslide and be done with it, but it’s harder and more engaging to be getting, you know, children involved in immersive programming and teaching them things. So big kudos to anyone who’s doing it without the big waterslide.

Anna: And I think that’s the hard balance, though, to find, is that, you know, making sure that, you know, the majority of our guests don’t have children. They will be couples or maybe multi‑gen with older children. And it’s really making sure that everyone feels welcomed and at home and comfortable. So, you know, where we do have children, we want to make sure that they’re in an area where they can let out steam and noise and are not disturbing the other guests that don’t have children. But of course, we limit the numbers that we have onboard just to really have that perfect balance. And, you know, not too many children of one age, so that really it doesn’t change the dynamics for the rest of the guests on the ship. So it’s a bit of an art in terms of managing that.

Michelle: Yes. Yes, 100 percent. Um, I totally get it. Let’s talk a little bit about overtourism, which has become honestly a huge challenge for the entire industry—not just the cruise industry—but especially for cruise ships that rely on port infrastructure to decide on where they can and can’t go. So it’s, you know, it’s not like a cruise ship can just go anywhere. Although you do benefit a bit from being a bit smaller than some of the huge ships. So what are the ways in which Explora is combating overtourism concerns in places like the Mediterranean, especially where it’s been such a hot topic recently?

Anna: So we’re very experienced. As I said, we’re backed bynullMSC, who’ve got many, many years of itinerary planning. But we’re very thoughtful in the development of our itineraries. So we really want to look at visiting those smaller, less‑visited ports when possible—prioritizing those calls to the boutique ports rather than those always‑overcrowded tourist hubs. This reduces pressure, of course, on traffic areas, but allows our guests to experience a more authentic culture, which is, you know, key to us as a brand—not to bring our guests into somewhere that’s too busy.

As I said earlier, we do the overnight stays, which I think helps change some of the dynamics. It’s quite an unusual offering that we have and then off‑peak arrivals. So we really look at the timings that we’ll come into ports so we can stagger the arrivals through the day to avoid those big disembarkations with other ships coming into port at the same time. And then things for us like smaller group excursions, as I mentioned earlier, are really staggering the disembarkation of our guests to make sure that we’re not overcrowding in any one area.

But what I would say is that when done thoughtfully, cruising can really offer benefits to destinations. You know, we can visit in low season— it doesn’t always have to be in high season. We’re not asking for infrastructure like hotels to be built. You know, we can come in and bring economic money to destinations that need it. And also because we plan our itineraries two or three years in advance, we can work with those destinations to make sure that they’re ready. We can work with them to really think about the timing that benefits us but also benefits them as a destination, taking our guests to areas when those destinations need them. So I think as long as it’s done in a very thoughtful way, it can benefit both the brand but also, most importantly, the destination.

Michelle: And that ties right into my next question, which is, as you’re charting these new itineraries and looking into emerging destinations, I’d love to sort of close with where Explora will be heading next. What are some of the exciting up‑and‑coming cruise destinations you’ll be heading to in 2026 and beyond? And what are the itineraries and destinations you’re most excited about right now?

Anna: Well, that is the most amazing thing about being part of a new brand. You know, as I said, we’ve only been sailing two years. We’ve still got four more ships yet to deploy. So Explora III launches next year in the summer. So we’re actually, you know, a brand that’s got so much new news at the moment, and we’re really having to pace ourselves, which is quite an unusual situation to be in.

So lots of new destinations for us coming up. We’ve got Northern Europe, Iceland, and Greenland next year with Explora III. We’ve got Asia that we haven’t yet visited, so that’s also on our agenda. We’ll be visiting the Mediterranean out of season—we’ve got a winter season planned for the Mediterranean. But actually we’ve just announced our World Journey, which is a 128-day circumnavigation of the globe, starting in Dubai and then finishing in Barcelona. So we’ve just announced that. Lots of new destinations for us, lots of excitement when you combine that with new destinations, new ships. So we’re very busy at the moment—lots of planning and lots of excitement here at the headquarters.

Michelle: Oh wow. Around‑the‑world journey. That is so epic. Well, thank you so much for joining us, Anna.

Anna: Thank you.

Michelle: And thanks, listeners, for joining this episode of View From Afar. In the show notes, you’ll find links to Explora Journeys’ website and social handles, as well as the other details Anna and I discussed.