Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Christopher Wilmot-Sitwell Cazenove & Loyd

Headquarters: London, U.K.
Areas of Expertise: Off-the-beaten-path luxury, South America, safari, adventure
Need to Know: He was an early advocate of a now-commonplace innovation: walking safaris, bringing guests safely closer to the African landscape than is ever possible in a 4×4.

The 25-strong agency is steered by the three-decade veteran Wilmot-Sitwell.

He and that team are renowned for deftly combining adventure travel—think long-haul jaunts to hard-to-reach Asian and African sites—with no-beat-missed luxury.

Canny touches include programming specialist private guides to follow clients from camp to camp and assist with birding, rather than relying on new guides at check-in every time.

The firm itself was an early champion of sustainability, which is now an industry-wide obsession.

It is committed to offsetting the carbon impact of its own research trips via CommuniTree, a Nicaraguan reforestation project, and has long been a supporter of the Sol y Luna lodge in Peru’s Sacred Valley, where luxury accommodation underwrites pro-social programs in this economically disadvantaged rural area.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Henry Cookson Cookson Adventures

Headquarters: London, U.K.
Areas of Expertise: Adventure, exploration, and record-breaking
Need to Know: Cookson is a world record–holder himself, for kite-skiing to the Pole of Inaccessibility.

Cookson’s niche is elaborate, discreet adventures, and his firm focuses on a handful each year—perhaps a few dozen at most.

Think of him like a modern Indiana Jones, with an eclectic résumé that primes him to wrangle unusual, unforgettable trips; Cookson has worked as everything from a horseback safari guide to a sheep-station jackeroo to a Goldman Sachs banker.

He founded his firm nearly 20 years ago after accidentally discovering travel as a business, entering a race to the Magnetic North Pole on a whim—and winning.

Soon, he’d turned his firsthand knowledge of far-flung locales into a business, while also working on conservation and fundraising (he was the Duke of Sussex’s guide to the North Pole on a charity expedition 15 years ago).

Fancy chartering a plane to a private round-the-world trip? Cookson’s team is the perfect partner.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Gary Portuesi & Jennifer Schwartz Authentic Explorations

Headquarters: New York, N.Y. and Florence, Italy
Areas of Expertise: Italy, Iceland, Croatia, Spain, Portugal
Need to Know: Schwartz is a licensed truffle hunter, so ask her to take you on a foraging trip in season.

The seven-year-old Authentic Explorations is a go-to for any gourmet keen to indulge in truffles, bresaola, and Barolo, among other Italian delicacies.

Portuesi co-owns an Italian cooking school in N.Y.C. and thus certainly knows his stuff.

A buyout of Massimo Bottura’s impossible-to-secure Osteria Francescana is easy enough for this team, but they’ll also happily supply a curated list of restaurants to your tastes.

Want a private, air-conditioned suite in a pole position to watch the thrilling finish of Siena’s Palio race?

They’ve got one already primed. Then again, if you’ve always dreamed of being invited to the Ballo del Doge during Venice’s Carnival, just ask AE to get you a ticket.

It’s deeply rooted in all 20 regions of Italy, as the company’s initial focus was solely on that country.

It recently expanded to select other European destinations, such as Croatia, Spain, and Portugal.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Catherine Heald Remote Lands

Headquarters: New York, N.Y. and Bangkok, Thailand
Areas of Expertise: Asia
Need to Know: Heald’s a multihyphenate: an early Columbia computer science grad, she’s also a fitness fanatic, including finishing the New York City Marathon in 101st place.

If you’re heading to multiple countries in Asia—from Japan to the Maldives to everything in between—there’s no better counsel than that of Heald.

“I have devoted my life to Asia since moving to Hong Kong in 1987,” she says of her decision to jettison a promising career on Wall Street to board a plane to Asia with nothing but the phone numbers of two people, $1,000 in her pocket, and a passion for the continent.

Heald and her team have expertise in major cities, but the farthest-flung spots are a specialty.

Think Japan’s Yakushima Island or India’s Sikkim. Heald’s trips often support good causes: Clients who travel to Siem Reap, for example, may dig a water well for a local family as part of their journey.

Of course, travelers can expect a good dose of luxury, too. Heald has lunched with the Queen of Bhutan and has chartered a private plane to roam the most remote corners of Mongolia’s Gobi Desert.

She’s also a close partner of Aman and works on programming the private-jet itineraries, which now run to connect its properties.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Tanya Dalton Greaves India

Headquarters: London, U.K.
Areas of Expertise: India
Need to Know: Her expertise stretches beyond continental India. She particularly excited about the Andaman Islands, that isolated archipelago under India’s purview that’s becoming a barefoot luxe paradise where, she says, “you will find some of India’s—if not the world’s—best beaches.”

If you want to immerse yourself in the dazzling, gloriously overwhelming culture of India, there’s no one better to tap than Dalton, who is based between London and Goa but whose firm also has offices in Chicago and Delhi.

Hers is a truly family business: Her Mumbai-born grandfather founded the company, who passed it on to Dalton’s mother and then to her, making it a four-decade veteran of wrangling the best experiences in India.

That generational know-how and network confer a near-unparalleled level of insider access to anyone who travels under her auspices.

She can also wrangle suites in Rajasthani mansions or program tiger-centric safaris.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Sandy Cunningham Uncharted

Headquarters: Santa Barbara, Calif.
Areas of Expertise: Safari, outdoors, adventure, ski
Need to Know: She was born in South Africa and raised in what’s now Zimbabwe, exploring the Nyanga Mountains and dodging crocs and hippos on days spent idling ‘round Lake Kariba.

Cunningham’s firm is aptly named, as it specializes in adventures and safaris in remote destinations.

Cunningham stayed on the continent to begin her career, working as a safari operator alongside her husband (and now business partner) Chip, running Richard Bonham’s Ol Donyo Wuas lodge.

It means she knows the game, in every sense. Cunningham is adept at creating long-haul trips for large groups, too: She once booked a celebrity family into a private island in Seychelles.

To avoid any shred of unwelcome publicity, she whisked the same family out a day earlier than planned, under cover of darkness, to avoid alerting any paparazzi.

Sandy and Chip are also avid skiers, so don’t hesitate to tap them for a cat-ski trip to Crested Butte, one of her favorite spots.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Kevin Jackson EXP Journeys

Headquarters: Solana Beach, Calif.
Areas of Expertise: Adventure, adrenaline, immersive trips
Need to Know: Jackson has scaled Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania 13 times and mountaineered up Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the continental U.S., 15 times.

When money is truly no object, B-Corp-certified EXP Journeys comes in.

Jackson and his team create bespoke, one-time-only events in extraordinary locations, often with six-figure budgets or higher.

He’s known for adventure—custom bike tours around Ted Turner Reserve, for example—as well as immersive experiences, which involve creating impromptu worlds in any given location.

He helped a group of guys punch up their annual getaway via a buyout of Amangiri where they were trained by Navy SEALS to finesse their paintball skills before battling 100 pro ballers in a staged fight to rescue hostages.

He has helped guests discover a new dinosaur species with a well-known paleontologist at a dig in the southwest, and even hosted a dinner arranged in partnership with the Navajo Nation that saw travelers break bread with one of the last-living Navajo Code Talkers from World War II.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Stuart Rigg, Southern Crossings

Headquarters: Sydney, Australia
Areas of Expertise: Australia, New Zealand
Need to Know: Don’t forget Fiji—the Pacific island nation is another area of expertise for Riggs and his team, a cultural contrast to Down Under.

For more than 30 years, Rigg has helped travelers explore his region in luxury. Logistics and connections of all kinds are tricky Down Under, so his assistance is particularly welcome.

There’s virtually no request he can’t find a way to fulfill. In fact, one celebrity tasked Rigg with organizing his 50th birthday at a mansion in Sydney.

The manse’s gym had to be fully refitted and the A/C recalibrated to ensure the traveler’s ideal temp.

The birthday bash itself was on a private island right in the heart of Sydney Harbour.

Rigg has got a deep bench of knowledge from across the region.

Whether you want to explore the Great Barrier Reef—he’ll suggest accommodation and activities depending on whether you’re avid divers or just keen to dip a toe in the waters.

Then relax on a deserted beach—or try to score access to the best wineries in Perth-adjacent Margaret River region.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Stuart Rigg, Southern Crossings

Headquarters: Marrakech, Morocco
Areas of Expertise: Morocco, Australia, Asia, U.K.
Need to Know: If you’re ready to surrender to her expertise entirely, opt for one of her Mystery Travel trips, where a surprise itinerary is crafted to a client’s likes and interests.

Longtime luxury-travel specialist Alex Wix only launched her own firm less than a decade ago, but she has become a go-to for trips to Morocco (where she’s based), Australia, and Asia.

Her expertise is in the hard-to-reach spots in those territories, though it’s in Morocco where her connections are truly unmatched.

For example, she can arrange a candlelit canyon dinner near a luxury camp in the picturesque Agafay Desert or roster an astronomer to help with stargazing in the inky blackness of the sand dunes at night, a regular request from visitors today.

Wix loves a personal touch, too: She once organized silver and gold temari (Japanese ornaments) for one couple traveling to Japan.

The next big project for this expat Brit: tackling trips to the British Isles, where she was born and bred, and bringing her signature expertise to that region.

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Stuart Rigg, Southern Crossings

Headquarters: London, U.K.
Areas of Expertise: Greece and its islands
Need to Know: Von Hirsch spent time in New York working as a set designer, so she excels in creating the perfect backdrop to events.

Access the Acropolis in ways that even VIPs can’t wrangle.

Get a last-minute charter to Corfu.

Just ask von Hirsch, whose expertise and connections in Greece are unparalleled.

She says she and her sisters “come from an old and impoverished Greek shipping family” and only stumbled into the travel business when they inherited what she calls “an extravagantly beautiful but impractical beach house” on the island of Ithaca.

They had to find a way to commercialize it if they were to keep it (it didn’t hurt that Madonna was one of their first renters); von Hirsch quickly became the go-to broker for friends’ high-end villas before expanding into all things Greece on both land and sea.

Her secret to success is simple, she says: “Brutal honesty and high standards.”

Luxury Travel Pros Globally – Virginia Irurita, Made for Spain & Portugal

Headquarters: Madrid, Spain
Areas of Expertise: Spain and Portugal
Need to Know: Ask her for advice, in particular, about Cádiz, the Ribera del Duero wine region, and Madrid; she has homes in all three places.

Irurita’s childhood was shaped by travel and deeded her a love for her home country.

“My father made sure that I slept in every parador and pousada, discovering the magic of every monument, church, art collection, and regional gastronomy of the Iberian Peninsula,” she says now.

After working for Citibank for two decades, she finally surrendered to that childhood passion and set up her company in 1999. Its fiefdom is Spain and Portugal—as she proudly proclaims—and there’s no one better connected on the peninsula.

She’s also now eyeing that overlooked Pyrenean country of Andorra for some trips, recommending a few days in its breezy, Switzerland-like summer climate as a break between sightseeing in Madrid and Barcelona.

“It’s an oasis, and a paradise in summer because nobody is there,” she says.