Condé Nast Traveller completes a year

Condé Nast Traveller’s anniversary issue is just out, and it seemed a good time to ask the magazine’s editor Divia Thani Daswani on how the past one year has been and her plans for the future.

“When we were launching Condé Nast Traveller in India, we thought this was going to be a very niche magazine – about 15,000 copies every two months for the first year or so,” she said. “It’s year one, and we didn’t even start at 15,000, but at 25,000, and we’re already at 40,000 copies. So, for me, it hasn’t been a question of catching up at all, but of addressing this amazing demand that there seems to be for this magazine and the passion that people have for travel.”

Commenting on new properties being launched by the magazine, she said, “The new property launched by the magazine is the Reader’s Travel Awards. It’s the biggest property Condé Nast Traveller has around the world, in every edition.”

On what sets the magazine apart, she said, “In all honesty, the fact that’s been the most helpful, was that before we launched the title, we did nothing but research for several months, which included one-on-one interviews with our audience across the country. That’s why the magazine has a different feel as compared to others, because there is a lot in terms of travelling with children, spa vacations (a huge trend now), women travelling alone or business travel.”

The anniversary issue is an India special. “The more people are jet setting around the world, the more they want to see what’s within our own country. The issue shows some of the most beautiful destinations we have,” said Thani Daswani. Highlights include a cover story on New Delhi’s contemporary side, articles by Ruskin Bond and Amitav Ghosh, and a feature on eco-retreats.