Written by Sadie Whitelocks, Dailymail.com
13:42 February 10, 2024, Updated 13:42 February 10, 2024
- Ricardo Araujo, 46, founded his company Ariodante Travel over seven years ago.
- His team works for “a small number of very wealthy clients, usually billionaires.”
- One of the requests fulfilled was to have a mermaid swim with a submarine.
A luxury travel agency that organizes trips for some of the world's wealthiest people has revealed that they spend more than $44 million on a single vacation, and the demands can sometimes be exorbitant.
Ricardo Araujo, 45, founded his company Ariodante Travel more than seven years ago, and his team now consists of “a handful of very wealthy individuals with a common interest in culture, usually “They work for billionaires, sometimes senior royalty.” Beauty and making a positive impact on the world. ”
“You could call them thrill-onairs because their thirst for adventure is insatiable,” he quipped.
Ricardo's clients require confidentiality agreements, so he says he can't reveal the exact details of each trip, but on one occasion, a sabbatical in Latin America lasted several months and cost $44 million. It took almost a year to plan. '
Asked about some of the more unusual requests he's received, the travel professional who splits his time between London and Paris recalled “a gentleman who wanted to detonate a nuclear bomb.”
Revealing how this unique request came about, he continued: “That guy had heard how I took someone onto a nuclear submarine for a special lunch with the fleet commander.” These are the kinds of things I can accomplish, by the way.
“So this man came to me offering millions of dollars to fulfill his dream of detonating a nuclear bomb. After the initial shock, I politely turned the man away. ”
Another unusual request came in the form of arranging for a mermaid to appear for the nine-year-old granddaughter of a wealthy American client.
This time, Riccardo researched the world of professional mermaids and was able to make his client's wish come true.
This “mermaid show” was inspired by Homer's The Odyssey and was born during a luxury yacht trip he organized in Europe.
Riccardo was able to sneak a professional mermaid onto his boat, and when the young man went on a submarine trip with his mother off the Italian island of Capri, the mermaid dived deep and “astonished” the audience.
The stunt cost $350,000, including the submarine rental, but the anonymous family recouped $2.5 million in total travel costs.
Ricardo is flooded with requests from wealthy travelers from all over the world, but he says he is very selective about who he takes on as his customers, because what money can't buy is good manners.
He recalled one case where he ended up referring a “very complicated couple” to another agency because the billionaire husband didn't seem very polite.
He explained: “My frustration with my client was his attitude. He showed his true colors when I was planning an experience to access a grand private castle in Italy.
“I had arranged for the couple to have lunch with the castle lord, who was actually a prince from one of Italy's oldest families.
“But my client looked at the schedule and said he didn't want to pay for the prince's lunch, so he wanted to exchange his lunch in the helicopter for a sandwich.
“Such a millionaire is not suitable for me, so I introduced him to other institutions so that he can travel normally.”
Riccardo said his customers generally trust him to dream up unique, out-of-this-world trips.
He says he often receives “indications” regarding specific desires, but “like a fashion designer or artist creating a haute couture dress, my imagination takes precedence and I build on that initial concept. Create something.”
“My clients enjoy giving us a creative blank check because they know our team has the expertise, know-how and imagination they don't have. ” Ricardo told DailyMail.com.
One of Riccardo's proudest moments was gaining access to “one of the most famous museums in Europe” so that his client could take part in the restoration of the mummy.
Recalling the special experience, he said: “My client was so overwhelmed, her hands were shaking with excitement and disbelief that she was actually doing it.
“What I'm most proud of is delivering these kinds of emotions and memories that last a lifetime. I don't think you can put a price on that.
“It was also very special when I arranged for my child to find a mermaid from a submarine.
“She had been told by people for years that mermaids weren't real, but then she managed to find one and take a picture with her phone. She was so happy and excited that I couldn’t sleep for almost two days.”
So how can you become a luxury travel agent?
Well, for Riccardo, his entry into the world of yachts, helicopters and mermaids was completely by chance.
He started out as a trained classical musician, composer, and conductor until one day Airbnb contacted him and asked if he could organize a classical music concert.
Recalling the series of events, he said: “I got a request and decided to do it.” It was about a group of tourists going to a classical concert with a conductor to learn about music. We ended up hosting a wonderful older couple from Boston with a passion for opera, and we became friends.
“They were amazingly kind to me, so they took me on a backstage tour of the Opera House as a thank you, because all I needed to do was call a friend and open the door.”
“They liked it so much that they started showing it off back in America and their friends started contacting me.
“Soon, my imagination and attention to detail impressed all the newly wealthy travelers, and requests started pouring in.
“My ambition was to make each trip better than the last. To turn my crazy, unrealistic ideas into reality, I needed to recruit a team of experts and from there… My company has grown.
“I now consider myself a traveling alchemist who can turn dreams into reality, and I pride myself on choosing my clients carefully.”
Looking to the future of travel, Riccardo, whose current favorite luxury hotels include Claridge's in London and The Carlyle in New York, says people will “focus on experiences rather than looking for regular flights and hotel packages. will continue to move.”
“Overtourism is a real problem in many destinations, and this also applies to the luxury market,” he concluded.
“That’s why we believe we need to go further towards meaningful travel.
“The good news is that you don't necessarily need a lot of money to have a meaningful experience. You just need to take the time to research and think beyond the obvious.
“So instead of following Google's recommendations or quizzing ChatGPT, you should explore beyond and discover countless wonders that 90 percent of people don't even know exist. I'm ignoring it. ”
