HX Expeditions appoints Soda Communications to as PR agency in Australia and New Zealand
HX Expeditions, one of the world’s oldest and longest running expedition cruise companies, is entering a historic chapter, with its 130th year on the horizon, and has appointed Soda Communications to spearhead its media engagement and profiling across its Australian and New Zealand markets following a closed competitive pitch process.
Working closely with HX’s in-house PR and marketing teams, Soda will provide strategic counsel and manage both B2B and B2C media relations for the acclaimed expedition company, highlighting its unique voyage offering. HX operates a fleet of five modern ships, offering voyages to over 250 destinations across more than 30 countries. Renowned for its pole-to-pole expeditions, HX combines sustainability, science, and education to create transformative travel experiences.
HX has also been a pioneer in sustainable practices in the expedition cruise industry and was the first cruise company to eliminate heavy fuel oils, ban single-use unnecessary plastics in its operations, and launch hybrid cruise ships. Every HX voyage focuses on science and education and on average HX donates over 1,900 free cruise nights to scientists per year as well as running their HX Foundation (the company’s standalone charity), which provides grants to community projects focused on education and marine conservation.
HX Expeditions Senior Marketing Manager Shannon Davis said the company undertook a rigorous selection process, reviewing credentials of agencies based in Australia as well as abroad: “We were open-minded when assembling the agency short list, looking at agencies of different sizes, specialisations and locations.
“It was extremely important to us to align with a like-minded agency who understand our product and brand as well as the challenges of our sector. Soda’s pitch stood out for its depth of research, creative approach, clear market insights, and genuine enthusiasm for helping HX build a stronger share of voice in a competitive media landscape. We felt the team members were genuine partners we could collaborate with closely to achieve the best outcomes for HX.”
Soda Communications Managing Director Chriss Mannix said the agency was pleased to be considered for the pitch process, and absolutely thrilled to be selected: “We were really clear from the start that we are not a travel-only PR agency, even though we have excellent credentials in that space – we also feel that HX has incredible stories and people to talk about in a wide range of editorial sectors.
“We love news, and we love crafting compelling narratives that flow from earned media, right through to social media feeds and content. Our passion lies in trends and observations that grab the attention of consumers by creating dinner time conversation that shapes brands. We’re so pleased to be appointed to work with HX to achieve this. Our team has quickly become expedition cruising obsessed and engrossed in discovering remarkable and quirky facts about the remote destinations that HX visits – from Svalbard where polar bears outnumber the human population, to HX’s most popular destination, Antarctica – where Penguins are some of the most iconic residents – roughly 12 million live on this frozen continent!”
HX Expeditions compliments Soda’s solid stable of clients, including Cathay Pacific, HOYTS, Lime, Choice Hotels Asia-Pac, Crusader Caravans, and Fowles Wine.