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About On The Map Travel

Find Your Place in the World with On the Map Travel

On The Map Travel is a boutique worldwide trip operator that was formed to provide individuals and groups with interesting and imaginative travel. The owners of On The Map Travel have more than 30 years combined experience sending travelers all over the world. We are dedicated, passionate, enthusiastic and professional. Most of all, we are travelers ourselves.

The difference is in the details. With On The Map Travel travelers don’t just see, they do. Every one of our trips includes activities, sights and experiences that are “off the map” – things no other tour company provides.

When you travel with us you may find yourself at a reading of Nobel prize winner Pablo Neruda’s poetry at dawn while sitting among the ruins of Machu Picchu. . . joining with one of the company actors of Shakespeare’s Globe in an acting workshop. . . or making your own gelato at a private lesson in Florence’s most famous shop.

We don’t just visit the markets of Africa – we have a scavenger hunt for local goods and foods so our travelers interact with the sellers in a way not possible when just buying a trinket. Picture yourself on a farm in Italy hiking through the fields to gather the ingredients to cook for lunch or climbing to a rooftop to watch the sun set over Beijing’s Forbidden City. These are the magic moments that memories are made of. What are the magic moments of your travel dreams? We’d love to make them happen for you.

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Anne MacIntyre – Partner, 
On The Map Travel

Anne is a graduate of U.C.L.A.; she began her travel career in Los Angeles as Director of Marketing for the AARP Travel Service. She joined the INTRAV team in 1988, as one of the company’s top public speakers and tour managers. Anne has escorted over 30 tours to all parts of the world – she claims India, Ecuador and Turkey are her favorite destinations, but she’s happy to go anywhere!

She moved to St. Louis in 1990 and continued to work closely with INTRAV and Clipper Cruise Lines in addition to her on-going profession as a freelance travel writer. Anne’s clients included Travel + Leisure, Home & Away, Delta Air Lines, Swissair, the Australian Tourism Commission and the Fiji Visitors Bureau.

In March 2001, Anne and her husband became owners and partners in General Tours, one of America’s oldest tour companies offering more than 400 tours and small-ship cruises to destinations including Asia, South America, Costa Rica, India, Western and Eastern Europe, Russia, Morocco, South Africa, Turkey, Egypt and Israel.

Anne is especially proud of the travel programs she designed and operated for the company’s Global Navigator division – providing adventures around the world for clients including University of Southern California, Dartmouth College, University of Michigan, University of Washington and Forsyth and Whitfield Schools in St. Louis.

Anne and her husband sold their interest in General Tours in 2005; shortly after that Anne founded On The Map Travel with her friend and former co-worker, Audrey Kennedy.

 

Audrey Kennedy – Partner, 
On The Map Travel

Audrey loved traveling before she ever tried it. Always eager to go anywhere and everywhere, she took her first plane trip during college to participate in a Theatre Seminar in London. After studying Communications and Theatre at the University of Hartford, Audrey spent three years working as Production Coordinator on the educational children’s show Big Blue Marble, where she arranged for crews to travel the world in search of interesting stories about children. It was then that the wanderlust took hold for real, and for good! She moved to Los Angeles in 1977 to pursue a career in film production and, once again, found herself traveling to locations from New Orleans to Yugoslavia (where she gave herself a whirlwind tour so that she could write a destination guide for the cast and crew).

After the birth of her second child (her first accompanied her to Yugoslavia at the age of 3) Audrey took time off to raise her family. . . and to travel with them. Audrey and her family have traveled to Russia, Holland, Italy, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Mexico and the Caribbean. They spent Christmas in London and the English countryside, negotiated three weeks driving through Ireland and watched the New Year arrive at the Eiffel Tower — among other trips.

Creating, arranging and participating in travel have been her passion. In 2005 – after several years being a partner in TKO Productions – a film marketing company – she decided to leave the film business and change her avocation into her vocation by founding On The Map Travel with her longtime friend and frequent travel companion, Anne MacIntyre. Audrey heads up On The Map Travel’s Los Angeles office.

10 Reasons to Travel with On The Map Travel

1) Been There, Done That – And Loved It!

We have nearly 50 years combined experience, planning, operating and leading trips all around the world. Collectively we have traveled to and led numerous trips to more than 100 countries – as tour leaders, travel planning professionals, travelers and parents.

 

2) On The Map Travel Is Owner Operated

That means when you book with us you work directly with a dedicated owner of the On The Map Travel from start to finish. We are always available to answer questions – from packing to weather to local customs. Special requests? We’ve helped travelers attend a special concert, find the grave of a great-grandfather, visit long-lost relatives and even learn to ride a Segway!

 

3) On or Off The Beaten Path – It’s Always On The Map

We have trips all over the world. From Paris to Patagonia, Zanzibar to Zurich, New York to New Delhi . . . and all the wonderful places in between. We can design a trip especially for your family, school group or association. We work with you to choose the destination, the perfect number of days and the ideal itinerary.

 

4) Extraordinary Travel You Couldn’t Arrange On Your Own

No matter how much you search the Internet, there are simply some experiences you won’t find available. Academic discussions with university students and professors, after hours private tours of world-famous museums, invitations to private palaces, behind the scenes visits to artists’ workshops. Out of the ordinary? Impossible to find? Not with On The Map Travel. We provide these unusual activities for clients every day.

 

5) Travel Questions Answered: Our Comprehensive Pre-Departure Documents

It’s a matter of pride for us – we think our pre-departure documents are the best in the industry. They run from 10 – 25 pages and include up-to-date information on all aspects of your trip – from currency to weather to tipping to electricity. We also include packing lists, recommended reading lists, wildlife checklists, lists of our favorite restaurants and shopping spots – even hotel contact information sheets for you to leave behind with your friends and family.

 

6) No Hidden Costs

Our prices and what is included are stated clearly right up front. There are no financial surprises for our travelers. That’s it in a nutshell.

 

7) In A Busy World – We Save You Time

The last time we Googled “Hotels in Paris” we had 13,600,000 pages come up! Who has time to read that much material and distill it into the perfect trip to Paris? We are constantly traveling, researching, reading and talking to travelers – gleaning information that can make the difference between a good trip and one that was so much fun you can’t stop talking about it after you get home. We like to think that we craft each itinerary so that our guests get an extraordinary experience, a great value and the kind of memories that bring a smile to your face every time you think about them.

 

8) Like-Minded Partners

We have partners all over the world – travel professionals who share our philosophy, attention to detail and love of travel. We take time every year to visit with them, talk about our company goals, remind them of our passion for details and make sure that they view our clients as people worth going the extra mile for.

 

9) We’re On Your Side

We represent you not only when things go well, but when they don’t. We take this responsibility seriously and work as your advocate if issues arise. We are very important to our partner companies as we bring them so much business. This means that your voice is heard and problem solved. Book on your own and you are on your own. Why risk your trip investment?

 

10) We Do This Because We Are Travelers, Too

Here’s the bottom line. We love to travel. We love everything about it – the excitement, the education, the experience. We love to think about, talk about and plan great trips. And we think our enthusiasm rubs off on our clients.

Oh, The Places We’ve Been

We’ve said it before, travel is our passion.

We are often on the move, exploring new places and finding hidden treasures in some of our favorite spots. Over the past few years we’ve traveled to the following destinations seeking out the best hotels, restaurants and attractions to share with you:

A


Alaska

Anguilla

Argentina

Austin, Texas

Australia

Austria

B


Belgium

Bhutan

Bolivia

Boston

Brazil

British Virgin Islands

C


Cambodia

Canada

California

Charleston, South Carolina

Chile

China

Columbia

Costa Rica

Croatia

Cuba

Cypress

Czech Republic

D


Denmark

Dominican Republic

Dubai

E


Ecuador/Galapagos

Egypt

England

Estonia

F


Finland

France

French West Indies

G


Germany

Grand Canyon

Grand Cayman

Greece

H


Hong Kong

Hungary

I


India

Indonesia

Italy

J


Japan

K


Korea

L


Laos

Las Vegas

M


Macau

Malaysia

Malta

Mexico

Monaco

Montenegro

Morocco

N


Nepal

Netherlands

New York City

New Zealand

Northern Ireland

P


Panama

Peru

Portugal

R


Russia

S


Sicily

Singapore

South Africa

Spain

St. Maarten

Sweden

Scotland

South Africa

South Korea

Slovenia

St Barths

St. John USVI

St Lucia

St. Maarten

St Vincent and the Gredadines

Switzerland

T


 

Taiwan

Tanzania

Thailand

Tunisia

Turkey

Turks & Caicos

 

V


Vietnam

 

W


West Indies

Z


Zambia

Zimbabwe

Destination, Hotel & Cruise Specialist Certifications

Travel is our passion; we love to talk about it, dream about it and we love to plan it.

But, how do we know where to send our clients? Where they should stay and what they should do? Well, that’s easy… we are constantly learning about destinations, hotels and cruise ships. We stay in or visit hundreds of hotels a year, cruise (sometimes as onboard hosts) the seas and rivers and take many of the tours we recommend so we will know what we’re talking about when we suggest them to you.

Of course, we can’t be everywhere in this big, wide world, so when we are here at home, we read, study and talk to our colleagues and friends in the business. We attend seminars and meetings with suppliers from all over the world to learn as much about their products as we can.

We spend hours and hours taking courses offered by the Travel Institute (the Ivy League of Travel Advisor education) and by hotel and cruise companies. And when we are through, we are certified by them, which means, we can speak with confidence and recommend the best options for our clients.

Here are some of our certifications. And, we are always adding more…

CRUISE SPECIALIST

AMA Waterways

Azamara Cruises

Crystal Cruises

Hurtigruten Cruises

National Geographic Orion – Linblad Expeditions

Niche Cruise Alliance

Oceana

Pandaw Cruises

Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Silversea

Star Clippers Tall Ship Cruises

Uniworld River Cruises

Variety Cruises of Greece

Viking Cruises

Voyages of Discovery Cruises

DESTINATION SPECIALIST

Argentina

Britain & London

Cancun

Costa Rica

Ecuador

Galapagos Islands

Incredible India

Italy

Korea Specialist

Panama

Peru

Portugal

Southern Africa

Tanzania

 

AIR, HOTEL & RESORT SPECIALIST

The Doyle Collection

Fairmont Hotels

Langham Hotels

Lufthansa

Marriott Hotel Excellence

MGM Mirage Hotels

Pousadas de Portugal

Pueblo Bonito Resorts and Spas

SPECIALTY TRAVEL SPECIALIST