Luxury travel — a sector that is widely booming and is an untapped space in India. FABgetaways has broken into the scene to help the Indian traveller "live their wanderlust in the most luxurious way possible".
Sounds interesting? Zeroing in on the best 5-star, 4-star and other boutique properties from across the world, FABgetaways offers curated travel deals and ensures that travellers experience holidays with a touch of luxury.
Raaj Bajaj, Founder & CEO of FABgetaways, started the members-only luxury travel platform in April this year with the aim of giving Indian travellers experiential vacations. Raaj came up with this idea while he was studying at IIM, Shillong. He always wanted to have his own startup, that too in the travel industry. Moreover, along with his teammates, Raaj even made it to the Top 5 in the Young Turks show on CNBC-TV 18.
Luxury travel offers intimate experiences, personalized services, gourmet meals, and beautiful surroundings that together promise pleasure, relaxation and satisfaction. Whether you are looking for luxury accommodations, luxury meals, luxury adventures, luxury transport, round-the-clock travel support, or honeymoons with exceptional five-star service — FABgetaways is your go-to place.
FABgetaways also has a separate division called FABgroupaways, wherein they create customized itineraries for corporates and groups. Chiripal Group, a leading textile group, is one of the main investors in the travel platform, and Raaj has been working closely with its MD Brijmohan Chiripal.
Raaj says: "In today's day and age, we are witnessing a significant shift in consumer behaviour when it comes to travel, especially in India. With the average Indian millennial spending more on travel and becoming savvier with technology, the very definition of luxury travel is changing."
He further adds, "Gone are the days when the average traveller was happy to tag along with a group of strangers to pre-decided destinations on a fixed itinerary that they had no say in. The new-age luxury traveller demands control, involvement in the planning of each aspect of their travel, and an immersive experience."
Since FABgetaways' commencement, over 50,000 members have joined the luxury travel platform. The Ahmedabad-based company has also partnered with various 5-star hotels such as Fairmont, Jumeirah, St Regis, Ritz-Carlton, Taj, Viceroy, Relais & Châteaux, Hard Rock, Sofitel and Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) among others.
FABgetaways currently has properties in destinations like Maldives, Bali, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, India, Paris, Argentina and many more. They also recently collaborated with Indian TV celebrities Prince Narula and Yuvika Chaudhary for their Maldives trip.
"We don't get an enquiry just about a luxury room. It's more than that. We offer exciting inclusions like complimentary meals, private dinner by the beach, traditional spa treatments, personalised honeymoon welcome, access to premium clubs, guaranteed upgrades, complimentary snorkeling and kayaking, a day in a houseboat on the famous backwaters of Kerala, a 24-hour butler... the list is endless—just to make their stay memorable. And all for the price listed on our platform. Our travel specialists get the most amazing 'limited time only' holiday deals from hotels all around the world. Our mission is to give you the most amazing handpicked luxury holidays at equally amazing prices upto 80 per cent off and ensure that our client's time away is perfect," adds Raaj.
He further says, "We have a lot of traction from metropolitan cities such as Mumbai, Bangalore, New Delhi, Hyderabad and also from cities such as Ahmedabad, Surat, Pune, Jaipur and the likes," says Raaj. "The age group between 23 and 40 is the one which has shown the most interest. However, we have helped a 70-year-old gentleman plan a family holiday and also an 18-year-old teenager plan a vacation with friends with our deals so there is pretty much something for people of every age on our platform."
FABgetaways is on point while offering deals on luxury properties that may not be available elsewhere. The company wants to ensure that it doesn't miss out on the affordable luxury travel market. It also offers marketing platforms to hotel and property partners who are looking to boost themselves in the luxury travel market. Deals on these properties are available on the FABgetaways website for a limited time, allowing members, who have signed up, to book it.
So, what's the future?
"In the near future, we would be open to look at investments that would help us scale up. Even though we would like to expand but the focus right now is on building a trusted member-base and our brand name," says Raaj.
