Diana Garcia Hernandez is a Senior Journey Specialist at Africa Adventure Consultants and a Conde Nast Travel Top Travel Specialist. Learn more about her background here and read a transcript of her interview below.
My name is Diana Garcia Hernandez. My role at Africa Adventure Consultants is a Senior Journey Specialist.
So as a travel designer, I’m happy to share about our process, how I work with travelers hoping to go on safari. So I always begin with just getting to know my clients, asking questions, who they are, what they do. And usually this is over a phone call. Sometimes it is a video meeting, which helps even more in getting to know my travelers. But we discuss destinations, activities, the time of year that they want to travel, if it’s a big group like a family traveling together, if they’re foodies, if they love hiking.
And I gather all of this information and apply it into a tailored itinerary that’s specifically designed for them. Then we schedule a meeting, usually over Teams or Zoom, to review the itinerary together. And during this meeting, I answer any questions, we discuss any possible changes. And that’s pretty much the process until the trip is perfect and they’re ready to confirm.
I’d have to say it’s really fun getting to know my clients, hearing their initial excitement about taking this type of trip on. It’s a trip of a lifetime and answering all of their questions and continuing to see that excitement throughout the planning process. I just really, really enjoy that. Figuring out the destination that suits them the best. Sometimes I have guests that really want to see the Big 5 and go on safari, but they’re also a little nervous, and they don’t want to do that the entire time. And I just, I really, really enjoy getting to know my clients during that process and helping them build these beautiful memories in Africa. So yeah, I think that’s my favorite part of designing trips for my guests.
If I have to answer that question, I’d have to say it’s probably Botswana, Kenya and South Africa.
I have my list ready. I have visited Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, South Africa and I’m visiting Namibia in November.
It’s difficult to choose between two destinations for me personally, and those two are Kenya and Botswana. They both offer such drastically different experiences and offer beautiful nature and landscapes and excellent wildlife. So it’s two for me.
I really enjoy planning multi-generational safaris. It’s usually a big project, and it can take a few weeks, maybe a month, to plan, but it’s so worth it where maybe grandma and grandpa are finally planning their dream trip to Africa, and they’re bringing on the kids and the grandkids and… just hearing their stories when they return home and hearing what the little kids had to say about the trip, and also the kids at heart. It just makes planning a trip like that so worthwhile.
So it’s hard to answer this question, but how I’d like to answer is I have a lot of repeat travelers, and I was doing some reflecting, and I realized that most of my repeat guests had a truly life-changing first trip with AAC. They have returned and they want to keep having these just truly amazing experiences in Africa. One of those trips was a client; she was planning a trip to Africa for her dad, her elderly dad, and her husband was coming along as well. So it was three of them. And they traveled throughout Tanzania. They saw the chimps in Mahale, and they were just totally floored and blown away. And now I’m working on, I believe it’s their sixth trip and counting.
And I’m just really proud of that. When building this friendship with my clients, and to that they just keep coming back and having these amazing experiences in Africa.
Yes, I do have a piece of advice for travelers. Please stay hydrated on safari. You move around a lot, and the last thing we want is for you to get sick while on this trip of a lifetime.
"Diana of Africa Adventure Consultants helped plan and execute the most amazing safari in Kenya for us!!! We had reached out to several top outfitter companies along with AAC. Diana listened to our interests and patiently answered all our questions to ensure our trip was outfitted to our style. She created a meticulously curated custom itinerary that reflected her expertise and thoughtful planning." - AAC traveler Rajiv B.
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