Kuoni’s tailor-made travel brand Alfred& has gone live and is now available to sell through travel agents.

The brand initially soft-launched in January 2020, offering bespoke holidays to Asia, but held off on a full marketing push because of COVID.

The concept links customers with a Kuoni specialist who’s knowledgeable in the particular area the client wants to travel to, then draws on the expertise of Kuoni’s network of contacts on the ground.

They, in turn, will pair customers up with hand-picked guides for the experiences the clients are seeking.

A Kuoni spokesperson said the time was now right to launch Alfred&, which is named after Alfred Kuoni, who founded the company in 1906.

The spokesperson added: “It’s a sub-brand, which joins our collection of specialist brands. We are linking with super-specialists in that part of the world and we expect Alfred& will attract new clients to the Kuoni brand.

“There’s been lots of work to expand it behind the scenes, with lots of itineraries available to book, via travel agents, our own retail set up and to customers direct.

“It’s very much targeted at travel agents.”

Introducing the brand to Kuoni clients, the operator said: “When Alfred Kuoni founded his company in 1906, he knew that great travel experiences weren’t just about the sights. It is why Kuoni’s new tailor-made experiences company has been named in his image.

“But we’re not just about Alfred. There’s an & too. And that’s about all the people you’ll meet along the way – the people who will make your holiday.”

Experiences include home cooking with a Cambodian celebrity chef, sleeping in a Japanese ryokan to see the famous ‘snow monkeys’ in their thermal pool, hiking ancient rice terraces and swimming with turtles in the Philippines.