Impossible Journeys: Private travel expert Amanda Teale on curating the perfect vacation

Executing the perfect dream holiday can be a stressful task even on a limitless budget. Super yachts at short notice, access to tropical private islands and securing VIP tickets to sold out global events: it’s all in a day’s work for Amanda Teale, the CEO of Minerva Private Travel – the most successful luxury travel brand you’ve probably never heard of.

In fact, publicity is the antithesis of Amanda’s approach. “I only take on new clients by referral,” she says. “It’s been a slow burn, but I still make it very hard for people to find me.”

Amanda Teale founded her business in 1999 from her living room. She now oversees offices in the UK, USA and Italy from which she curates bespoke once-in-a-lifetime travel experiences for her elite privacy-hungry client base. No request is too big (or small), no phone call too late (or early) – and no two trips are ever the same.

Here we talk to the woman who thrives on making the impossible possible.Amanda, what makes your services stand out from other luxury travel companies?
There are so many travel specialists and concierges out there, but few people know the travel industry like I do. After building relationships in this trade over 35 years there isn’t much I can’t do by picking up a phone. I’ve also got a black book of massage therapists, beauticians, hairdressers, waiting staff, entertainers, drivers – you name it. If a client suddenly wants a house party for 100 people in their holiday villa, my team and I arrange everything. It’s not just about booking luxury hotels or restaurants, although I do that too. I plan out-of-this-world trips from scratch, based on specific client desires, everywhere from the Caribbean to an African Safari.

What lengths do you go to ensure a flawless experience?
I like to make myself available at all times; my clients want full access to me and my expertise. I’m a control freak and very detail oriented. I quite often go down and inspect a private car myself to ensure it’s in beautiful condition and stocked with chilled water and cashmere blankets. We have greeters at the airports who meet clients from the plane (not just at arrivals). We will contact the hotel five minutes before they arrive to make sure the concierge is ready with their room keys. If they’ve got a problem or an unexpected delay, I know how to fix it. They never have to worry about a thing.Do you limit how many clients you work with at any one time?
The number is moving all the time and people’s needs for my services can change in a heartbeat. I’ll have a huge client who books five family holidays with me a year at £100,000 a piece and suddenly gets divorced. People get sick, elderly parents pass away. Travel is also so volatile. We’ve survived 9/11, the 2010 Iceland ash cloud and Covid-19. I’m never in a position where I can’t take on more clients but am now in a position where get to decide who I take on.

Have you ever had to refuse a client’s request?
I’ve just finished a booking for a client who wanted to go surfing in Western Sumatra but also stay in a super yacht. It’s a very challenging area of the world for a yacht to remain stable, and most super yachts are docked in the Mediterranean all summer. On this occasion we couldn’t deliver, so we had to think of the very next best thing –  an amazing villa, for example.

What was the most memorable trip you’ve curated?
One of the most challenging trips I have taken on was for a client in the US who had a friend dying of cancer and wanted to help him fulfil the last couple of things on his bucket list. We flew them to do an amazing trip through Iceland. It had to be done very carefully because he was limited in his physical ability. We then put together a second trip to St. Barts. I flew in my own private chef to take care of them and with my compliments. When you get feedback saying, ‘This has been absolutely incredible’, it is the single most rewarding thing and makes all the hard work worth it.Have you encountered any disasters along the way?
I once chartered a yacht for a client for an obscene amount of money, and the day before they were due to embark from the harbourside in Nice the yacht disappeared. The owner had decided he didn’t want to charter it anymore and he just took off. That’s probably the hardest call I had to make to a client. In the immediate moment I had to secure him something else quickly.

How does your career impact your personal life and travel plans?
I love to travel and have wanted to work in travel since I was 11  and had aspirations to be an air hostess. That said, I haven’t had a proper holiday myself in 25 years. I go to Cornwall every summer and I try to take some time off, but really I just maintain my clients’ travels. This job does get stressful, but I love what I do. I wouldn’t have it any other way. 

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