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With expertise ranging from family travel to executive travel planning, Tom strives to make even the most intricate trips accessible.

After completing university, Tom went on a life-changing backpacking adventure that ignited his passion for travel. He started his career as an adventure travel advisor, specializing in creating experiential journeys for young travelers that ranged from hiking Kilimanjaro to camping in the remote bush of Tanzania, alongside meaningful volunteer trips around the world. As his career progressed, Tom garnered invaluable experiences and insights, which led him to make a pivotal decision to transition into luxury travel. This evolution took him from his homeland in the U.K. to New York, before ultimately settling in Vancouver.

One of Tom’s primary goals is to ensure that his clients feel empowered rather than intimidated by off-the-beaten-path destinations. He wholeheartedly believes in the power of unveiling hidden gems and exclusive experiences that travelers may not otherwise discover. The long-standing relationships he has cultivated over his years within the travel industry as the key to his ability to both educate and ultimately, unlock these places..

In conjunction with planning adventure-driven vacations, Tom excels in blending business and leisure to create unforgettable experiences for his executive clients. These “bleisure” trips often begin with weekday stays to accommodate meetings, followed by a long weekend extension with family and friends. Tom is well-versed in anticipating the needs of families on the road as his own family grows. He understands the intricacies of traveling with young children while striving to raise global citizens. His varied personal experiences and years of expertise have garnered trust from clients of all life stages; whether it’s a honeymoon, babymoon, surprise trip, corporate meeting, or multi-generational trip.

What has been your most memorable travel experience to date?

I’ve been to a lot of incredible places all over the world, but there is always something about your first awe-inspiring trip, a trip like a safari. My first safari was camping on the Serengeti. At that time, my career focus was on adventure travel, so I wasn’t staying at one of the luxury camps in Tanzania. But I still remember the smell of dust in the air as I watched hundreds of buffalo avoid a lion pride. And although it wasn’t luxe, the wildlife and the awe of it all is still the same. Since then, I’ve had the chance to visit Botswana with our partners at Belmond, and it’s been such a rewarding journey both personally and professionally to have my style of travel adapt as my career has evolved.

How do you prepare for trips?

Preparing for trips has changed a lot since the birth of my daughter. Before she was born, my wife and I decided that we still wanted to embrace the immersive traveling lifestyle and raise her to be adaptable and open-minded. So now, preparation for trips is all about streamlining travel as a young family. We book transfers, use airport fast tracks, and research airport lounges that are more conducive to families. Additionally, we rely on the properties and their amenities quite heavily. It’s really amazing to see hospitality at its finest; our partners stage a nursery wherever we go and have baby formula and diapers upon arrival, rather than a bottle of champagne. This experience has also been very educational for me, as I have clients in the exact same circumstances, and it helps me better plan their trips.

Travel Tip

  • Invest in some good noise-canceling headphones – they can offer tranquility or an escape when you need it the most!

Testimonials

Tom, thank you for all the help, guidance, and expertise you provided putting our amazing safari travel package together! It was truly a trip of a lifetime! The safari game camps in Kenya and Tanzania far surpassed our expectations! We cannot say enough about the andBeyond accommodations and staff at each camp. We were treated impeccably and felt that each camp's staff went out of their way to make us comfortable and to ensure that we had a memorable experience. We couldn't have done it without you - all our connections (jeeps, small planes, etc.) to and from each camp worked beautifully. We appreciated your professionalism, responsiveness, and attention to every detail. And, yes, we saw so many majestic animals! We cannot wait to book another trip through you!

-Mayra & Steve Gould

Tom helped coordinate a week long tour of Italy for my entire extended family (8 of us). People flying in from multiple locations, incorporating destinations that each person wanted to see, and also factoring in my parents not being as mobile as everyone else. He made the entire process easy, provided multiple options for hotels, restaurants, etc.. Couldn't have been happier with the way it went. I recently reached back out to see if he could pull off the impossible on a trip to Florida. I was trying set up a private photoshoot for my girlfriend and he was able to get the artist and photographer that make the whole experience over the top. I highly recommend hiring time for any of your travel needs.

-Gary Nealon

Tom is always responsive and a pleasure to work with! He communicates clearly and responds quickly across time zones.

-Ilona Nemeth

Tom is the BEST! Tom has been taking care of the travel needs for my boss for a couple of years, and he hits it out of the park every time. To start this year off, we had him help us with a team retreat - wrangling 18 travellers in one group. Tom took care of the planning, execution and detail - everything we could need with our trip. He is always available if something comes up unexpectedly. I can't recommend Tom highly enough.

-Executive Assistant to Dr. Shannon Humphrey

Tom was highly professional and efficient. He surpassed our expectations. Not only that, but our trip likely would have been a disaster without his help. Early in our trip we had very noisy people directly above us and so we asked to move rooms. We were told there was nothing left in our room class and we were asked if we'd be willing to pay for an upgrade. We said yes. We were asked to check with them later. An hour later, they told us sorry but they were full and there was nothing they could do. I emailed Tom and in less than 5 minutes he replied "I'm on it". An hour later, their assistant GM found us on the beach, apologized sincerely for the issue, and let us know they were upgrading us free of charge to a top floor suite. Wow, what a different experience. This only happened because we used Tom as our travel agent, rather than booking online ourselves. Thank you Tom, you made it an amazing vacation. You proved without a doubt the value of working with you.

-Crane Harvey

Tom is excellent and gave up-to-date and accurate advice on booking the room we want. He was spot on about the resort and everything met our expectations! Thank you!

-Dr. Sandra Lee

We have never been disappointed with our tours arranged by Tom. We had excellent guides, one of which was the owner of the company. All guides were prompt, vans clean and safe, fun excursions to places we would most likely not have known about. The castles outside Dublin were interesting, fantastic luncheon on the Irish coast known for their seafood! Weather was challenging, but tours were adjusted to maximize our sites and allow us to see all and more than we expected. I would highly recommend Tom, and we will contact him again for another adventure!

-Amy Watson

Tom is and always has been a true pleasure to deal with in planning a significant and adventurous trip. His experience and capability to envision a meaningful itinerary makes the adventure a seamless yet exciting and challenging but comfortable experience. His links with the Dare to Explore people based in South Africa provide real-time local knowledge of the situations you can expect to meet while on the African continent. As anticipated the "Gorillas in Rwanda" experience was as special and remarkable as we had hoped. Thanks again, Rosalyn and Troy

-Rosalyn and Troy Manthorpe

Tom is the best advisor there is; he provides awesome assistance every time. He is always available to assist, even with last-minute changes. He makes excellent suggestions and thinks ahead to make sure travel is seamless.

-Trish Jamieson

Tom is a very informative, flexible and patient person. I have booked out travels with him since 2015. He is awesome.

-Della Amin

Amazing! I’ve been working with Tom for almost 10 years and every trip he has booked was impeccably planned and executed. This was no different. He takes time to learn about his clients and their interests and uses this knowledge to tailor trips accordingly. From the moment you leave to the moment you get home you know that everything will be seamless and that you’ll enjoy everything he plans.

-Chanel Avarello