Being More – The Art of Travel Planning, Giulia Pastorelli

Travel planner and concierge for Moroccan guests, Giulia is Italian Swiss by birth but has strong connections to Morocco that go right back to her childhood. Giulia tells us about her love of the country, her background and the role of a travel planner at Epic.

Tell us a a little bit about yourself….

A Swiss Moroccan Childhood

“I grew up in Lugano, the Italian part of Switzerland near Milan. However my family connection with Morocco goes right back even before I was born. While on a honeymoon trip to Morocco with my Dad, my Mum fell in love with the country. For her it felt like home, so she asked my father if they could buy a flat there. So from when I was born, I have always grown up between the two places, spending Summers with my nanny and mother in Morocco, I remember vividly when I was little, I loved being in the car with taxi drivers and learning my first words of Darija (Moroccan Arabic).

When I finished school in Switzerland, I went to Zurich to study law for a year, but I realised it wasn’t what I wanted to do. Zurich felt it was a bit too boxed in for me. I changed and went to Milan for three years to study International Relations, which ended up being one year because Covid hit, like a lot of younger people, our lives were quite interrupted by the pandemic. After graduating, I got a job offer in Dubai, however, although fun to visit for a holiday, I thought that Dubai lacked culture and history (and as I’m half Italian I love that) and that I would miss the beauty of nature I enjoyed in Switzerland so I turned it down. Then I went to Jordan to study Arabic for five months until the second wave of Covid hit, and I finished my studies remotely.”

How did you end up at Epic and in Morocco?

A chance encounter

After turning down the Dubai opportunity, I returned to Morocco and started working in events with a company with offices in Marrakech, Paris, Monte Carlo and New York, I got really good experience for six months and then our paths divided – it was all consuming, and as a young person I felt I lacked time to socialise and make friends, I believe work should be about a healthy balance.

One day I was at dinner with the owners of Casa Verde in Marrakech who had invited my Mum and I for a birthday party. Carla from Epic was sat next to Mum and as they chatted it became clear with my events experience and languages, there could be a good opportunity for me at Epic. At first I said no, I wanted to think about it, then when I left my other job, I called Carla, she was on a hike along Portugal’s coastline and said that I should pop in and see Charlie the founder at the offices in Marrakech – the rest is history.

What do you love about living and working in Morocco?

The warm pull of Morocco

What I think I love most is the human side of Morocco, which I think we have lost quite a lot in Europe. Here everyone helps each other, no one is judging you, you can always ask for help. In Europe they will turn their back on you in the street if you want help, and sometimes it is in fact dangerous to help – in Morocco people will always lend a hand and support.

I also love the variety in terms of landscape, desert, mountains, in the North it’s more like Europe, and real contrast to the desert towns which can feel more Middle Eastern. You have a real mix of cities, countryside, tiny villages, mountains, seaside – it’s so diverse.

Tell us about your job – the kinds of skills it requires…

What I’m doing right now is creating the dream trip for clients visiting Morocco, which usually starts with a call or email exchange during which you get to know the client, what kind of people they are what things they like, their interests and the makeup of the group. To do this job, you need to be the kind of person who really understands and gets people quickly, a people person. There are questions you can use to help with that, for instance you can ask what their favourite holidays in the past were, it gives you a sense of whether they are the kind of person who likes more authentic and local experiences, or rather to treat themselves with more luxury accommodation and experiences.

Training was on the job through Carla the MD, as a client manager and travel planner I do the whole process often from planning to meeting clients in market and being on call when they are here.

I like meeting people face to face – it’s just such a different experience to email and phone. They are always interested in my experiences living in the country, how it is, I love to hear their stories too.

What do you love about this job?

The team feeling at epic

We have an amazing team – I love the epic team; we have fun in day, we laugh, we chat and support each other. It’s also a job where I don’t have to be tied to a desk for 8 hours a day, which I don’t like. Ultimately the joy is trying to make or create something that I myself would be impressed by, knowing as a company that we aren’t a corny travel company, we have special, local and authentic activities that are more interesting or unusual. I think this is the nicest part of the job, we can propose things clients can’t find easily themselves.

Any interesting, challenging or funny moments?

Most clients are really nice, but I do have some odd requests sometimes, like can you wear Havaiana’s on a mountain hike? Well, you can but it might not be the best choice. Some clients are scared of coming here, so they really do rely on you being there on the ground.

If you are interested in working with Epic as a travel planner, contact us at info@epic.travel and we will keep you in mind.