Memories Beyond the Destination

1:30 pm Sunday 25th October -Dubai

For 32-year-old Coco, traveling, more than anything else, gives her a shot at making memories. Every flight, every holiday, every trip weather business or pleasure opens the doors to endless experiences that at the end of it all, will become memories. “The only thing that we take with us are the memories... and that’s the only thing that counts.” This is coming from someone who has spent the last 13 odd years or more living and breathing travel working for the likes of Emirates in Dubai and various other holiday makers and travel agents back home in Johannesburg. She has traveled the world in search of new destinations, hotels and resorts to include in Emirates packages and has now moved on to own one of the successful travel agencies in Dubai that specialise in VIP clients’ travel plans and luxury holiday planning and bookings.


She adds that the memories aren’t just formed once you get to experience a destination but in fact way before; when people begin to consider a travel plan, way before they even book their flight and get their ticket. “There is a feeling of happiness that begins way before we book the flight. Simply, when we decide we want to fly, the moment that we decide on a destination, what the weather is like, contemplating what clothes to take, etc etc all this adds to the experience of making a memory that one hopes would cherish and make them happy.”

She feels that the industry, sadly, tends to forget all about that these days, and instead of appreciating what every bit of it means to a traveler, they focus only on the destination itself. And as a result they choose not to listen, and worse yet, project their own ways onto the traveler, not realizing that every possible oversight (in the planning stage of a trip) on their part will be etched in the travelers‘ memories too. “What most airlines, travel and holiday agencies seem to forget is a very basic rule, listen to what the traveler wants, understand that this is really special to them, no matter what the occasion of travel is, because every flight, every trip they make they are creating a memory and no matter weather a honey moon, the first family holiday, the first business trip, every trip has to be treated with utmost care as though it's a first.”

The travel industry big players, have become so large that they have become arrogant, so self-absorbed that they forget the basics of the business: the service. It's as if they have no time for you anymore. They don’t ask the right questions that can make all the difference. Coco chooses to hound her point using quite an interesting metaphor, she says “Think of a woman that has been given the choice of a 100 dresses. She'll want them all, she is gonna go for the one you tell her would looks great,no questions asked. But without really knowing what she likes and dislikes, and without understanding her style, it could all go wrong!!! It might fit her right, but look terrible on her... she won’t be a happy camper!!”

In the end, no matter how big, successful you are, how many awards you have won, people don’t give a damn. They care about one thing and one thing only, that they are treated like kings, like you want them, need them, regardless of class or how much money they might have paid. Valuing the traveler at every step of the travel experience is the key to success because every step counts more than the final destination itself.

The Truth: Happiness is in the journey not the destination. People live the journey, not the destination. “Happiness is found along the way, not at the end of the road...”