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BRIDAL NEWS MAGAZINE
JAN - JUL | 2009

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At The Mindful Traveller, Destination Weddings and Exclusive Honeymoons are their specialty

Reviewing Dawn Fairbanks, Wedding Specialist & Paul Tribe, Owner @ The Mindful Traveller Inc. An affiliate of UNIGLOBE Discover Travel

The Mindful Traveller focuses on taking the wildest dreams of a bride and groom and making them true - particularly when it comes to exclusive honeymoon locations and full-scale destination weddings for 120 guests.

This is where you can book your all-inclusive tropical Destination Wedding, your private chartered five-mast sailing boat with fifty-four on-board cabins, or your own private castle in France that's off the charts in style and service.

When you walk through your options with Dawn Fairbanks, you won't just be looking at brochures and magazines - you'll be hearing her first-hand travel stories and sifting through digital photos she took on her previous in-person visit. You'll be talking about the best café to get a coffee, or the most romantic park to take a walk through.

Personally speaking...

If you're planning your honeymoon or a destination wedding but you want to feel like things are taken care of and that you're 'covered' for everything important, Dawn Fairbanks is the one you want to talk to. She makes it her job to do the research and planning, cross all the t's, dot the i's, and ultimately help you relax in the knowledge that she's there for you.

Kristen Cobb told The Ring that she loved working with Dawn while planning her November 2009 Destination Wedding in Runaway Bay Jamaica. "She is easy to talk to and would always reassure us that she was there for us, no matter what!" Kristen said.

Dawn is the wedding specialist at The Mindful Traveller, a role she took onto herself because she loves it. Dawn is entirely dedicated to the planning and perfecting of Destination Weddings and Honeymoons. She has already handled the plans for many of The Ring's brides over the past years, but it's her ability to give that 'I've been there' first-hand knowledge and energy to plan each wedding detail without complaint that leads us to believe that she'll only get busier.

One of the reasons that Tina and Rick Rose hired The Mindful Traveller to help plan their January 2009 Destination Wedding was because of Dawn’s expertise. "She seemed more hands-on in the wedding planning area and gave her personal opinion on the resorts she suggested, which I liked," Tina told us. Their personalized and genuine style also helped, she added.

Working with her team at The Mindful Traveller, Dawn loves her job. She loves it because she's working within an agency that operates a little differently than others. "The Mindful Traveller is different because of our attention to the little details and services that maybe you couldn't find somewhere else," says owner, Paul Tribe. They don't just book your hotel, flight, and accommodations - they tell you where to go to get the best latte.

James and Amber Fancey hired Dawn and The Mindful Traveller to help plan their Destination Wedding on May 20, 2008. They told us that "Dawn was very helpful with anything we needed" and that the team at The Mindful Traveller was very professional.

Customizing your me-time

If you're not the 'tour group' kind of couple, Dawn will plan a tour just for you - without the dozens of other couples to impede on your romance. For example, if you wanted to do a three week getaway to Spain, The Mindful Traveller would help you plan where to eat, sleep, and what tourist spots are great - according to your interests. They'll make sure you have contacts that can speak your language, no matter where you are in the world. And essentially, they'll send you to places that they've been themselves, or know someone who has. For large groups, it's not uncommon for Paul or a member of the staff to go to a travel spot ahead of their clients, just to make sure they are recommending the best.

The right connections

The Mindful Traveller chooses their tour operators (travel companies abroad who will be servicing different portions of your getaway) wisely. Dave explains, "Our tour operators aren't just a voice on the phone. Many of the tour operators we work with are people with whom we've shared a drink or dinner with."

To help you plan a getaway that you can trust to be amazing, The Mindful Traveller consultants use first-hand knowledge, a collective thirty-seven years of travel experience, and the fact that between them, they've been to almost every corner of the globe. These consultants have been to see the Ambassador to the Czech Republic by personal invitation, to trade shows around the world for various tour operators, and have their own private collection of hot travel spots that may be a bit off the radar for other agencies.

Tailor-made Honeymoons...

The staff at The Mindful Traveller are experts at planning Honeymoons. Their current popular getaway request is Tahiti. "Tahiti is so exotic," says Dawn, who has planned so many Tahiti travel plans that she has earned 'Tahiti specialist' status'. "The over-water bungalows are incredible. And with the volcanoes and lagoons as your backdrop, there's nothing else like it."

Dawn can book everything you need, offer options that bring you exotic beaches, or those that bring you cultural magnificence. It all depends on you. "Anyone can walk down the street and see nothing. It depends on the individual's perception and interests in the history, the culture that surrounds them... What you get out of your travels depends on what you're passionate about."

If it's something more European, such as the castle in France or Scotland that you're looking for, they can handle that for you. If it's the popular Caribbean beaches and palm trees, they can do that too. "We do very detailed, custom, full service travel services for all of our clients," says Paul.

Advice from an expert

The Mindful Traveller consultants will make sure that your transportation and hotel are taken care of, that you're up-to-date on travel advisories, that you have proper documentation and that essentially, you need only to make an appearance at the airport in order to have your dream vacation. They will tell you the difference between a three star in Australia and a three star in Mexico. Also, they make it a practice to be familiar with many nice independent hotels that are really unique, and may offer a more secluded, romantic stay for couples looking to be alone.

"Dawn took the time to look at all the resorts we liked and found out everything we needed to know," says Kristen, who looked at so many places that she and her fiancé couldn't decide on just one. They finally ended up choosing a resort in Jamaica that Dawn had previously sent wedding parties to and had also traveled to the resort a few times herself; "she said it was beautiful... so, I thought I would take her word for it!" says Kristen.

Hot travel trends

One of Paul's recent travel finds could sweep any bride off her feet. Imagine you and your entire wedding guest list on a privately chartered, five-mast sailing ship, staffed to sail you safely to destinations of your choice and provide the ultimate in service. This sailing ship has fifty-four cabins and is one of only two ships in North America like it. In this exotic option, you can chart your own territory for your dream getaway (see photo).

Planning a Destination Wedding

The Mindful Traveller is focused on and experienced in everything there is to do with Destination Weddings. Not only do they host travel shows to talk about them, but they've personally planned and attended them for their own children, and are putting a wide focus on these weddings to make life easier for brides and grooms.

Tina and Rick say they loved that they were able to email or call The Mindful Traveller with questions or concerns any time, "They were always helpful and could always get me an answer to my questions," says Tina. Not to mention, they felt that The Mindful Traveller’s prices were fair and "more than worth it – the value was surpassed." In fact, Tina and Rick were so pleased with The Mindful Traveller that not only have they already recommended them to other couples planning a wedding, but also plan to use them for any future vacations they take.

Kristen told us that the price for her Destination Wedding in Jamaica was very reasonable – especially considering she was upgraded to a junior suite. "For a Five Star in Jamaica, it was a steal! We are very happy with it!" she told The Ring.

Destination Weddings seem to 'run in the family' here. In-house Travel Consultant, Terry Sullivan's son married Dawn's daughter in a Destination Wedding (see photos above), approximately six months before Paul's own daughter, Anna, said 'I Do'

in the tropics herself (see photos)!

The travel consultants at The Mindful Traveller have endless ideas and options for any bride and groom planning a Destination Wedding this year. They will plot out each element of your dream wedding - tropical, European, or otherwise. Their job is to make you feel and be taken care of by their expertise and over-the-top service.

Having more than just a travel agent, but also a wedding planner was something that Tina and Rick said they loved about The Mindful Traveller – and something they couldn’t find anywhere else. "With Dawn being a wedding specialist, we conveyed our wants and wishes regarding the wedding day to her," Tina told us. And even though they ran into a bit of confusion with the wedding coordinator at the resort, Dawn was able to help sort everything out. Tina notes that she did everything to make sure they had the perfect day.

detailsdetailsdetails

• The staff at The Mindful Traveller recommend booking 6 to 9 months ahead for both weddings and honeymoons.

• The staff can recommend places that are possibilities for those working with a shorter timeframe.

• When booking a trip with The Mindful Traveller, there is a deposit of $150 to $200 per person due. Final payments are not due until 45 to 60 days prior to travel dates.

Inotherwords...

"A wedding in paradise... that is how I would describe the [destination] wedding I attended in the Dominican Republic [planned by The Mindful Traveller]. Never have I been so moved by the serenity, the beauty and at the same time the casual atmosphere of the wedding. There is something romantic about the backdrop of your special day being the breaking of the waves and the powder blue colour of the sky dotted poetically with fleecy white clouds. This coupled with watching two people so much in love exchange their vows. I know that if I could do my wedding day over, the Caribbean is exactly where I would do it. Who knows... renewing my vows would be equally as perfect... all of the details already taken care of when you arrive. Right from the service, the wedding cake, the flowers to the reception..." - Donna Foreman-Braun

More travel ideas...

The Mindful Traveller is located at 304 Stone Road West in Guelph (across from Stone Road Mall). You can reach Dawn, Terry, Dave or Paul by phone at 519-821-2136, or toll-free at 1-877-224-9947. You can also reach them by email at dawn@mindfultraveller.com. Check them out online at www.mindfultraveller.com.

- The Staff at TheWeddingRing.ca
* Prices are all approximate and are subject to change and verification by authorized staff and management of The Mindful Traveller.