Did you know there are people in the world who are completely obsessed with Pan Am? A 12-day commemorative trip to celebrate the American airline’s legendary service and cultural icon status, Tracing the Transatlantic Ocean, will take place in June 2025 aboard a privately chartered, all-business class 757-200, but it won’t come cheap.
Inspired by Pan Am’s original Flying Boat routes of the 1930s, the voyage is open to just 50 Pan Am groupies willing to pay a minimum of US$60,000 (approximately £45,500) per person for the privilege. The voyage starts and ends in New York City, with stops in Bermuda, Lisbon, Marseille, London and Foynes, Ireland. Guests will stay in the finest hotels and enjoy incredible experiences along the way.
It begins and ends with an evening – and gala dinner – at the Waldorf Astoria in New York, which reopens in December after a major refurbishment. Other hotels include the Rosewood in Bermuda, The Savoy in London and Dromoland Castle in County Clare, all locations steeped in history. There’s an evening of fado in Lisbon and dinner at the Flying Boat Museum in Foynes, home to the world’s only full-size replica of the Pan Am Flying Boat.
The concept was created by Bartelings, a Cyprus-based specialist in worldwide private plane tours led by Gary Bartelings. “The trip is designed to be a great social experience, as it would have been in Pan Am’s heyday and because it’s a private charter, people can move around and interact more with each other, which creates a real sense of camaraderie that you wouldn’t find on other flights,” says Bartelings. The company has partnered with The Pan Am Museum Foundation in Long Island, founded by a group of former Pan Am flight attendants in 2015, and The Pan Am Brand (you wouldn’t believe how much merchandise is still produced there; they love it in South Korea).
“The people were always Pan Am’s secret sauce,” said Linda Freire, co-founder of the museum and a flight attendant for 12 years with Pan Am. “You had to have a presence and a magnetism to work there. Many of our passengers were frequent flyers, and we saw them several times a month and built relationships. They came to expect the highest level of service from us. Don’t worry, nothing is too big to handle, I’m a flight attendant with Pan Am, I can handle it. That was our motto.”
Food has always been an integral part of Pan Am’s offering. They had a caviar bar, famously enough to cut chateaubriand on the spot using fantastic sword-fighting knives that you’d never get near an airplane today, and in the 1950s they had menus designed by the legendary Maxim’s of Paris. The team is currently poring over original Pan Am menus for inspiration (“It won’t be exactly the same – a lot has changed since 1991. Back then they served Moët. Today we’d probably want Dom Perignon.”).
“Pan Am always tried to recreate the ocean liner experience,” said the mother of a friend who flew the airline multiple times. “At one point in the ’70s, that famous spiral staircase led to a candlelit dining room, which was pretty fantastic. They served lobster, caviar, and roast beef, carved tableside and served on china. We all dressed up, and the Pan Am stewardesses were glamorous, too. Diction, manners, and grooming were important back then.”
My own American grandfather was a frequent Pan Am flyer around the world in the 1940s and 1950s when he worked in the advertising industry. He was even a member of their ‘by invitation only’ Clipper Club. He wrote a memoir (never published) with great detail about his travels.
“They served us a champagne breakfast on our flight to Honolulu, which was the earliest I had ever had a drink,” he wrote of a Pan Am flight in the early 1950s. “But it meant that everyone in the cabin promptly fell asleep until lunchtime. When I woke up, the stewardesses came by with steaming hot towels and told us to bury our faces in them and we’d be fine. It was a new trick to me, but it worked and I still use it.”
In true Pan Am style, the aircraft for next year’s adventure, which will avoid public airports and benefit from fast-track customs and immigration procedures at every port of call and is configured to carry up to 50 passengers, will have modern lie-flat seats with a ‘buddy’ arrangement, meaning a friend from the other side of the plane can join you at a table, to play cards, sip champagne or both. It has been chartered by Icelandair and will be crewed by their pilots and stewardesses, dressed in full retro-style Pan Am uniforms.
Unfortunately, if you were hoping to get a ticket, you’re too late. Pan Am announced their comeback a few weeks ago, and the trip is already sold out. Organizers are busy adding a second identical itinerary, and plans are in the works for others, including a “round the world” trip for the centennial in 2027.
“In my entire life of travel I have traveled nearly a million miles, mostly by plane, with over 150 transatlantic and transpacific crossings,” wrote Grandpa Tom. “But I still think the Pan Am Stratocruiser was one of the most comfortable airplanes ever flown—a wide, spacious cabin with an open bar, lounge, large reclining chairs and ottomans that felt like feather beds.”
To some, it seems that, then and now, Pan Am is the only solution.
Essential
The 12-day Pan Am Tracing the Transatlantic voyage takes place June 27 – July 9, 2025, starting at $59,950 per person based on double occupancy or $65,500 for single occupancy, including all flights and accommodations, most meals and beverages, and an exclusive branded bag with swag. criteriontravel.com
Missed the return of Pan Am? Five other travel experiences for the super rich
Sail the seven seas
Regent Seven Seas is offering an all-inclusive, 140-night voyage aboard one of its newest Explorer-class ships. The ultra-luxurious, all-suite Splendor will set sail from Miami on January 11, 2027, and will visit 71 ports in 40 countries across six continents, including the Caribbean, the Pacific Islands, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Africa and Europe.
Veranda Suites are available from £77,199 per guest, or book the 4,500 sq ft Regent Suite for a whopping £1,342,478 for two. rssc.com
Immerse yourself in Maori culture
Luxury adventure travel experts Pelorus offer the 10-day Aerial Exploration of Aotearoa tour, taking in the natural beauty and cultural treasures of New Zealand. There are scenic helicopter flights, outdoor adventures and immersive cultural encounters, exploring volcanic Mount Tarawera, the pristine coastlines of the Bay of Islands, buggy races over Cape Reinga and taking part in a traditional Maori ceremony.
From £90,000 per person, based on four adults. pelorustravel.com
Hot air balloon safari
Luxury expert Scott Dunn is set to embark on a 10-day aerial safari expedition through Ruaha National Park in southern Tanzania in 2025. Led by James Suter, one of Africa’s top private guides, the trip will use only a hot air balloon. The journey will take you from one authentic yet luxurious camp to the next, tracking big cats, elephants and more from above.
From £40,000 per person based on double occupancy, excluding international flights, no fixed departure dates. scottdunn.com
Coast of Alaska by superyacht
Discover Southeast Alaska with Eyos Expeditions, specialists in private explorer yacht charters. On this seven-day land and sea voyage, you’ll sail spectacular fjords flanked by towering granite walls, take zodiac cruises, and kayak through floating ice, enjoying sightings of orcas, humpback whales, sea lions, and even brown and black bears along the way.
From US$245,000 per person. eyos-expeditions.com
Spotting penguins in Antarctica
Taking place in November and December 2024, this trip offers unique access to the magnificent Emperor Penguin colony in Antarctica’s Atka Bay. See over 14,000 breeding pairs and their newly hatched chicks – a thrilling spectacle in the long daylight of the Antarctic summer. Staying at Whichaway Camp in White Desert, you’ll also enjoy hiking, ice climbing and abseiling.
Six-day Early Emperors tour from $68,500 per person including return flights and transfers from Cape Town to Antarctica. white-desert.com