Ah, those days! A throwback to our fun-filled vacay in the Maldives

Pickyourtrail—starting from 2013 to date—has planned and helped more than 20,000 people go on their vacations. All this planning, though, is only possible if we have enough travel knowledge, to begin with. How can we help others explore the world by sitting behind a desk?

We don’t 🙂 In 2019, Pickyourtrail selected people from across three teams, and sent them on a ‘familiarisation trip’ or as we like to call it, a FAM trip, to the Maldives to understand the destination better.

And what better way to reward the teams that have worked so many hours (even some Saturdays and Sundays) to make these dreams come true?   

Dwaraka – Travel consultant

True to her designation, Dwaraka immediately picked out things that the group should be doing once they landed. “It’s a habit I can’t help now! When I was offered a familiarization Maldives trip from my company, I got super excited. But Maldives is one of the most hyped destinations out there and I was quite sceptical about the place meeting my expectations.”

So did she change her mind?

“Yes! The island was nothing but magical! It’s worth all that hype! We visited the top 3 most-visited resorts, and there was so much to do, the people were so warm and friendly, and the resort staff were always ready to help. Huge thanks to Pickyourtrail for giving me the opportunity for this FAM trip. The vacation of a lifetime I’d say!”

Aishwarya – Product analyst

“I had always wanted to go to the Maldives, right from the start of my career in Pickyourtrail.

One of the first projects I took up when I joined was scaling the Maldives as a self-booking platform, which meant intense research on the resorts over there—so I got to stare at such amazing pictures day in, day out. When they told me that I was going there for real, it was unbelievable. When we landed on the beautiful island, we got so much real-time data—videos, quick tips, alerts—that would give us the edge over other Maldives operators.

The best part of the trip was that I got to celebrate my birthday in the Maldives! The resort staff surprised me with a cake and a bottle of champagne at midnight! And when I stepped out of the water villa, I spotted a shooting star right above my head—it was a spellbinding experience for me. I get happy just thinking about the trip!”

Sannan Hamza – Customer Happiness

“My first international trip! I have always adored the Maldives in pictures, but no sooner had I set foot on the Maldives than I realized no photo can do justice to this tropical paradise. You have to see it to realize it.”

He clicked around 1,000 pictures just to make sure though!

“There was this one moment while I was snorkelling, which I will never forget. While I was in the water, I realized I was as close as I ever could be to such vibrant marine life and in a flash of a second, I could see a sea cave spiral into a never-ending abyss. It was an incredible moment and I keep telling this story almost every time someone brings up the Maldives!” 

Apart from pictures, he also took a lot of notes. 

“Throughout the trip, right from the minute we landed till the time we returned home, I was observing how the destination works. This knowledge I believe, would help my travellers enjoy the Maldives the way I did. I am grateful to Pickyourtrail for giving me this opportunity and look forward to experiencing more such moments.”

Amitabh Das – Travel consultant

“I was at home when I first heard that I was among the few people selected for an all-paid familiarisation trip to the Maldives from my company, Pickyourtrail. It was a surreal surprise for me and I was on my way to a destination that I had started my travel sales career with! The first thing that hits you once you step outside the airport is the sheer colour of the blue sea. I’d fall short of words if I was to describe how beautiful it was. It’s safe to say it takes some gawking around—precisely what we were doing while we waited for our Speedboat transit to the resort.”

Being a wildlife enthusiast, the Maldives was Amitabh’s version of heaven. 

“We watched schools of manta-rays swimming about, we fed baby sharks, we went snorkelling around a few hotspots saw some amazing corals and turtles swimming around! When we landed back in Chennai, I was so full of memories of the magical Islands! Never would’ve imagined such a great time without Pickyourtrail!”

Yashwanth Kumar – Travel consultant

“When I got the chance to go the Maldives on a FAM trip, I felt excited and equally responsible. Nothing like a first-hand experience would help learn the intricacies of a destination which would translate into guiding the fellow travellers better.”

Rely on Yashwanth to be the workaholic, even in the Maldives.

 “All this while we trained ourselves on the destination online and via sessions held regularly at PYT, but going to the place directly gives you a lot of insight on how things work there, how the Maldivian people are, traveller parameters and constraints, expectations to be set to customers to make their vacation hassle-free, etc. I wasn’t expecting anything but a learning opportunity—little did I know I’d also have an awesome vacation in the Maldives!”

Now he finally talks about fun.

 “We tried out the water sports, went snorkelling and even celebrated a birthday! Overall the FAM trip was a great learning plus fun experience. This initiative from Pickyourtrail will push people to achieve new heights in understanding a destination, and they will leave no stone unturned while crafting their customers’ holidays.”

TL;DR: At Pickyourtrail, we always go one step further – be it planning customer vacations or rewarding the hard work of our employees.

Join us and be a part of this journey! Or you could help us plan your own journey too 🙂 Either way, we’ll be glad to be there.