Your team of expert Advisors
What gives us an added dimension is the hundreds of priceless years of travel experience of our leisure advisors.
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Paul Patane, Head of Travel Advisory As Head of Travel Advisory, Paul offers a mix of experience, energy, dedication and a passion for providing unique and eclectic travel advice and services to his clients. He has a client base built up over 20+ years, and mainly repeats and personal referrals, and from travellers who seek and expect a Virtuoso standard of service when planning their personal travel. Favourite hotel: The Oriental Bangkok. The service and the suites of this grand dame of hotels are outstanding. My last stay was in the Gore Vidal Suite and it was exceptional. Favourite airline: Singapore Airlines First Class. They are always consistent with their high levels of service and they have the widest beds in the sky. As well as excellent amenities and exclusive menus, Dom Perignon or Krug are your choice for a celebratory glass. A recommendation for our clients: Next time you are in Venice, take a speed-boat ride through the canals. It is an enlightening experience. Most memorable moment in travel: Tasting a 1939 Francis Darrozeí Armagnac and staying at Villeneuve de Marsan, a Relais property, in the south west of France. The menu there was as pleasurable as the cellar. Favourite thing about travel: Being able to tell clients about my experiences and have them eager to take my advice. Least favourite thing about travel: Searching for a great Espresso. It is always good to know in advance where to head. Couldn’t leave home without: A good pair of R.M. Williams boots that are suitable for business or pleasure. Next journey: Hawaii beckons. No matter how many times you have been there, the islands have a staggering natural beauty and Honolulu is a vibrant mix of experiences and colourful inhabitants. Contact Paul at ppatane@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Erika Affolter, Advisor Erika has many years of experience designing personalised travel programs for her clients. Born in Switzerland she speaks German, Swiss German, French and English. Naturally she is an advocate for all things Swiss but her knowledge of Europe and the world is extensive. A brief stint as a tour guide added another dimension to he travel talents. When not buried in autobiographies and general non-fictional books, Erika adores a lazy Sunday breakfast in a favourite eatery and the very Sydney appeal of coastal living. By complete contrast Erika in her teenage years had a skier’s racing licence. She is still an accomplished skier who remains enormously enthused about skiing and loves nothing better than a black run. She is the obvious choice of Advisor to consult about inside information on the best European pistes. An indefatigable traveller, Erika has fondest memories of the powerful landscapes and endless horizons of Namibia. The Skeleton Coast there is wild and remote and she remembers travelling for several days in that area without seeing another person. It is a place she would return to in a heartbeat.Greatly differing cultures and scenery will always remain her passion as will realising professionally planned and executed journeys for her myriad of happy clients. Contact Erika at eaffolter@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Guy Batten, Advisor Guy Batten is one of Concierge Traveller’s most experienced Cruise Masters and corporate and leisure travel specialists. He is a Sydneysider who has worked in fields other than travel but has opted for a profession that allows him to bring everything that is pleasurable and awe-inspiring about the world to his clients.He devours books and magazines that discuss inner journeys, travel (physical journeys) and culture. A home, Guy loves to explore Sydney’s eclectic cultures and the city’s history, architecture, and art. He frequents a variety of local restaurants, cafés and cultural venues and, of course, shares the best of them with others when they visit Sydney. Because he is an inquisitive person who has a vast accumulation of personal travel experience and insights he likes to listen to his clients, understand their interests and motivations, then match their expectations with what he sees are their best available travel options. Naturally, over many years, he has captured the imagination of his many repeat clients who love that extra touch in personal service and who like to have access to the best gourmet and cultural experiences possible, whenever they travel.
Guy most admires those people whose own curiosity about the world has sustained them into a retirement of fulfilling travel. Many have had to overcome health challenges to be able to continue discovering the world and themselves. Carpe Diemis their shared motto. Three days in one particular South American capital are memorable for Guy in that he describes them as “horrific”. Nothing about those days however, has deterred him from his interest in travel and his desire to fire the imagination of any curious traveller. Contact Guy at gbatten@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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John Chekian, Advisor Born in Armenia, raised in Africa, Syria and Lebanon and an immigrant to Australia with his family in 1965, John speaks Armenian, French, Arabic and, of course, English. His knowledge of ancient civilizations and their contemporary faces is incomparable. However, it is a heritage of the rich culture and history of the Armenian people that underpin his values. He is a man whose empathy and gentility are a foil for his passion and dedication as a travel Adviser. History and landscapes equally fuel his enthusiasm for travel and he has forged relationships with professional travel colleagues in some of the unacknowledged but stunning destinations on the planet. He is expert at revealing what is splendidly attractive about little known places, how to get there in the most efficient manner and how to best appreciate a place. He reads compulsively about world history, travel, geo-politics and current affairs.Music, movies, concert DVDs and art are also his passions and John appreciates all the finer things in life. Western Canada and the Rocky Mountains have left the most indelible impression on him in his personal travels but John likes nothing better than being able to inspire repeat and prospective clients no matter where they choose to travel. Making a reality of their dreams is his life’s passion. If charming and efficient politesse is what you seek in a travel professional, John fits the bill. Contact John at jchekian@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Melissa Coles, Advisor Melissa is Sydney born but after her numerous travels she has plunged headlong into the intricacies of the Italian language and culture. She is aiming for nothing less than complete fluency. “Plunged” is quite an appropriate expression for her passions since she is an accomplished swimming instructor and loves everything to do with the water, adventure, wildlife and the conservation of the natural environment. Melissa loves to spend time at beaches. Travel has brought her to the understanding that she should never take for granted the stretches of achingly beautiful sandy beaches on a Sydneysider’s doorstep. Ocean and coastal views are a constant pull factor in her spare time but they are not exclusive interests. She also loves picking through local market stalls in search of one off pieces by home-grown talented artisans. Cookbooks and restaurants are another passion and she also spends time dipping into the many multicultural restaurants on offer around the entire city and suburbs. Recently when travelling in Turkey, she found a cuisine that she adored as much as the warm, welcoming people she met everywhere. A standout experience was a stroll through the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul that turned out to be an amazing labyrinth of colour, activity and fun where a chat with locals was as satisfying as any grand journey. Melissa’s philosophy has become: “Take the world on one step at a time, but keep in mind that travel is quite addictive.”You can expect expert advice on the world’s best beaches, best markets and places to eat but ask Melissa what she could she not leave home without and the answer: – Blistex and a few pairs of haviianas! Contact Melissa at mcoles@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Mary Gava – Executive General Manager Mary has worked in the travel industry for 22+ years primarily in Executive Management roles for both multi-national and boutique travel businesses. Mary’s core responsibility is to provide leadership for the large team of leisure and corporate Advisers at Concierge Traveller. She is the last word behind the philosophy, policies, ongoing goals and objectives of the Concierge Traveller Group as well as the key strategist for the business directions of the company. In addition Mary has been one of the driving forces behind the special links that have been forged with the world’s elite hoteliers, tour |
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Elisabeth Greider, Advisor Elisabeth has spent more than 30 years in the travel industry and is one of Concierge Traveller’s most experienced and savvy consultants. Her enormous entourage of repeat clients is unswervingly loyal and they accept her suggestions and advice without question in most instances. Her professional approach to dealing with clients, established or new, is a given and she has an enormous volume of long-standing, loyal clients. Switzerland is where she was born so she speaks French, German, English, Italian and Spanish and she knows the best aspects and secret corners of almost every Swiss city, recommended places to stay, to eat, the most interesting sights, where to shop, and if necessary, the best private guides in |
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Julie Richards, Advisor Julie is one of our vastly experienced and well-travelled Cruise Masters. Born is Sydney but with a childhood spent in Vanuatu, she speaks French and has worked, inter alia, for the chairman of a wool and pastoral firm before dipping her toes completely into the travel ocean.As avid a reader as she is a traveller, Julie loves to take a leaf as well as a leap from the pages of what she reads into the real world. What she has devoured in biographies, novels and non-fiction tomes has taken her to the most fascinating places on the planet.In the recent past she has travelled in Oman (to her great delight) and taken a train ride from Russia to Mongolia that left her with an abiding passion for wild, vast and very different landscapes. On a more intimate scale, she also takes great pleasure in walking through the most well-loved and famous streets across the world, whether famous through history, legend, film or television. She adores being able to appreciate first hand the buildings and ambience of places long dreamed of. Her next trip will be to Italy, to southern Italy and Sicily.Julie also enjoys the process of carefully making great travel plans for her clients and into this process she transfers all her own expertise and imagination.Whilst her least favourite aspect of travel is airport check-ins (and don’t we all understand that?) it will be no surprise to hear that she never leaves home without a great book to read. Contact Julie at jrichards@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Mary Ann San Roman, Advisor Naturally, as Mary Ann was born in Lima in Peru, her Spanish skills are perfect! Her whole professional life has been dedicated to travel and making great ideas become a successful reality. It has always been Machu Picchu that has remained her once-in-a-lifetime, favourite place to visit. If time and money permit, she always encourages clients to make the effort to go there. Mary Ann is easily able to relate its many visual rewards, its place in history and its stimulating cultural aspects.Outside the office, Mary Ann is an avid walker. She also loves cooking (Peruvian cuisine of course) and having a coffee with friends, most often to hear about their latest travel pursuits. And whilst the talk is of food, one of her most memorable meals of all time came to pass in San Sebastian northern Spain. There, at the Arzak Restaurant, a dégustation meal had her waxing lyrical and now longing to return. Mary Ann’s most admired figure in history is the little talked about Flora Trsitan who was born in 1803 in Paris of Peruvian and French parents. She was an activist, a prolific traveller and the grandmother of Paul Gaugin. Her diaries reveal a woman of great character and a fan of organisation and of travel. In these qualities we see what makes Mary Ann tick. She loves to travel to new places and meet as wide a variety of people as possible, but her most engaging strength is the pleasure she takes in organising trips that will mean lasting pleasure for her clients.Where will Mary Ann travel next? – no surprises there – to Peru for the wonderful food! Contact Mary Ann at msanroman@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Jan Stanton, Advisor For over 25 years Jan has worked with travel clients and she has built up and astonishing knowledge of travel luxury in regard to experiences, places to stay and those people who can make luxury less a formality and more a joyous cut above the mundane. Boutique luxury is her absolute forte and Jan cuts a swathe through the myriad of chic options in the world’s buzziest capitals as well as in peaceful provinces everywhere. Turkey was her birthplace and remains her vital heritage. This is evident in her fluency in the language and her grasp of thinking from a different cultural perspective. Anyone who has visited Turkey will know how lively, hospitable and generous a people they are. Jan fits this mould but adds to it a sense of humour and passion for work that works most beneficially for our clients. Recently Jan flew to Los Angeles, spent two nights in Los Angeles and then on to ‘The Big Apple’ to spend three nights in New York. This was a refresher trip to brush up on her knowledge of the best hotels in both of these great US cities. Her next trip will be to Fiji to check on the best of family and boutique hotels. Professional development and pleasure are inseparable companions in her opinion.When asked about her favourite destination, Jan struggled to pick just one destination. However, Turkey, Cyprus and mainland USA were mentioned in the discussion.Contact Jan at jstanton@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Alan Tubery, Advisor Alan is a native of Switzerland and he speaks Swiss-German, French, Italian, German, and to round it all off – English. To cap off those talents he is one of the most well-travelled advisers in the business but retains an absolute passion for travel. He is adept at crafting intricate and unique itineraries, lavishes great care on the advice he provides and on document presentation. What clients end up with is a memento to treasure well after a journey has been enjoyed and completed. Alan is a voracious reader, an aficionado of Sydney’s restaurant, theatre and movie scene and lives life in another dimension as a DJ and a remixer. Sleeping is not one of his passions. His knowledge of ambient but good-value bars extends to most of the world’s best cities but it is his insider knowledge of Paris that is eagerly sought by clients in particular.Ask Alan what his favourite hotel in Paris is and he will respond with the name of an unpretentious, good value hotel, in an especially good location, where the staff deliver the level of serviced that makes one hotel outstandingly different from the next. Ask him to recommend a destination and it may well be the thrills of Iceland. Not surprisingly, he would never leave home without his Ipod.There are still places he longs to visit, to hear a different music. His next trip might well be Santiago de Compostella in Spain. Contact Alan at atubery@conciergetraveller.com.au |
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Kerry Thornthwaite – Advisor Kerry has a strong history having worked in the business travel sector for more than 18 years. Kerry enjoys the challenges presented to her in this varied role. Kerry’s focus is on delivering a Concierge service to our clients, whatever it takes.Contact Kerry at kThornthwaite@conciergetraveller.com.au |
