Travel Talk with a Venezuela Destination Expert

WHL Group
30 September 2011

Every month, we delve into the travel experiences of people in the extended WHL Group network. Today we talked to Melissa V. Gonzalez Llovera of Viajes Valencia Los Roques, the whl.travel local connection in Venezuela.

Originally from Valencia, Melissa is now a travel agent and specialist for a number of destinations in Venezuela, including Los Roques and Canaima National Park. Soon, she will also help travellers explore Margarita Island.

Melissa Gonzalez at Angel Falls, Canaima

Angel Falls is the leading attraction of Canaima National Park, Venezuela. This is also the source of Melissa's first travel experiences. Photo courtesy of Melissa Gonzalez

WHL Group: Which is your favourite WHL Group destination and which would you most like to visit?
Melissa: I would have to say Fiji. I’ve become fascinated by the Fiji Islands.

WHLG: What would you never travel without?
Melissa: My Virgin of Carmen key chain. It brings me protection while I’m travelling!

WHLG: What do you miss most about home when travelling?
Melissa: The creature comforts of my own home, especially my own bed.

Melissa Gonzalez at Los Roques Airport, Venezuela

Boarding a plane in the Los Roques Airport in Venezuela, Melissa Gonzalez is ready, as always, for her next travel adventure. Photo courtesy of Melissa Gonzalez

WHLG: What’s the most adventurous trip you’ve ever taken?
Melissa: Once, when I was about 20 years old, I went with some friends to a beach called Cuyagua, located in Aragua State, Venezuela. The place is beautiful because there is nothing there – you have to camp in a tent or your vehicle. It felt adventurous because we were off the grid and very far from the nearest town, hospital, police, etc. Nothing but pure nature.

WHLG: What is your funniest travel experience?
Melissa: My four girlfriends and I always laugh when we remember our Curaçao Island trip. We meant to go spend time partying and relaxing on the beach, but instead the trip turned into one big shopping spree; we were only on the beach for a few hours.

WHLG: What is your scariest travel experience?
Melissa: One time, I almost missed a flight home from Margarita, Venezuela. There was not another fight available until the next day in the afternoon, so I was afraid I would be camping overnight in the airport! Luckily, I made it just in time.

Melissa Gonzalez with tour guide in Canaima National Park, Venezuela

Melissa enters the Kavac Caves of Canaima National Park, Venezuela, with a local Pemon tour guide. Photo courtesy of Melissa Gonzalez

WHLG: If you could go on holiday with anyone famous – living or dead – who would you take?
Melissa: Valentina Quintero, the “tireless traveller of Venezuela.” I really admire her.

WHLG: Describe the best and worst accommodation you’ve ever stayed in.
Melissa: My best experience was at a resort called Cap Cana on the amazing coasts of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. On the other side of the scale is the Resort & Casino at Eagle Beach in Aruba, which was really uncomfortable and ugly.

WHLG: Describe your earliest travel memory.
Melissa: I’m not sure how old I was at the time, maybe eight. I remember the beach Playa Colorada in Mochima, Anzoátegui State. The sand was beautiful, is reddish and the whole place was surrounded by mountains.

Angel Falls, Canaima National Park, Venezuela

Melissa believes that the heart-stopping natural landscapes of Venezuela - Angel Falls being the perfect example - are just part of what gives her country great, positive tourism potential. Photo courtesy of Viajes Valencia Los Roques

WHLG: Please briefly explain what you think local travel is.
Melissa: For me, local travel starts with travelling around your own country and getting to know it well. This teaches you a lot about how to travel locally, as if you were from there, in other places as well.

WHLG: In what ways do you see local travel benefiting the country in which you live?
If Venezuela did more to develop its tourism carefully and sustainably, I think we’d become one of the world’s top destinations. Venezuela has it all – beautiful landscapes, kind and friendly people, unique flora and fauna, and really great weather. There is so much potential!

WHL Group

WHL Group is the largest local-travel company in the world, a global network of companies that help travellers find unique ways to experience a destination through local tourism professionals. WHL Group companies empower local partners who have practice in experiential and mindful travel and a local's knack for identifying, explaining and sustaining the distinctive qualities of a place. Visit the WHL Group website.