Traveller Awards: 10 of the greatest innovations in travel

Traveller Awards: Innovation

An ode to the tourism initiatives and operators whose handiwork raises standards across the industry and challenges the status quo. This hand-picked list features everything from a cutting-edge airline cabin to a tour company thrillingly reinventing the way you experience a travel hotspot. Read on for our Traveller Awards 2024 winners in the Innovation category.

North Head lookouts, Sydney

Prime whale viewing … Yiningma Lookout.Credit: John Spencer/DCCEEW

Sydney’s spectacular Bondi to Coogee urban coastal stroll has been on a roll among international and domestic travellers for years but now there’s another seaside walk that’s all the talk. A little way up the coast, two new and lauded viewing platforms, Burragula and Yiningma, at North Head (Car-rang-gel), near to the beachside suburb of Manly, have utterly transformed the rehabilitated heath-covered clifftop walk. Both of these sinuous sandstone and stainless-steel lookouts, which relate rich stories of the local Indigenous coastal people and are designed for whale-watching, deliver arresting views of Sydney Harbour, the city skyline and the rugged coastline. See nationalparks.nsw.gov.au

Emirates premium economy class

Mealtime … Emirates premium economy.

When an airline conceives a premium economy class it has to be careful to also take care of business. Too much premium and you could drive passengers away from the hugely profitable pointy end of the plane while too little premium could deter economy passengers from economising and digging deep for a superior seat. Somehow Emirates has managed to create the near perfect premium economy class with its plush cream and milk-chocolate coloured leather seat with faux polished walnut timber trim in a two-four-two configuration. Each seat is equipped with luxurious padded foldout footrest along with adjustable headrests and accessible USB ports. All in all, this standout premium seat and service does the business without quite doing business. See emirates.com

TGV, Morocco

High-speed train Al-Boraq operates 30 Casablanca-Tangier services a day.Credit: Getty Images

Al Boraq covers the 232 kilometres between Casablanca and Tangier in two hours, 10 minutes. Africa’s first, and so far only, TGV (Train a Grande Vitesse), is a joint venture between the national rail operator ONCF and France’s SNCF. Al Boraq refers to a mythical Islamic creature but, like rail projects worldwide, its two-decade gestation at times made its arrival also seem mythical. The train launched in 2018 and now operates 30 services a day, with international-standard operations and infrastructure. See moroccotrains.com

Malahat Skywalk, Vancouver Island

The descent is exhilarating: an enclosed slide corkscrews you earthwards in just a few seconds.

This 10-storey steel-and-wood structure spirals through a reforested swatch of shoreline on the lands of the Malahat First Nation. The summit overlooks the isle-plugged Salish Sea and Vancouver Island’s peaks; on clear days you can see British Columbia’s Coast Mountains and Mount Baker in Washington State. Signboards along the route decipher the region’s human, ecological and geological history. For thrillseekers, the descent is exhilarating: an enclosed slide corkscrews you earthwards in just a few seconds. Malahat SkyWalk is a 45-minute drive from downtown Victoria and a free shuttle operates between the two locations. See malahatskywalk.com

Hoshinoya Tokyo

There’s a top-floor onsen to bathe in water pumped from 1500 metres below ground.Credit: Hoshino Resorts

The idea is a simple one, but difficult to achieve: build a ryokan in the heart of Tokyo’s financial centre, a traditional shelter from the outside world, a place of beauty and tranquility in one of the busiest places on Earth. But Hoshino Resorts has achieved it with Hoshinoya, a “high-rise ryokan” in Otemachi, near Ginza, where rooms have tatami floors and paper screens, where there’s a top-floor onsen to bathe in water pumped from 1500 metres below ground; where there’s kenjutsu (martial arts) practice on the rooftop at dawn and tea ceremonies and sake tasting in the evening. Everything has been thought of, and finely executed. See hoshinoresorts.com

Bullo River Station, Northern Territory

Trailblazer … combining innovative land management tactics with a five-star experience.

A 162,000 hectare cattle station in the far north-western corner of Northern Territory may not be where you’d expect to see a trailblazing approach to introduce innovative land management tactics alongside a five-star tourism experience. But the property formed a partnership with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy to prove conservation and pastoralism can co-exist in the Australian outback. Guests explore this remote wilderness by 4WD, finding Aboriginal rock art beside waterholes they can swim in along the way. Gourmet meals are served stockman-style, while most power needs are solar sourced. See bulloriver.com.au

Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures, WA

From 2026, Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures will be the only operator with access to the phenomenon.

Using its existing infrastructure and a newly renovated houseboat, Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures hosts overnight stays near Talbot Bay in the heart of one of the Kimberley’s most scenic areas. It’s a remarkable 18-hour experience that was previously only the domain of expensive and long Kimberley cruises. And with a ban on tourists taking boat rides through Horizontal Falls coming into play from 2028 (all other operators besides Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures cease in 2026), it’s a way for travellers to experience the remarkable natural phenomenon in a leisurely way – you get to see it from the air and from nearby in the water, and linger near its power and beauty awhile. See horizontalfallsadventures.com.au

E-bike trips

E-bike adventures on the streets of Bordeaux, France.Credit: Getty Images

Cycling purists may scoff, but e-bikes are the great enabler. Not only do they turn the most arduous ascent into a genuinely enjoyable experience, allowing you to admire the scenery rather than worrying about whether you’re going to expire before you reach the summit, but they also allow people of differing cycling abilities to travel together. New Zealand operator Adventure South has been at the forefront of e-bike adoption and now offers them on 21 of its guided trips, from a leisurely cruise along the Otago Rail Trail to the challenging single-track terrain of the North Island’s Old Ghost Road. See adventuresouth.co.nz

50 Degrees North

Lofoten Islands … one of the stops on the eight-day Beautiful Norway Hike.Credit: Svinøya Rorbuer

This Scandinavian specialist tour company has developed a “semi-independent” model, in which groups travel together and stay in the same accommodation but have different activities organised each day. For example, if you sign up for its eight-day Beautiful Norway Hike, your itinerary will include guided treks to the summit of Galdhopiggen, Northern Europe’s highest peak, and to a dramatic viewpoint above the mountain-flanked Aurlandsfjord. Guests on a different package may enjoy less arduous options, such as a farm visit or a fjord cruise. It adds up to the camaraderie of group travel but with a tailored itinerary. See fiftydegreesnorth.com

Pier 57, New York City

New and improved … Pier 57 re-opened in 2023.

Built in 1907 as a shipping and storage terminal on the Hudson River, Pier 57 re-opened as a vibrant community hub in 2023. Visitors can join a tai chi class or a cheese tasting workshop, watch the sunset from the pier’s expansive rooftop garden or explore Market 57, a food hall that operates as an incubator for women- and minority-owned local food entrepreneurs. Curated by culinary non-profit the James Beard Foundation, the light-flooded space features a demonstration kitchen, a rotating chef residency and 16 vendors offering everything from Indian comfort food to Korean bibimbap. See pier57nyc.com

Traveller Awards contributors: Kate Armstrong, John Borthwick, Jim Darby, Anthony Dennis, Ben Groundwater, Julietta Jameson, Trudi Jenkins, Brian Johnston, Ute Junker, Katrina Lobley, Catherine Marshall, Rob McFarland, Justin Meneguzzi, Craig Platt, Jane Reddy, Jane Richards, Tim Richards, Craig Tansley, Lee Tulloch, Kerry van der Jagt, Penny Watson, Sue Williams