Staff Profile

Melissa's Biog

Melissa inadvertently began her travel industry career at the tender age of 14 when, while growing up in Ludlow, she took a weekend job at the famous 17^th century coaching inn at The Feathers Hotel. The money she subsequently saved gave her the opportunity to travel around Australia when she graduated from university in 1997.

While in Oz, Melissa capitalised on her hotel experience to work in various 5-star hotels taking her from The Sheraton Mirage in Port Douglas, where she served champagne to executives while dressed as a wizard, to the Sydney Hilton where she provided silver service at a Neil Sedaka cabaret residency. She even found herself catering for a group of wealthy pensioners, sailing around the stunning Orpheus Island on their luxury boat.

Melissa’s work funded sky-diving, camping safaris in the outback and a journey home through South-east Asia, taking in Indonesia and Thailand.

On her return to the UK, Melissa’s experience proved to be the perfect training for a travel consultant. She was quickly offered a job at Quest Travel in Kingston Upon Thames, creating holidays to worldwide destinations and managing one of the sales teams. During her 8 years there she took advantage of every available opportunity to travel: visits to Canada, The Cook Islands and South Africa to name a few, including numerous return trips to Asia and Australia.  

With her encyclopaedic knowledge of airlines and hotels, and knowing she had a passion for South-east Asia, Sam (her former colleague at Quest) and Tom persuaded Melissa to join Experience Travel Group in its early days. She now works as our Product Director ensuring we offer the most varied and interesting holidays in the business.

Since becoming a mother in 2011, Melissa continues to travel, and her two young children have been lucky enough to accompany her on research trips to Bali, Thailand and The Maldives.