Mastering The Art Of The Vacation With Luxury Travel Expert Tom Marchant

Whether it's the chicest new hotel that's soon-to-be a thing, or an inside trick to avoiding lines at customs, it's no exaggeration to say that Tom Marchant knows everything about everything when it comes to traveling.

In 2005 he and pals James Merrett and Matt Smith took their shared love of exploring the globe, pooling their personal black books filled with rare and off-the-beaten path recommendations, and launched Black Tomato, an experience-focused travel agency curating the most luxurious, unique, adventurous trip itineraries around. 

A solo journey through Tanzania? An animal-filled honeymoon in Borneo? A family holiday in France sans the crowds? Black Tomato is the go-to vacation curator for a laundry list of impressive names with incredibly discerning tastes. Billionaires, movie stars - let your imagination wander.

With his life as trip-heavy as his business, Tom's the authority on everything from destination inspiration to packing tips, and lucky for you, he's happy to share...

So, where are you off to this summer?
I’m headed to Marrakech this summer with my wife Emma. 

I love meandering through the medinas, and as we’re in the process of moving, thought this is an apt time to revisit some beloved souks and hunt down treasures together to adorn some of our new spaces. While a balmy time to visit – it also means things are a bit less crowded after a bit of adventure, it’s an easy to escape to the cool cloisters of the Royal Mansour for some R&R by the pool.

In August, we’re off for a family retreat in Zakynthos in Greece, one of my favorite Greek Ionian Islands. Greece is mesmerizing this time of year and I love visiting some of the quieter Greek islands - a perfect escape to skip the crowds and queues.

We’re also going take a road trip to see family in Salcombe, in Devon, UK, which has long been a place I’ve treasured with my parents and a place we love taking our daughters to, all these years later. Salcombe really comes to life in the summer, with great beaches, lots of ice cream stops for the kids, and welcoming pubs where multiple generations will get together to enjoy a vibrant and familial space together. Easy-going and beautiful, this is one of our happy places not too far afield.

What's your favorite season to hit the road?
While every season has its merit in my book, autumn along the Eastern Seaboard is particularly beautiful, with changing foliage and dissipating crowds. As I’m frequently in New York City for work, fall makes a compelling case to have my family join for an easy-going road trip on the coast, perhaps hitting up East Hampton and Shelter Island, and other locales which are infinitely less busy than peak summer.

Equally, it’s hard to beat summer in the UK, as it’s a perfect time to hit the road and explore the countryside, and its many quaint and quirky local villages, at a relaxed cadence, with ample time to stop and explore both old and new haunts.

Work trips aside, how many days of the year are you traveling?
In terms of total days, north of 100 days, but of those, I sometimes am traveling with family as I like to try and combine work with leisure travel, when possible.

In your professional opinion, what's the sweet-spot number of days to be away?

The sweet spot is 10 when it comes to leisure travel. There are of course ample options for shorter refresh and recharge trips. From London as a base, a favorite is 3 nights in Comporta, Portugal or from NYC, The Mayflower Auberge Resorts in Litchfield County, CT, or a long weekend at Twin Farms in Vermont.

There are certain places for leisure travel that of course require longer periods in situ, especially in Asia, New Zealand and Australia, and other further-flung getaways, where time zone adjustments and sheer distance make longer stays both advisable and infinitely worthy.

For me personally, if it’s a work trip, as a hard and fast rule I always do what I can to cap it at 5 nights as I don’t want to be away from my family much longer than that.

Any tips on packing for a long trip?
Less-is-more is my mantra. Do your homework and see if hotels you are visiting offer complementary laundry service (this is often a feature of safari lodges or far-flung remote lodges that involve trekking). If this is the case, my rule rule is pack for a week if going for 10 days or longer. In terms of what to pack, opt for lightweight, versatile threads that can be paired together for multiple outfits - shoes should be multi-functional, and go from day to night. As best practice, always carry a spare phone charger and battery-powered charger, those added power sources can be crucial as sometimes the outlets may not work under the airplane seat and it’s easy to misplace or leave chargers in hotel rooms. And it’s worth putting air tags in your checked luggage especially if making multiple transfers or in the case of unexpected disruptions, as it can save headaches and stress.

Where's the one area that you're happy to splurge on?
For me, the splurge comes in the uniqueness of the experience, be it the luxury of camping out in solitude in the Agafay desert, seeing the sunrise with an extraordinary local guide and nomadic tribe in the Mongolian steppe; taking a helicopter up to the hinterlands of Northern Iceland to spot the Northern Lights; or camping out in the Atacama, spending an hour with a leading Chilean astronomer under a Dark Sky Reserve. The splurge comes in human connection and quality, uniqueness, and experiences you simply cannot replicate.

What's the one destination you'd be happy returning to again and again?
Puglia in Italy’s sun-drenched southern heel, and specifically the wondrous Borgo Egnazia (along with are many other properties as well). Puglia is a place I fell in love with and in, as I explored it together with my wife Emma many times, and then ultimately would be the destination of our wedding where we celebrated with so many friends and family from near and far. It continues to be the place I come back to, again and again, more recently with my wife and daughters, Minnie and Coco (aged 4 and 2), which was particularly special, enjoying steaming plates of pasta together and showing them the olive groves where we got engaged.

Everything you do at Black Tomato is so experience-driven, what adventures still need to be checked off your bucket list?
Bhutan is high up there on my bucket list and a place I hope to get to next year. Deeply spiritual, culturally rich and astonishingly beautiful, I hope to take a helicopter to hike the Tiger’s Nest at sunrise, in time for the ceremonial process of monks.

Also, Japan, for a slower-cadence trip full of new discoveries, from the bright lights of Tokyo to an array of peaceful onsen and ryokan in the more remote regions too, like the Kiso Valley.

I’m also eager to explore Canada’s Yukon Territory, which is ripe for exploration, and I am confident will inspire us to develop new Black Tomato itineraries and experiences there for our clients as Canada is a place we have loved for many years.

Where's the most remote spot you've ever traveled?
Up there would have to be a self-drive along the Skeleton Coast in Namibia by starlight, an otherworldly setting and place worth going the distance for. More recently, southern Patagonia in Chile, I went with the Black Tomato team on an R&D trip and posted up at the newly opened Explora Lodge, which is set amongst 650,000 acres of protected land. The perspective gained from being in such vastly remote settings is a humbling reminder of the importance of being a good steward to these special landscapes and inspires future generations to take up the cause too.

Where's the most luxurious place you've ever stayed?
There are different takes on what constitutes luxurious, so keeping it a fluid, for more a barefoot luxury vibe, I would say Six Senses Ibiza and Sublime Comporta in Portugal. Joali in the Maldives, Jumby Bay in Antigua and Rosewood Little Dix Bay are utterly luxurious from tip to toe. For more ‘traditional’ trappings, The Mark Hotel in NYC is my favorite place to stay in the City; design-led, luxurious, excellent food, but also playful and fun, it’s a short stroll to Central Park, a favorite early morning ritual when I’m visiting.

Which destinations are the most popular so far this summer?
Iceland, Ecuador and the Galapagos, Morocco, Indonesia, Italy, Greece, Norway, Kenya, French Polynesia, Seychelles, France, Madagascar, South Africa, a nice global showing.

Favorite under-the-radar location?
Northern Norway and the Lyngen Alps, arguably one of the best places to catch the Northern Lights and full of extraordinary outdoor adventures for all types of skill levels – a bit of a trek, but well worth it. And Finland’s 1,000 Lakes. Everyone equates Finland to Lapland, but the 1,000 Lakes Region in summer is stunning and relatively under the radar.

Biggest travel hack?
Avoid checking luggage, even on international flights if you can manage it. When you do have to check, air tags are a must.

If you aren’t wedded to a particular airline for points, consider taking a carrier where you will likely encounter less of your nationality in customs lines, in practice this could be taking American Airlines instead of British Airways when traveling to the US and avoiding huge queues in the international visitor’s lane.

Where’s the sceniest spot to jet off to this summer?
Hotel du Cap in Cap D’Antibes will always have a great sceney buzz. Also, Forte de Marni in Italy is having a moment, and while a bit lesser known to Americans, this lovely town is where many well-heeled Italians go year after year to vacation, and replete with ample luxe hotels, great food, shopping and colorful beach clubs.

As a destination, Portugal is buzzy and brimming with great sceney spots in there, in places like Comporta, Alentejo (and the new Hotel de Vermhelo Portugal from Louboutin is certainly making its mark) – far beyond just the classics like Lisbon and Porto.

Coolest new hotels that have popped up in the last year?
Six Senses Rome, Hotel de Vermhelo Portugal, Son Bonyula Mallorca, Angama Tented Camp, Old War Offices by Raffles is excitingly about to open in London. And speaking of, there’s a lot to get excited about with London’s ever-evolving hotel scene, and I personally am so impressed by the hard work and passion going into The Peninsula around Hyde Park corner, and cannot wait to welcome them soon.

How far in advance do you typically plan your trips?
It varies, but a mix. If it is a family trip, we usually plan several months in advance and time it to school holidays with our young ones. But if it is traveling as a couple, we can do things a bit more spontaneously, about a month or two out. It’s a powerful feeling to have something in the diary to look forward to, but equally fun to add an element of spontaneity too.

Do you keep track of which restaurants and hotels and activities you loved most after a trip?
Absolutely, it’s almost become second nature and stems from an inherent curiosity for discovery. I like to jot things down on my phone in the Notes section and pen to paper in a diary when able. The process of scouting out hidden gems follows me wherever I go (and I in turn embrace it!) to seek out new experiences, expert guides, incredible hotels, and can in turn shape how we design product and itineraries for our clients. One of the best meals I’ve had in a long time, was quite recently at Oficio in Lisbon – tremendous seafood. We had the option of choosing à la carte or having the chef take the lead and send things out coursed. We chose the latter, and very glad we did.

What's the biggest hurdle traveling with kids?
The biggest hurdle is creating strategies for coping with jetlag, as time zone shifts and durations shape how you travel with young children. This isn’t to dissuade from longer-haul travel with kiddos, but make sure the duration of the trip is long enough to acclimate. If you only have a few days, consider somewhere with a shorter duration as jet lag can be brutal on the kids, so I always consider the type of travel and also time zones crossed.

Sometimes people forget that families do get preferential treatment to board first, and while it can vary, you shouldn’t feel bad about making the point that you have a family and young children, and likely strollers and bags galore.

Airports in general can be very challenging – lining up at airports, passport controls, immigration, waiting for bags - in those mundane moments, make sure you have things to entertain a kid from toys to snacks- a relatively inconsequential wait to an adult can feel like a lifetime to small kids and some of more painful moments are getting off a plane with a grizzly toddler who just wants to sleep and lands in a humid and totally different environ.

What are you most excited for next?
Bhutan is high up there and also a re-discovery of Argentina as I went many years ago and made many friendships along the way. This time, I want to take the family back there and visit Mendoza, Bariloche and definitely clock some quality time in Buenos Aires which is truly magical.

[Photos courtesy Tom Marchant, Mayflower Inn, Sublime Comporta, Son Bonyula]