80 Years of Travel Innovation
Right After World War II
When Alexander Harris arrived in New York from Poland to work for an uncle, the ravages of the recent war were hardening into a new cold version of mistrust and hostility. In his Twenties and filled with optimism, Alexander knew that travel could be a great way to break the growing walls of distrust in the world. Thus, Alexander approached the Eisenhower White House and was granted unique approval to operate the first scheduled tours to the Soviet Union.
South America in the 1950's
Empowered by American enthusiasm for the new United Nations, we headed to the 1954 UNESCO Conference in Montevideo as America’s
Flying Ambassadors… more than 70 years of journeys throughout South America have since followed that first trip.
East Africa in the 1970's
On safari in the late 1960’s, Alexander noticed that only the wealthiest could afford this life enhancing experience. Determined to make the thrill of Africa more widely accessible, by 1973 we were operating sold-out Pan Am charters to Kenya and Tanzania, the first of their kind.
China and Beyond since the 1980's
Not long after President Nixon’s ground-breaking trip to China, we began operating tours for Americans eager to see its historical grandeur for themselves. Now our luxury small groups and private journeys have expanded from China to all of Asia, from India to Southeast Asia and the charming heritage of Japan.
The 21st Century
We’ve continued to innovate in this new century and were the first to limit its luxury small groups to never more than 16 guests. In 2014, we introduced a new identity, Alexander+Roberts, inspired by the first names of Alexander and of its second-generation leader, Robert Drumm. Attentive to its guests and supportive of communities and wildlife throughout the world, Alexander+Roberts approaches the future with the same kind of optimism that motivated Alexander so many decades ago.