08 MAR 2019: Work in the travel industry is not just a job, it’s a lifestyle – perhaps the best kind there is. Providing opportunities to travel and for personal and professional growth, immense reward is available for travel professionals. Insight Vacations and Luxury Gold, say they celebrate women on a daily basis and strive to offer a workplace where everyone has a voice, a foundation for growth and the freedom to develop individual career paths.

Here are some insights on two of their Travel Directors (TD) and Travelling Concierges (TC).

Sara Tuppen Veloso
Position: Travel Director, Insight Vacations
Countries Represented: Spain and Portugal

The guest is always the priority – from grand gestures of providing the group a local flourish (otherwise known as a special treat) to the smaller details of remembering everyone’s name from day one, everything Sara does is with the guests’ enjoyment and comfort in mind. She can make magic happen – such as facilitating a connection when guests have specific requests like travelling to their ancestors’ hometown to understand their family’s history.

She sees travel as an experience with life-changing potential and lasting effects carrying on long after a trip’s end, so she’s able to touch and influence the lives of so many people – this is one reward of being on the ground and seeing the power of travel firsthand. Life as a TD means every day is different and for someone who doesn’t thrive on routine, the unexpected fuels Sara’s passion and feeds her soul.

Insight and Luxury Gold’s Professional Development Program, focuses on honing the skills of experienced Travel Directors, and Sara is continuously improving and learning. The life of a TD or TC requires extended periods away from home and the company works with their teams to ensure an ideal work-life balance.

When Sara’s daughter was very young, the company recognized her need to have a certain number of days at home between trips to care for her family, which meant she could maintain her career and ensure the health and security of her home life. Sara believes that women are valued as individuals within the companies and that is what attracts many young women seeking work in the industry. “Ulla is an exceptional example for us, too: a woman with a family and successful career who is clearly attuned to the needs of her team,” Sara said of company CEO, Ulla Hefel Böhler,

With a good balance of inclusions and time at leisure, solo female travellers can get to know a city through the Local Experts and included activities before further exploring on their own or with new friends. Sara’s advice to solo female travellers engaging in group travel is to not hold back in interacting with fellow travellers and the Travel Director in order to get the most rewarding experience.

Belinda Richardson
Position: Travelling Concierge, Luxury Gold
Country: Italy

When Belinda was young, her backpack was already ready to go and her passion for travel has stayed with her since. She’s always been curious to see how other people lived and discover new places, so in her early 20’s, she left Australia for Europe with a return ticket, but she didn’t go back. She discovered a likeminded tribe of passionate travellers and a company that allowed her the opportunity to live out her passion for travel. Of the past 20 years with Insight Vacations and more recently, Luxury Gold, Belinda says, “In my experience, Insight and Luxury Gold have always recognized women equally and value our contribution to help make transformative travel experiences.

“Aligned with the values around the ‘enrichment of travel’, our company supports us by allowing flexibility to suit our needs, empowerment and autonomy in our roles to provide meaningful contributions. Our growth is also supported by the initiative of a Professional Development Program, leading the way throughout the Travel Industry and providing the training required for continued growth and learning in such a dynamically changing industry.”

Belinda’s personal contributions to Insight Vacations were recognized in 2014 when she was the first Travel Director to be awarded “Tour Director of the Year”– a defining moment in her career. On every journey, her main goal is to make every guest feel they have a friend and connect them with each destination. Belinda goes above and beyond for her guests and appreciates the profound and emotional experiences she’s had, including helping a gentleman unlock the puzzle of his ancestry.

Belinda is enthusiastic about the increase in solo female travellers as they realize they don’t need a friend or partner to explore a new land and are making travel a life priority, putting experiences first over material things. The only advice she has for solo female travellers is to decide on the places they’ve dreamt of visiting and just book; let the experts take care of the rest to provide the journey of a lifetime!

The only danger she sees is the risk of catching her travel bug, as travel is the ultimate addiction.