Profile of a traveller : mauricio prieto
mauricio prieto edreams
Co-founder and Marketing Manager of ODIGEO ( eDreams , Go Voyages , Opodo and Travellink ), the largest online tour operator in Europe and the fifth largest in the world.
A passionate swimmer who could swim for hours while enjoying the peace and quiet of the sea. He is an absolute family man who adores his wife and two daughters.
This is Mauricio Prieto ( @mauprieto ),mauricio prieto edreams born Mexican and a person who loves to live in different cities to meet other cultures. Today we invite you to get to know him a little better.
With the establishment of the ODIGEO Group last year, business trips have certainly increased … When was the last time you went on a private trip to switch off a bit?
Yes, business online travel has increased, but luckily the cities I travel to are very attractive destinations: Paris, London, Hamburg, Milan, Stockholm.
The last vacation trip was a weekend trip to Ibiza to take part in the Ibiza Ultra Challenge swimming competition.
It is organized by Marnaton and the distance is 11.4 km. Long distance swimming in open water is, without a doubt, the best way to switch off for me.
What do you remember from your first trip?
I spent my first few years in Monterrey, a city in northern Mexico. I remember the trips to the border town of Mc Allen, Texas that I took with my parents and siblings.
The trip took about three hours. Mc Allen is not really a tourist town, but for me these trips have always been special and I like to think about them.
Mauricio Prieto “Profile of a traveller : mauricio prieto edreams”
3 “must see” places
Serengeti National Park, the Great Barrier Reef and the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights).
Are you more of a backpacker or an all inclusive lover?
Neither of them.
Do you take a camera with you on all of your trips?
Yes, but with recent trips I’ve replaced the traditional camera with my phone camera.
I love photography, but as I’m not an expert in it, the camera on my cell phone will do just fine. You can see some of my favorite photos on Instagram (mauprieto).
Do you use new technologies to select a vacation destination or when planning a trip?
Yes, very often. Foursquare is an increasingly useful tool for finding and discovering new places.
What I can’t find in the large selection on Tripadvisor, I look for with the help of the many customer recommendations at foursquare. We have very similar tastes.
The perfect trip for you would be by… plane, train or ship?
For me,
the perfect trip depends on the destination and the company and not on the means of transport. If I had to choose a mode of transport, however, I would opt for a non-motorized variant. And between plane, train, ship or car,
I generally prefer the fastest option that gets me from door to door. But I also appreciate the punctuality and comfort that you have when traveling by train and the freedom and flexibility when traveling by car.
The best online travel story is…
What I enjoy most is discovering the world from my daughters perspective. It is priceless to see snow for the first time or the Statue of Liberty, the Caribbean Sea,
the Eiffel Tower … Traveling with my family is fun guaranteed and I learn a lot thanks to the innocent curiosity of my children.
Which item shouldn’t be missing in your suitcase?
Once there was a Swiss Army Knife, but now it’s my iPad.
Has your suitcase ever been lost?
No, but almost. I once left my bag in a taxi in Madrid. When I noticed it (an hour later) and returned to the same taxi stop,
I was extraordinarily lucky that the same taxi was still there. I was traveling with my daughter, who was then five years old. On the way to the airport I told her that it would be better if she took care of my bag from now on so that I wouldn’t lose it again.
What kind of souvenir or souvenir do you like to bring from your travels?
A good picture that describes the trip.
A hotel should …
have 24 hour room service. When we fly to America with the girls because of the jetlag, we usually wake up around 3 a.m. in the morning to have breakfast.
We live in a very connected world and surf the Internet non-stop … Are you able to leave your cell phone in your hotel room when you are traveling?
Yes, but since I’ve been using my phone for other things (camera, reading, taking notes, etc.), it also helps me relax.
Mauricio Prieto Profile of a traveller : mauricio prieto edreams
If you had to recommend a restaurant to a friend, which one would you not hesitate about?
Chez Allard in Paris, Elios in New York, and in Barcelona, I recommend everything that appears in my Foursquare .
What could you eat over and over again without getting bored?
I love Mexican food including pozole, the soups, quesadillas and tacos al pastor.
In recent years, low-cost airlines have become very popular. Do you use them regularly? Why?
I choose the airline that gives me the best combination of price and time. The only exception is Ryanair, which I try to avoid. I would pay more not to fly with this company.
Born Mexican, adopted Spanish … How would you describe Spain’s tourism?
A country that is privileged in so many ways: food, nature, sports and culture.
Could You Live Without Travel?
I would definitely miss it. Travel has always been a part of my life, not just to go on vacation, but also to live. I lived in Monterrey, Mexico City,
Princeton NJ, Berkeley CA, San Francisco CA, Miami FL, and Barcelona for more than two years.
I think we are all responsible for exploring and discovering where we are going,
what we want to do with our life and where we want to live. For me, the phrase “we have to live here” doesn’t exist. I really appreciate it when someone makes an effort to find their place, to exhaust their possibilities and is not satisfied with what they have.
Should you ever get lost, where could we find you?
Swimming in the sea.
Together with three other American swimmers, one is my wife and the other two my two daughters. I am currently planning to cross the Strait of Gibraltar ( www.swimminggibraltar.com ) next summer to collect donations for world readers. For this you need a very intensive training in preparation.
