The Departure Lounge Travel and Cruise -

Danielle Matthews

4 fussy travellers on a months holiday-
A grandmother, a mother, a daughter & son in law with a very defined time frame & quite a specific idea of the destinations they wanted to visit in Italy and Croatia - what could possibly go wrong?
Not much went wrong at all actually!

Let’s just say Lauren read the room perfectly well from our first meeting.

An itinerary was put together that suited all 3 generations.
First a cruise & then a fortnight of private transfers for the second part of our holiday.

Great flight recommendations for seating & flight times with minimal transfers.

The accommodation Lauren sourced for us was perfect.
During the planning stage we were provided with a choice of accommodation options for each location (although she was also happy to accommodate input from us on places we’d found/heard about), then we chose our preferred option.
For each destination our accommodation was incredible. Truly flawless.

The included private transfers, tours & excursions on our holiday were better than we expected. Having our own driver and private tours meant we got to see a lot during our holiday. We really got to maximise our experiences with our time away.
No stress or wasted time getting ourselves from point A to B.

Communication & planning throughout our booking process was great.

Lauren broke our planning into stages & all payments for the trip were at clearly defined intervals.

The Departure Lounge app provided all our required documents at our finger tips.

We all had a very memorable holiday - precious family time.
Amazing experiences, beautiful sites & wonderful food.
Thank you Lauren for creating such an unforgettable experience for us.

Jacqui Gray

There are not enough words to thank Lauren and the team at TDL for our trip of lifetime.
They organised our 6week trip and had us involved in every little step.
We were able to travel with confidence and peace of mind having their app at our finger tips. We were able to contact TDL when we had any questions. They responded within hours, which was amazing with the time difference.
Lauren really went above and beyond to ensure our Trip was one to remember.
We are already wanting to arrange another holiday and without a doubt we will be using TDL again.
Honestly we were blown away with every hotel and connection we had. Every bucket list item was ticked off and memories we will cherish for a lifetime.

Leonie Hussey

It is so refreshing to find a travel agent you know you want to use again if you ever get the opportunity. Not only were Lauren and the team able to put together a well thought out holiday, with accommodations in perfect locations for us, but their follow up is next level.
It wasn’t set and forget with TDL, they contacted us while we were away when they noticed a flight had been canceled to make sure we were OK and still on our way; plus they sent a welcome home text on our return date.
At every point of our trip we had the peace of mind that TDL were always in the background should we need them and that we could easily contact them if required.
The friendly professional atmosphere the team have built straight away gives you the confidence that they will explore any questions we had and give helpful advice from their experience. Plus they never failed to deliver.
It was a pleasure to do business with TDL. I’m so glad we found them and have no hesitation in recommending them for any travel needs.

Linda Williams

I have to admit I'm a bit of a control freak, especially when it comes to travel - I've always thoroughly researched everything and planned it all myself. This was the first time in my life I have left my holiday in the hands of a travel agent - and I couldn't have picked safer hands than those of Lauren at The Departure Lounge.

Running on empty I desperately needed a holiday, so had a quick visit to see Lauren in her beautiful office and asked her to plan a 10 night trip to Bali for me and my husband. I had one specific area I wanted to visit for a few days and a few things that I knew I wanted included, but other than that I basically just left it to Lauren to come up with a plan for a holiday where I could see some of the best bits of Bali, and then experience the ultimate in relaxation - and wow did she deliver.

Every single detail was taken care of and the whole process was seamless, from the efficient communication and booking process to private transfers and tours that were arranged or us, everything ran perfectly. Then there was the accommodation that was selected for us - that was just next level amazing.

There were so many extra touches that Lauren went above an beyond to arrange for me, knowing that I would be celebrating my birthday while I was away. I had a few surprises on the day which made me feel very special.

Lauren, all I can say is Thank You So Much, you created more than just a holiday for us - you helped us to create memories that will last a lifetime.

Keith Fullick

Fantastic trip to Vietnam, a 15 night itinerary, expertly recommended and put together by Lauren, great hotels in perfect locations, with all flights, transfers and excursions included. Can't recommend highly enough, thank you !

Glenda Clarke

Lauren and Tracey were extremely helpful with the advice and information they gave us to help us organise our recent trip to Italy. We had an amazing time and stayed in some wonderful hotels booked by The Departure Lounge. Looking forward to seeing them again soon to organise our next trip.

Keith Carroll

Tracey and Lauren organised an amazing holiday to Canada and Alaska.
A trip that was 3 years in the making (thanks Covid) eventually happened and it was made all the more amazing through the seamless organisation by the team at TDLB.
Well coordinated, well paced, great accommodation and great information and updates at every step of this process.
I particularly appreciated the long term effort with our trip as it stopped and started through many machinations.
I would certainly recommend the services of the team and will not hesitate to call on them again when next we travel.

Michelle Pearce

Lauren and her team provide exceptional service for all things travel. I first engaged Lauren 10 years ago to piece together a horse riding safari in South Africa at the end of a long trip around the UK. I was very specific with what I wanted and had a tight budget. Although Lauren had not organised a safari before she packaged everything up perfectly. The trip was amazing and went super smoothly. From then on I have trusted Lauren and TDLT&C for all of my family travel needs. Our trips continue to be off the beaten track and the team always rises to the challenge. Well done Lauren and team at TDLT&C, and thank you for always being so amiable and a delight to deal with!