Meet the Team

At Intrepid DMC, our offices span the globe – from Budapest to Bangkok, Cusco to Cairo.

Our 28 DMCs collectively employ more than 450 people across Operations, Sales, Finance, Contracting and Human Resources. In addition to our office staff, we also work with over 1000 tour leaders and local guides.

We’re a diverse bunch, but we’ve got a few things in common: our commitment to responsible business; our spirit of innovation and, more importantly, our love of creating and delivering the best travel experiences for your brand.

To get to know our regional teams, please read through their profiles below.  

Global

Tom Beadle

Tom Beadle

Chief Operating Officer

Tom Beadle joined Intrepid as a tour leader in 1993 leading trips in South East Asia. Returning to Melbourne he has led and developed Intrepid’s product and operations teams to become the world’s leading global operator of sustainable and experience rich travel experiences. In his current role as Chief Operating Officer Tom is responsible for the consistent performance of Intrepid’s DMCs globally. He has been a long-term member of Intrepid’s Core Management Team. When not working Tom loves his sports and outdoor adventure and has been lucky enough to walk many of the world’s best treks.

Cameron Elliott

Cameron Elliott

Global GM – DMC Sales

With over 25 years in the travel industry, Cam has extensive experience in Leadership, Sales, Contracting and Partnership development. Cam is responsible for the sales growth of the Intrepid DMC network globally and together with his team of Global Partnership Managers is dedicated to helping your business grow. Based on the Gold Coast in Australia he is an avid traveller and a passionate surfer & snowboarder.

Celia Brennan

Celia Brennan

Global Operations Manager

With over 15 years working in the travel industry Celia has a strong background in global product and operations. Responsible for supporting the global network of Intrepid DMCs in a multitude of tasks including safety compliance, commercial performance, training, development and procurement. Test

Angelika Zimmer

Angelika Zimmer

General Manager - Global Purchasing

Angelika started in the travel industry in 2005 and has wealth of experience in product, contracting, customer service, reservation & sales. Originally from Germany, her passion for travel brought her to Asia, Africa, North America, Caribbean and of course Europe. She live in London for 9 years where she worked for a global travel company specializing in FIT experiential travel for students & young adults. Her aim is provide Intrepid DMC partner passengers with a great experience they love to talk about.

Chris Godrich

Chris Godrich

Global Partnership Manager, EMEA

15 years ago, after a successful career in retail business development, Chris decided to take a sabbatical to travel the world. Little did he know that this would lead to him embarking on a huge change in direction by being inspired become a tour leader, working in over 50 countries across the globe. Pre 2020, Chris successfully combined his now first-hand knowledge of the Adventure Travel Industry with his previous business development experience to lead a team of BDMs to deliver huge growth numbers across the EMEA region for Intrepid Travel. Since 2020, Chris has been working with Intrepid DMC’s External Partners and loves nothing more than helping build successful, long term business partnership but equally hearing the positive feedback from our mutual clients adventures!

Sameh Tawfik

Sameh Tawfik

Global Partnership Manager, APAC

Sameh has worked his way up from tour leader to General Manager of the Middle East at Intrepid DMC. His experience of every department, including contracting, reservations, and operations, has allowed him to gain an in-depth knowledge of the business and empowers him to develop creative solutions for his clients. Last year Sameh transitioned to Global Sales team as Partnership Manager for APAC, helping our partners to grow their business, and ensuring customers have the best travel experience possible.

Thiri Oo

Thiri Oo

Global DMC Sales Development Specialist

As a travel enthusiast herself, Thiri has been working in tourism industry for 11+ years with extensive proven sales experience. Joining Intrepid Travel back in 2014, Thiri started as a Travel Sales Consultant and quickly moved into Sales Manager role for Myanmar.  While managing the sales team to exceed the goals and targets, she also participated in various projects and later joined the global team as a Travel Studio Specialist playing a key role in support of DMCs’ transition into new system and implementation of trainings. Thiri is now working as Global DMC Sales Development Specialist by supporting 20+ worldwide sales teams, solving problems, evaluating, designing and delivering trainings in order to ensure the delivery of an exceptional sales experience as well as to achieve sales goals globally.     

Asia

Natalie Kidd

Natalie Kidd

Managing Director Asia

Natalie Kidd is the Managing Director Asia of Intrepid Travel, the world’s largest provider of adventure travel experiences. Natalie joined Intrepid in 2005 as the founding General Manager of the first vertically integrated DMC, based in Hanoi Vietnam. Over the years she grew this one DMC into a global network of 25 inbound tour operators. She has previously held the roles of Chief Operating Officer and Chief People and Purpose Officer also with Intrepid. Natalie holds a Masters of Business Administration (AGSM), a Master of Asian Studies (UNSW) and Bachelor of Arts/Asian Studies (USyd) and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors’ (AICD) director program. Natalie is also board director of GSTC (Global Sustainable Tourism Council).

Mike Stewart

Mike Stewart

General Manager, Thailand and Myanmar

Mike's love for adventure saw him travel the world until 2003 when he decided that Asia was the place to be. Starting out as a tour leader and having worked across all departments within the DMC business, Mike enjoys nothing more than working with the local team in Thailand creating and delivering innovative and sustainable experiences for your clients.

Ravindra Singh Shekhawat

Ravindra Singh Shekhawat

General Manager, Indonesia

Trained in hospitality and service, Ravindra started as a sales manager for a large hotel. His passion for travel took him towards the travel trade where he started leading trips throughout India/Nepal. After being a tour leader for three years, he was promoted to Deputy Operations Manager then to Operations Manager in the India DMC, and currently heads our Indonesia DMC as General Manager. He is hailed as a great communicator with various business partners, and his focus remains on the safety aspect of the trips and strong performance of teams. Ravindra, along with his team in Indonesia, ensures an unforgettable sustainable travel experience for our passengers supported by a great experienced team of tour leaders.

Rama Mahendru

Rama Mahendru

General Manager, India

Rama has been a part of the Intrepid DMC family for over eleven years. Joining the team as a finance executive, Rama worked her way up and was made Finance Manager for India in 2012.  Having successfully implemented a whole host of improvements during her time in Finance, Rama became General Manager for India in 2019. Proud to be part of such a diverse organisation, Rama is incredibly passionate about our business and looks forward to driving growth in the years to come. 

Maggie Tian

Maggie Tian

General Manager, China

Maggie started her journey with Intrepid DMC China way back in 2008 as one of the company's very first employees. Working as the Finance Manager for ten years, Maggie was appointed General Manager at the beginning of 2019. Born in Beijing, Maggie's favourite local experience is cycling through the Hutong area. Her passion combined with her deep knowledge and experience in the travel industry makes her an indispensable asset to the business. 

Aye Mya Mya Soe

Aye Mya Mya Soe

General Manager, Cambodia

Aye has been in the tourism industry since she graduated and brings a wealth of experience to her role. She started her journey with Intrepid in 2014 as Deputy Operations Manager in DMC Myanmar, then promoted to Operations Manager and played key leadership roles as General Manager in Myanmar and Indonesia. After nearly a decade with Intrepid, Aye is now taking the role of General Manager in Cambodia. She is detailed, patient, customer-oriented and willing to go the extra mile to ensure our guests have a fantastic experience in Cambodia.

Felice Tseu

Felice Tseu

General Manager, Malaysia

Passionate, wide experiences and well connected in the Malaysia-Borneo tourism industry.  Felice began her career Malaysia tourism industry after completed her higher studies from the USA. Fueled by deepest interest in travel and entrepreneurship, upon getting her licensed tour guide, she started from leading trip to managing an office. A listener, responsible with credibility and strong work ethic, providing exceptional communication with local stakeholders and local team players. Advocate motivational with critical thinking through transformation management, pushes team to achieve their potential by encouraging them to build upon their skills and develop new ones. Constantly encouraging, innovating, promote creativity and solving problem among Malaysia office to support company and team growth. Transforming lives, Enriching Future.

Hanh Nguyen

Hanh Nguyen

General Manager, Vietnam

Hanh Nguyen joined Intrepid DMC Vietnam 15 years ago as a tour guide in Hanoi, then challenged himself in various roles within the business as a tour leader trans-Indochina, the Intrepid DMC’s Russia & China Operations Manager, then the first Vietnam’s Product Manager and was soon appointed to become Intrepid DMC’s General Manager in mid-2022. Having the great passion for his motherland country and possessing the insightful knowledge of its people, cultures, Hanh and the entire Vietnam team’s dreams is to introduce priceless “wow” moments to all travelers and making their holiday a sustainable experience rich travel, and a trip of a lifetime. Hanh and his team take pride that Vietnam is a beautiful country that awaits many more people to come and discover.

Ashish Verma

Ashish Verma

General Manager, Nepal

Ashish is a passionate travel expert with over 14 years of experience in the industry. Graduated in hospitality and hotel administration, he started his career with a luxury hotel group in India, but his love for travel led him to this industry. Prior to joining Intrepid Travel in 2012, he worked for several well-known travel companies in India that specialized in FIT and group travel. In Intrepid Travel, Ashish has spent several years in major departments, including Operations, Contracting, Reservations, and Sales, prior to his appointment as Country General Manager of Intrepid Nepal in 2022. His aim is to deliver the best travel experiences through the trips we operate incorporating sustainable practices that minimize the impact on the environment and support local communities.

Poornaka Delpachitra

Poornaka Delpachitra

General Manager, Sri Lanka

Poornaka is a seasoned travel industry professional with over a decade of experience both locally in Sri Lanka and Overseas . He began his career as a corporate travel executive whilst also playing Rugby for Sri Lanka. Following a move to the UK for higher studies, Poornaka gained valuable industry insights while working part-time for a UK-based tour operator whilst managing his higher education. Returning to Sri Lanka, he started an operation office for the same tour operator, working his way up to become the General Manager for both the UK and Sri Lanka offices over a twelve-year tenure. In 2022, Poornaka joined Intrepid, as the General Manager of both the Shared Services Center and DMC in Sri Lanka, bringing his experience and natural leadership skills to a new challenge

Kenny Onishi

Kenny Onishi

General Manager, Japan

Kenny's interest in travel started early as born and raised in Los Angeles to Japanese parents who has a strong passion for travel uncovered the joy of travel, both domestic and internationally. On one of these trips to Japan Kenny was amazed with the level of customer service and from then on was determined to work there. Moving to Osaka in 2003 Kenny worked across a number of different aspects of the travel industry before joining Intrepid in 2018 where he realized that he had found his true passion. This has given Kenny an opportunity to utilize his high level of hospitality skills and travel knowledge to ensure that your guests will have an incredible experience while visiting Japan.

North Africa & Middle East

Zina Bencheikh

Zina Bencheikh

Managing Director EMEA

Born in Marrakech and educated in France and the UK, Zina started her career in finance in Paris before returning to Morocco to join Intrepid. She progressed rapidly through financial and operational leadership roles with the company and now leads the EMEA region of the business to deliver on the company’s dual goals of growth and balancing purpose and profit. Her remit includes the company’s Destination Management Companies in the region, as well as leading expansion into new European markets. Zina has also driven many purpose-led projects and initiatives at Intrepid, ranging from increasing the number of female tour leaders the company works with, to developing partnerships with WWF, IUCN, and Women in Travel.

Hala Benkhaldoun

Hala Benkhaldoun

General Manager, Morocco

Born in Casablanca, Hala grew up in the beautiful city of Marrakech before moving abroad at the age of eighteen to attend university in Paris. After finishing her degree, Hala spent five years between France, UK, Switzerland and the Netherlands working for a consulting company but in 2015 Morocco called her home. After four years working in corporate banking for an international institution, Hala has turned her passion for travel into her career, joining Intrepid DMC Marrakech as General Manager in September 2019. 

Walid Akl

Walid Akl

General Manager, Egypt

Walid Akl has been working in the field of Tourism and hospitality for over 30 years. He graduated from Cairo university with a bachelor degree in Business /administration and accounting. He worked in hospitality field (hotels and restaurant) while he was living in USA, then came back to Egypt and worked in the Tourism field (Grand Circle travel) and later joined different positions in France and Italy as well. Then worked in the river boat cruise construction & operational field. His passion is traveling and exploring the world, meeting different people with different mentality and he is very creative. His hobby is interior design, he built and designed his own house.

Sub-Saharan Africa

Zina Bencheikh

Zina Bencheikh

Managing Director EMEA

Born in Marrakech and educated in France and the UK, Zina started her career in finance in Paris before returning to Morocco to join Intrepid. She progressed rapidly through financial and operational leadership roles with the company and now leads the EMEA region of the business to deliver on the company’s dual goals of growth and balancing purpose and profit. Her remit includes the company’s Destination Management Companies in the region, as well as leading expansion into new European markets. Zina has also driven many purpose-led projects and initiatives at Intrepid, ranging from increasing the number of female tour leaders the company works with, to developing partnerships with WWF, IUCN, and Women in Travel.

Samuel Karani

Samuel Karani

General Manager, East Africa

Sam joined Intrepid East Africa in 2014 with over ten years managerial experience in tourism. After four successful years as Finance Manager, in 2019 he was promoted to General Manager. He has closely worked with every department including operations, contacting, sales and human resources giving him a wide understanding of the industry. Sam is passionate about developing and working with teams to deliver memorable adventures across the region. 

Clinton Els

Clinton Els

General Manager, Southern Africa

Following an honours degree in Travel, Tourism and Marketing, Clinton spent the next 20 years travelling the globe; interacting with communities, people, products, clients, & buyers. Experiencing unique cultures & locations. He has been exposed to contracting, sales, operations, and management in various facets of the travel and corporate world. Travel has not only grown Clinton in his career, but as a person, a manager, a husband, & a father. One of Clinton’s goals is to instil a culture of growth within his teams and allow each individual to express themselves to their fullest in realising their potential.  To switch off and recharge, you will find Clinton relaxing with his family as they plan their next trip, on a golf course hacking his way around 18 holes, or relaxing around a fire in the bush with nothing but the sound of nature to keep him company… and a delicious glass of South African red wine of course.

Europe

Zina Bencheikh

Zina Bencheikh

Managing Director EMEA

Born in Marrakech and educated in France and the UK, Zina started her career in finance in Paris before returning to Morocco to join Intrepid. She progressed rapidly through financial and operational leadership roles with the company and now leads the EMEA region of the business to deliver on the company’s dual goals of growth and balancing purpose and profit. Her remit includes the company’s Destination Management Companies in the region, as well as leading expansion into new European markets. Zina has also driven many purpose-led projects and initiatives at Intrepid, ranging from increasing the number of female tour leaders the company works with, to developing partnerships with WWF, IUCN, and Women in Travel.

Kristijan Svajnzger

Kristijan Svajnzger

General Manager, Eastern Europe

Kris left his native Slovenia with a thirst to see the world. Working in various industries he soon discovered a passion for adventure that continues to this day. After four years working as a tour leader in Europe, Kris became the Operations Manager for Intrepid DMC Marrakech in 2012. Kris has now taken on the newly created position of General Manager for Europe to focus on the growth and quality of our European operations.

Florencia Allo Moreno

Florencia Allo Moreno

General Manager, Western Europe

It all started over 13 years ago, with a flight from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Barcelona, Spain. What it was supposed to be a ‘3 months’ trip to Europe turned into a life full of travelling. Florencia visited 30+ countries in Europe, Asia, North, Central, and South America and lived between Spain, Vietnam, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Argentina while developing her 12+ years career within the tourism industry. Florencia worked with start-ups and companies in growth mode in Latin America and Europe across several management positions, including a first-hand experience managing a DMC for four years in Vietnam. Florencia joined Intrepid in 2022 taking on the General Manager for West Europe role and feels very proud and inspired to be part of a company who believes that amazing travel experiences go hand in hand with great responsibility.

Americas

Matt Berna

Matt Berna

Managing Director Americas

Matt started his career as a tour leader over 30 years ago and fully appreciates what it takes to deliver an exceptional travel experience. Over this time, he has worked with some of the world’s leading tour operators to develop and grow their travel portfolios; from outdoor adventures and hiking trips to more cultural and luxurious itineraries. He is a Board member of Tourism Cares and serves as an advisory Board member for Blacks in Travel and Tourism. He is proud to be a part of such an innovative and global team at Intrepid DMC and is dedicated to helping you grow your business and ensuring your customers have the best travel experience possible.

Gary Cohen

Gary Cohen

Managing Director, Latin America

Gary's passion for travel started early. He was born in South Africa and then moved to the UK when he was 10. After graduating from university, he started travelling all over Latin America and eventually worked for Exodus as an overland expedition leader from 2003 to 2005. After leaving the travel industry for a few years to live in Spain, he then joined Intrepid DMC as the Ground Manager in Buenos Aires at the end of 2010, later becoming our Operations Manager in Peru. He is now our Managing Director for Latin America, based in Lima.

Fausto Sarango

Fausto Sarango

General Manager, Ecuador

Fausto joined Intrepid at the end of 2011. With an extensive background in travel, and more than 25 years in the travel industry, he is currently the General Manager for Intrepid DMC Ecuador and the Galapagos. Fausto’s experience comes from leading successful adventure businesses, as well as contracting and managing operations in the Galapagos, and as such, is widely respected locally. Fausto is focused on delivering consistently high-quality, safe, transparent and trusted product for our DMC partners.

Hernan Acevedo

Hernan Acevedo

General Manager, Colombia

Born and raised in Bogotá, Hernan was lucky enough to travel from an early age but never thought he could make a career out of his love for discovering new places. After studying electronic engineering at university, quite by accident Hernan ended up working as a tour leader for Colombians travelling to the Caribbean – which led him to see the opportunity for inbound tourism to his mother country. Initially juggling his tour leader role with a job in the telecom industry, in 2010 Hernan was able to take the leap to a full-time position developing new products for international travellers to Colombia. Nine years later, he has seen first-hand the power of tourism to transform the lives of both travellers and local communities.

Danielle Suarez

Danielle Suarez

General Manager, North America

Danielle started her travel career as a tour leader for Intrepid in 2011, before moving on to active travel and hospitality tech companies where she worked in field operations, leadership and development, product management, and stakeholder relations. Returning to Intrepid as General Manager of North America in 2021 was the culmination of over 10 years of tourism experience. Based in Southern California, Danielle spends most of her time hiking on local trails with her dog, Dot, and dreaming up her next adventure full of food, culture, and activity.

Fernando Rodriguez

Fernando Rodriguez

General Manager, Peru

Fernando spent most of his childhood travelling around Peru due to his father’s job, which allowed him to discover the wonders of his country at an early age. His passion for the mountains and sharing his culture led him to join Intrepid as a local guide in his hometown, Arequipa, soon after he finished his degree in tourism. He went on to become a tour leader, running trips all over South America, before joining the office team in operations roles and then as our General Manager in Peru. Like many other Peruvians, he’s a food lover and a self-proclaimed master chef.

Carlos Cardona

Carlos Cardona

General Manager, Central America

Originally from Puerto Rico, Carlos grew up in Costa Rica and then pursued a career in international economic development providing program design services to national and multinational development agencies. In 2003 he returned to Costa Rica to establish an adventure tour operator and since 2011 he has led product development, operations and quality control initiatives for several international operators serving the North American market. Carlos is a photography and cycling enthusiast.