Meet the Team

Here you can discover more about our team, what we love, our favourite healthy holidays, best spas, favourite destinations, activities and our top travel and health tips.

Paul Joseph

Director - UK

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Kamalaya, Thailand
Favourite Spa: Porto Elounda, Crete
Favourite Treatment: Bolus Bag Massage (an Ayurvedic treatment)
Favourite Destinations: The Caribbean, Ibiza, New York and Italy
Favourite Activity: Yoga

Top Travel Tip: Support your immune system with a daily probiotic supplement when travelling.

Top Health Tip: Energise yourself every day with a simple practice of pranayama yogic breathing exercises to increase your mental, emotional and physical health.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Climbing Petit Piton in St Lucia

About: Paul co-founded Health and Fitness Travel to combine his passion for travel with health and fitness. Paul has vast knowledge and experience in the well-being industry and was never one for fly and flop holidays; he created a travel company that would appeal to both men and women offering a high-class personalised and seamless service to find people the best wellness holidays. Paul's other love is exercise, cycling and yoga and he also contributes to various high-profile media publications where he offers his expert advice on healthy holidays.

Adam Heathcote

Director - UK

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Como Shambhala, Bali
Favourite Spa: Ananda in the Himalayas, India
Favourite Treatment: Taksu massage (a local Balinese invigorating massage)
Favourite Destinations: India, Thailand, Bali
Favourite Activity: Tennis

Top Travel Tip: Make the most of your time and space in the airport lounge to stretch before your flight, it will make the duration of your flight more comfortable.

Top Health Tip: Try to spend just 10 minutes a day meditating by observing your thoughts with no judgement. It will bring clarity to your day-to-day thinking.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Climbing Mt Abang in Bali, it was a true experience of fitness, discovery and nature.

About: Adam co-founded Health and Fitness Travel out of his desire to live from health and happiness and to share this with others. His understanding of well-being combined with his passion to travel, explore and understand the world makes him the ideal person to offer advice on where to go. Adam's expertise lies in computing technology; creating and innovating for the future in an ever-changing digital world. Adam often plays tennis and golf and when he's not cycling you will find him free from thought on a meditation retreat.

Samantha Lippiatt

Director - Australia

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Aro Ha, New Zealand
Favourite Spa: Fusion Maia, Vietnam
Favourite Treatment: Neck and Shoulder massage (particularly after a long flight)
Favourite Destinations: Fiji, Mexico and Hawaii
Favourite Activity: Kiteboarding

Top Travel Tip: Pack a 'survival kit' for the plane; ear plugs, socks, toiletries, hydrating mist and moisturising cream and drink plenty of water.

Top Health Tip: Start small, make lasting changes and always exercise in the morning as it will set you up for a great day.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Swimming with a group of whale sharks in the open ocean off the coast of Mexico.

About: Samantha heads up the Australian division of Health and Fitness Travel and has an unbridled enthusiasm for all things travel, health and fitness. With her experience in both industries she extends the perfect combination of health and well-being experiences to the Southern Hemisphere, for our local clientele enabling them to embrace a healthy holiday in line with their personal health and fitness goals. When not in the office Samantha can usually be found at the beach or in the ocean taking part in her two favourite hobbies of kiteboarding and scuba diving.

Claudia Battisti

Travel Sales Manager

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Ananda in the Himalayas, India
Favourite Spa: Vilalara Longevity, Portugal
Favourite Treatment: Ayurvedic Massage
Favourite Destinations: Brazil, Italy, Bali & India
Favourite Activity: Yoga

Top Travel Tip: Holidays are the perfect time to give your body the chance to speak. Be kind to yourself, do only what feels right for you, rest when you need, drink lots of water and eat foods rich in vitamins and fibre.

Top Health Tip: Your body is your temple and your mind is the creator of your reality. Let them work together by exercising regularly and keeping a positive attitude.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Swimming with giant turtles in open sea at the island of Fernando de Noronha, on the coast of Brazil.

About: Having grown up between the Brazilian coast and the Italian alps, Claudia loves the sea, the mountains and everything outdoors. Yoga and meditation are part of her daily routine and she loves to cook using macrobiotic techniques. Claudia has been working in travel for over 10 years and has a great passion for wellness. She is also a language enthusiast and is currently perfecting her fifth language.

Laura Burden

Travel Specialist

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Epic Sana, Portugal
Favourite Spa: SHA Wellness Clinic, Spain
Favourite Treatment: Deep tissue massage
Favourite Destinations: The Caribbean, Spain and Cuba
Favourite Activity: Surfing

Top Travel Tip: Remember to take a jumper with you on the plane as the air con can make you cold.

Top Health Tip: It's easy to forget to stretch but it can lead to better posture and fewer aches and pains.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Staying with a hill tribe on the Burmese Border.

About: Having grown up on the Isle of Wight, Laura loves the sea and is at her happiest when surfing and windsurfing. She loves to be outdoors and also has massive passion for salsa dancing; we regularly have her showing off her moves in the office! She has been working in travel for over 10 years and loves exploring. She also has a passion for languages and is currently studying Spanish.

Joanna Chiu

Travel Specialist

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Shanti Maurice, Mauritius
Favourite Spa: Six Senses Douro Valley, Portugal
Favourite Treatment: Swedish Massage
Favourite Destinations: Portugal, Cuba, Bali, and Miami
Favourite Activity: Paddle boarding

Top Travel Tip: Make sure you keep hydrated when flying and try to avoid alcohol.

Top Health Tip: Try and walk at least 10,000 steps a day. Get off the bus a stop earlier or park your car a bit further.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Hiking through the beautiful rainforest, El Yunque, in Baracoa (Cuba) and finishing off with a swim in the waterfall spring.

About: Having had the opportunity to visit a different country every year with her family when she was younger, Joanna caught the travel bug and after graduating from university. She has always taken up any opportunity in her spare time to travel to different cities and countries in order to experience different cultures. Joanna enjoys trying different fitness classes and enjoys meditating every morning to self-promote a healthier mind, body and soul.

Rebecca Gould

Travel Specialist

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Como Shambhala Estate, Bali
Favourite Spa: Lefay Resort & Spa Lago di Garda, Italy
Favourite Treatment: Biodynamic body massage
Favourite Destinations: India, Morocco, Italy, Hong Kong
Favourite Activity: Iyengar yoga

Top Travel Tip: Look after your feet!

Top Health Tip: Drink warm water rather than cold as this helps cleanse the body by flushing out toxins and soothes the organs.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Visiting the Dali Lama temple in Dharamsala, North India

About: Rebecca grew up in South Dorset and started working in the travel industry in 2002. Her love for travel has taken her to some very special places, including China, India, North Africa and the USA. In 2016 she did a 1 month Panchakarma detox in Northern India, attended over 100 hours of lectures in Ayurvedic medicine and completed a 200 hour yoga alliance teacher training. Rebecca enjoys long distance walking and a good pub quiz where her specialist subject would have to be geographyDenise comes from a background in health and fitness, having worked for many years as a ballet, Barre and Pilates instructor both in the UK and Australia. A self-confessed travel-addict, she has ventured around much of South-East Asia, Australia and New Zealand, and loves combining her passion for travel with her interest in all things wellness

Rebecca Mbogoro

PR & Marketing Executive

Favourite Healthy Holiday: COMO Maalifushi, Maldives
Favourite Spa: SHA Wellness Clinic, Spain
Favourite Treatment: Quiromassage
Favourite Destinations: New York, Bali and Turkey
Favourite Activity: Hiking, Bikram Yoga

Top Travel Tip: Always pack a swimsuit, as it takes up so little room and you never know when you might want to take a little dip!

Top Health Tip: In the evenings try to replace carb heavy meals with vegetables and protein.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Exploring the hills of Abergavenny with a group of my best friends, taking the time to really embrace the lush environment and Welsh culture.

About: Having grown up with parents who work in tourism, Rebecca’s always been interested in travel. She travels very frequently as her family split their time between living in Kenya, Florida and the UK. She is currently taking a year out from her English and Drama degree, and has dreams of taking a post-graduation ‘gap year’ to travel around the world. Rebecca loves cooking and is always looking for healthy ways to adjust traditional recipes and make them more nutritious.

Rebecca Richards

Product Executive

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Florblanca, Costa Rica
Favourite Spa: Karkloof Safari Spa, South Africa
Favourite Treatment:Deep tissue massage
Favourite Destinations: New Zealand, Canada, and France
Favourite Activity: Yoga, Skiing, Running, and Tennis

Top Travel Tip: The early bird catches the best views and sites with the least crowds!

Top Health Tip: For the love of fruit and veg, make each meal on your plate as colourful as possible, this helps achieve your 5 a day.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Sea Kayaking in Milford Sound, New Zealand surrounded by hyper dolphins.

About: Growing up in the Middle East meant Rebecca started being involved in active and outdoor activities from a young age, as well as developing a fascination for new cultures from being immersed in one. Always up for trying new challenges she has a range of interests, some of which she explored further by qualifying as a ski instructor and yoga teacher. Coupled with being enthusiastic about travel, her wanderlust means she is passionate there is always somewhere new worth discovering

Raymond Viola

PR & Marketing Associate

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Phuket Cleanse , Thailand
Favourite Spa: Amatara Wellness Resort, Thailand
Favourite Treatment: Aromatherapy Massage
Favourite Destinations: Japan, Thailand, Bali, and Italy
Favourite Activity: Weight Training and HIIT

Top Travel Tip: Enjoy the sun, but don't get burned. Always keep sunscreen handy!

Top Health Tip: Be good to your gut and incorporate more fibre to your diet.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Exploring off the beaten paths around Tokyo...away from the touristy and more curated spots of the city.

About: Raymond is a digital marketing specialist and an entrepreneur who has a knack for the arts. He loves everything about design, visual arts, literature, graphic novels and music. During his free time, if he's not doodling away on his tablet or sketch book, you can catch him noodling on his ukelele or keyboard. Immersed in many fields of interests, Raymond keeps himself balanced by maintaining a consistent effort in his overall health and fitness. He switches it up by going from a routine weight training to different sorts of activities like yoga, spinning and muay thai.

Olivia Trussell

Travel Specialist

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Kamalaya, Thailand
Favourite Spa: The Golden Door Elysia
Favourite Treatment: Hot stone massage
Favourite Destinations: Thailand, Byron Bay, Bali & Canada
Favourite Activity: Yoga, meditation, trampoline with my son and walking my dog

Top Travel Tip: Allow yourself time to relax into a place. There is no need to rush here and there to attempt discovering everything – the result being ‘exhausted’. Make the most of your “me time”, time to reflect and ponder. Be present, be mindful and be yourself. Travel should reflect what you love about life along with a few little challenges along the way, to provide growth and learning. Take a journal and pour your heart out to yourself along the way. Drink heaps of green tea and water. Bliss.

Top Health Tip: Breathe deeply. When you catch yourself short of breath, bring yourself back to your breath. This can relieve stress and anxiety.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Discovering a Monk’s temple in Paris.

About: Olivia is a Wellbeing Coach, Pilates teacher and meditation practitioner. She is a Certified Holistic Counsellor (CHC). Olivia has worked at two of the world's premium and award winning health retreats in management roles. Her passion for healthy travel has led her to work alongside Health and Fitness Travel as she loves to inspire others to find themselves whilst they embark on a lifetime of healthy holidays. Olivia believes a good health retreat can become addictive. She was the Program Manager at The Golden Door and knows this first hand. Olivia was inspired to work at health retreats as she knows how transformative they are – with her background she was able to impart her knowledge in the perfect setting.

Julius Umali

Finance Executive

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Fusion Maia, Vietnam
Favourite Spa: COMO Maalifushi, Maldives
Favourite Treatment: Full Body Massage
Favourite Destinations: Bali, Japan, Singapore, Thailand and Philippines
Favourite Activity: Basketball

Top Travel Tip: Unless your travel is business related, do not bring your work with you. Focus on allowing your mind, body and spirit to thrive on the break it deserves; travelling with your loved ones means they share or support you on your health and fitness journey.

Top Health Tip: Nothing beats a balanced diet. Reward yourself from time-to-time but ensure a good level of discipline to eat healthily most of the time.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: My first flight; I never imagined it would be such an exhilarating experience.

About: Julius enjoys playing basketball on weekends, and on his longer holidays loves to travel and explore nature’s archipelagos. The outdoors has always been a source of inspiration; his favourite place in the world is South East Asia and is raring to go whenever the possibility presents itself

Manuel Blancaver

Travel Specialist

Favourite Healthy Holiday: The Body Holiday, St Lucias
Favourite Spa: Como Shambhala Estate , Bali
Favourite Treatment: Royal Ayurvedic Traditional Four Hand Massage
Favourite Destinations: Bali, The Caribbean, Croatia, Philippines and Costa Rica
Favourite Activity: Mixed Martials Arts and Hiking

Top Travel Tip: Pack less when you travel. Not only does it make your travel cheaper without all the check-in luggage fees, but you will also travel faster and easier.

Top Health Tip: Change your diet mentality of worrying about how food makes you gain or lose weight. Focus more on the idea of eating the right food to nourish your body adding elements of exercise and activities to boost your overall well-being.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Climbing Mt. Pulag in the Philippines.

About: Manuel has an appetite for learning different healthy lifestyle programs around the world. He has made a firm commitment to keep himself active with a variety of fitness pursuits, from extreme outdoor activities and circuit training to his all-time passion, Martial Arts. He loves traveling to different places and takes pleasure in going to isolated islands where he can clear his head and practice mindfulness through meditation.

Enah Laroza

Marketing & Admin Assistant

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Atmosphere Resort, Philippines
Favourite Spa: Amatara Wellness Resort, Thailand
Favourite Treatment: Full Body Massage
Favourite Destinations: Italy, Singapore, Germany and Philippines
Favourite Activity: Freediving

Top Travel Tip: Reconnect yourself with nature by disconnecting from the world the of Internet. Allow yourself to breathe for a moment.

Top Health Tip: The simplest and fastest way to de-stress is to take 10 deep breaths.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Exploring the cobbled streets of Rome, Italy while eating a pistachio flavored gelato.

About: Enah is a wilderness explorer, freediver, travel blogger and graphic artist. She’s a fan of European football and loves baking. Enah believes that people should live and thirst for adventure, especially while they're young and able. Enah sees travelling as an effective way to learn more about the world – its beauty, its people and the cultural differences.

Nicolle Whitaker

Travel Associate

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Como Shambhala Estate, Bali
Favourite Spa: Kamalaya, Thailand
Favourite Treatment: Heated herbal ball massage
Favourite Destinations: Bali, South Africa, Canada
Favourite Activity: Yoga, bush walking, and sound meditation

Top Travel Tip: : Go with the flow, plan well but be open to new experiences and the unknown.

Top Health Tip: Drink water, lots of it.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Exploring South Africa and its everchanging landscapes.

About: Nicolle is passionate about travel so much so she made it her career, and has spent the last 25 years working in the tourism industry, booking numerous wonderful holidays for her clients. Nicolle has travelled a great deal overseas herself as well as working in the UK, Canada and South Africa. With a love of yoga as well as health and fitness she is now associated with Health and Fitness Travel to combine both her passions and to co-ordinate many more clients on a wonderful holiday with their goals of health, fitness and travel. When not working Nicolle is spending time with her family and friends enjoying the simple things in life. (and dreaming of her next holiday!)

Leah Harrison

Travel Associate

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Oceano Hotel Health Spa, Spain
Favourite Spa: The BARAI Spa, Thailand
Favourite Treatment: Full body relaxation massage
Favourite Destinations: Croatia, Italy and Fiji
Favourite Activity: Yoga and walking through beautiful nature

Top Travel Tip: : Rather than rushing around to ‘tick off’ another city, allow yourself enough time to truly soak up the destination you’re in.

Top Health Tip: Don’t focus on ‘good’ or ‘bad’ foods. Focus on nourishing your body, drink lots of water and try to include some activity daily.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Hiking the beautiful coastline of the Cinque Terre in Italy.

About: Leah is a natural jet-setter who loves everything about travel, history and immersing herself in different cultures from all over the world. She likes to be around nature, exploring lush jungles and forests afoot. Her keen interest for health and fitness centers on maintaining a sound mind, body and soul and this reflects on her passion for helping people get the best out of their retreat. Leah also loves practicing yoga and meditation and on her downtime, you can find her indulging in relaxation massages and aromatherapy.

Melanie Moffatt

Travel Specialist

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Aro Ha Wellness Retreat, New Zealand
Favourite Spa: Golden Door Health Retreat & Spa Elysia, Australia
Favourite Treatment: Massage, I could have one every day!
Favourite Destinations: Too many to list but the top five are Italy, Turkey, India, Brazil and Laos
Favourite Activity: Stand up paddle boarding is my new fave along with yoga

Top Travel Tip: : Have an open mind and heart. You never know who you will meet or where it will take you if you are open to the experience

Top Health Tip: Water, water, water! I also take a probiotic when travelling for gut health

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Doing yoga from the top of a hill overlooking Varanasi in India. It was a natural “Bikram” experience and an incredible private lesson

About: Melanie is a qualified nutritionist with over 15 years experience in the travel industry. She has travelled to over 40 countries and would love to travel to at least another 40! Being a part of Health and Fitness Travel is a perfect match for her interest in nutrition and helping people achieve their health and wellbeing goals. Melanie would love to see wellness travel find a way into everyone’s lives and self-care goals.

Anna Curran

Travel Associate

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Bay of Fires Lodge Walk, Tasmania
Favourite Spa: Fusion Maia, Vietnam
Favourite Treatment: Full body massage
Favourite Destinations: Canada, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, New Zealand
Favourite Activity: Hiking and scuba diving

Top Travel Tip: : Stay hydrated when flying and get out of your seat often. Try to exercise before a flight and use transit time at airports to walk as much as possible.

Top Health Tip: To ground yourself after a long flight, walk barefoot on the grass.

Most Memorable Travel Experience: I couldn’t choose so I will share my top three. Climbing Mount Kinabalu in Sabah Borneo and watching the sun rise from the top of the mountain. Hiking with the wild orangutans in Sumatra and swimming with the whale sharks in Exmouth WA.

About: Anna has spent over 20 years working in the travel industry but also has a professional and personal focus on health and wellness. She has completed studies in psychology, exercise science, community health and is a certified health coach. A nature and animal lover she starts each day with a hike on the trails with her Labrador dogs Tucson and Gracie. She is always planning her next hiking holiday or healthy holiday to a retreat and is excited about walking the Camino Way in Spain and taking on the Kokoda Challenge on the Gold Coast. Having overcome a few health challenges over the years Anna is grateful for how amazing the body is at healing itself – if given the right environment.

Nicolette Wijers

Travel Associate

Favourite Healthy Holiday: Kamalaya, Thailand
Favourite Spa: Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat, Australia
Favourite Treatment: Abhyanga Massage followed by Shirodhara (Ayurvedic treatments) will leave you so relaxed!
Favourite Destinations: Nepal, Africa, Thailand
Favourite Activity: Many including hiking, beach walk, yoga, meditation, Pilates, deep tissue massage

Top Travel Tip: : Travel light, take your time, don’t explore the world in one trip!

Top Health Tip: Reconnect with yourself, others and the world around you!

Most Memorable Travel Experience: Everest Base Camp via Gokyo Lakes and Cho La Pass, amazing Nepal, very spiritual!

About: After working in hospitality all over the world, Nicolette is enjoying a new career in travel which has been her lifelong passion. Nicolette has travelled all over the world, backpacked for 2.5 years and now lives in Australia. She is truly passionate about wellness and lives a healthy lifestyle including yoga, meditation, Pilates and clean eating. Nicolette loves going into nature for long hikes and camping out in the wild. She is curious to learn about different cultures and integrating new wellness ideas from around the world into her life.