Philip James

Many travel advisors’ stories begin with how they got bitten by the travel bug as children travelling with their parents, and how they eventually just had to become travel professionals. They tell of being whisked around on sightseeing adventures, often including the Grand Canyon by way of “the family station wagon”, or to the Atlantic coast for beach holidays, and many even going long haul to Europe and beyond. But my story is not quite like theirs. My parents were more likely to take my siblings and me on weekend sailing trips along the Gulf Coast, or driving up to the Smokies (in an Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser) to our beloved family summer home in western North Carolina. My sister and I enjoyed summers away at camp in Tennessee. But from an early age, I knew of our family’s most prolific traveler, who quite literally wrote the book on adventure travel. Sir Thomas Herbert, Baronet was from York and was in the service of King Charles I. In the early 17th century at the young age of 21 he journeyed to Persia and Africa. He wrote exhaustively of his travels in, THOMAS HERBERT TRAVELS IN PERSIA 1627-1629. He lived rather remarkably to the age of 76, which is of course a long time to reminisce about his journeys and look through all the selfies he snapped in Baghdad!

Though I don’t have quite the sense of adventure that my ancestor had, I nevertheless innately love traveling to new places, experiencing new cultures, and making connections with the folks I travel with or meet in the many destinations I visit. I’ve had the great fortune to have traveled quite well over the last 30 years, having been in the employment of one of the great luxury travel brands, Belmond.

My journeys have led me to 20 different countries ranging from nearby Mexico to distant Myanmar. I have seen what true experiential travel is all about and learned how to work with those intrepid folks who want to see the world in all its many forms and faces, and through every mode of transport there is. Along the way I have amassed a wealth of connections with the most respectable travel suppliers in the industry enabling my clients with the confidence that their travel is well-managed.

My journey now as a travel advisor is a parallel one with yours as a travel-investor. You the traveler have a vested interest in seeing that your journeys bring you a return of some significance. And I as your advisor have a responsibility to deliver that return for you in tangible ways. I will actively consult with you by listening-to and understanding your objectives and then I will curate a vision, followed by an itinerary and trip (hopefully many trips) that not only satisfies you and those with whom you travel, but delivers you a happy and meaningful return on investment.