Are there any places you would avoid in future?
I thrive on going to new places. Even if you go somewhere that you don’t
enjoy, there’s always something you can get out of it, particularly if
you’ve done your homework. One place I don’t care for, though, is central
London. I believe the congestion charge has caused more problems and when I
have clients coming over here, I feel embarrassed for them. I go to the
office in Kensington and have been coming here for eight years and I think
the traffic has got worse.
What do you look for in a hotel?
A gym is good but I don’t really care about the hotel restaurants, because I
don’t use them. I’m not really fussy about rooms, as long as I get a good
one!
Which long-haul airlines do you prefer?
My three favourites are Qatar, Emirates
and Virgin. The customer
service with those airlines, from the point of pick up to the point of
dropping you off, is very good. When you travel a lot, the novelty wears off
and you just want to be looked after. If it’s a long-haul flight I can go
business class and when people go out of their way to make you feel special,
it makes a big difference.
Any carriers you would avoid?
There’ll all in such close competition now that they have to offer a pretty
good service. But I once got on an internal flight in Russia from Moscow to
Kiev and a goat was on board. I can’t remember the name of the airline, but
if I recognised it, I wouldn’t travel with them again.
Do you work on flights?
I’d like to say I work non-stop, but that would be pushing it a bit. It’s the
only time I can get away from everything and I like to chill out with an
iPod and a good book. I’m not going to embarrass myself by revealing all the
Britpop stuff that is on my iPod but I can recommend a great book, on money
laundering, called Dirty Dealing by Peter Lilley.
Do you arrive early at airports?
Yes, I’m very much an early person. My job is all about preparation and I’d
much rather be sitting in the lounge, chilling out with a coffee, than
arriving in a mad panic. I tend to pack quite heavy, preparing for any
eventualities and put a lot of stuff in the hold that people often carry
with them. Also, it’s so annoying when you get to the scanners at security
and the people at the front of the queue haven’t even had the foresight to
take out their wallets, mobile phones, etc.
How do you travel to Europe?
We’re not fussy, we’ll take whatever is available. I have several guys here
who scan the internet to find the best deals because we always have to make
sure we are spending the clients’ money wisely.
What about your UK travel?
We use the train a lot. If you want to get to a meeting, then that will
generally be a better bet than having to wait in traffic jams. Sometimes I
have to stay over in central London and I can recommend the Metropolitan
Hotel on Park Lane or the Albemarle on Dover Street.
Any last travel tips?
If you’re going abroad, do some research on your destination and the people
you are meeting, so you can avoid the likelihood of being a victim of crime.
So many people turn up in a country with no details apart from the fact that
they are meeting a Mr Smith with a clipboard. They quite happily get in a
car with a complete stranger without checking any details. Also, make sure
your phone works and have your passport details copied. We keep photocopies
of all our clients’ passports in the office and then, if the real thing gets
stolen, we send the copies to the British consulate in whatever country they
are in. It saves an awful lot of hassle.
