Meet Our Storytellers

Steve Collins has been a broadcaster for over 40 years working, primarily, in radio in both Sydney and Perth. Steve has both produced and presented many thousands of hours of live radio and has written, produced and performed in many radio plays and comedy serials. He is an award-winning broadcaster and the recipient of a United Nations Media Peace Prize. For four years Steve was also CEO of the online travel radio station Radio Roaming, which attracted listeners from 122 countries.

Kate Webster is a world traveller, ocean lover and conservation warrior who is determined to make every moment count for not only herself, but the world around her. This has inspired Kate to translate those moments and share them through her storytelling. An adventurer at heart with a curious spirit to explore, her work as a travel journalist has taken her to the edges of the Earth, which she captures in her words and photography. A dedicated David Attenborough and Jane Goodall fan, Kate has delved into the world of wildlife and conservation travel to bring awareness.

Who better to tell you a travel story than a distinguished and experienced travel writer, who has been, seen, felt, smelled, and tasted the destination? They meet locals, sample flavours of local cuisine and learn foreign cultures and now they share it with you in special podcasts. Together with information of how to get there, where to stay, and specialised columnists, TellMeWhere2Go is your one click stop travel guide.

Leonie lives by the motto that life is not a dress rehearsal, so will try most things once. Except tattoos. Those things are permanent. During the day she writes serious stuff and deals with issues, crisis, and media. In her spare time, Leonie likes to drink beer, help worms cross the road, remove snakes from her chicken coop, practice free-ranging parenting, and plant flowers for bees and butterflies. She loves sharing stories about her often weird and wacky life and one day hopes to catch a squirrel and rub its fluffy little tail all over her face.

Paul Chai has been a travel writer for nearly two decades, starting with the Australian launch of US mag Travel + Leisure, a publication that let him travel all over the world from Kenya to Cuba. Chai then took on the role of editor of the inflight magazine for Tigerair, which at the time spanned the whole of Asia and four different titles (Asia, Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines) before becoming a freelance writer whose work is published in the Traveller section of The Age, online at Ellaslist and for various international inflight mags. He has a particular passion for local travel stories whether it is the World Heritage newcomer Budj Bim – with its aquaculture that predates the pyramids – or pitching a tent in the snow in the Victorian alps.

Aleney de Winter is a multi-award-winning freelance writer, editor and photographer with more than 30 years’ experience in print and online media. With a passion for storytelling, sustainability and kids, the last 12 of those have been devoted to immersing her young family into the colour, culture and cuisine of the world. The recipient of the 2018 PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association) Gold Award for Travel Journalism, Aleney is the Editor of Holidays with Kids magazine and creator of award-winning travel blog, boyeatsworld.com.au, which she writes with her equally itchy footed children, Rafferty and Marlo.

Following a long career with some of the most distinguished hotel and tourism brands, Selena is now an independent consummate marketing/communications consultant as well as a freelance travel writer. While she relishes the joys and challenges of extraordinary adventures, she also enjoys sipping gin cocktails in the trendy bars of Singapore to hot chai on the grungy streets of Mumbai. From swimming with whale sharks in Exmouth to stalking gypsies in Romania, she has acquired an insatiable curiosity for what makes people and places tick. Her wanderlust days are from over and she has ‘miles to go’ before she sleeps. Selena is also the recipient of the ASEANTA Best Travel Article Award 2019 for her story on ‘Heritage is Serious Business in Luang Prabang’.

Cynthia Dammerer has worked in the tourism and hospitality business for over 25 years, travelling with media, TV production teams and hosting journalists in exotic locations from Shangri La to Tahiti promoting travel and the fulfilling the dreams of readers. Now with the team, she will now share this knowledge and Tell you Where to Go (politely of course).

Born in South Africa to Scottish parents and having lived on three different continents, Gaynor Reid says she was born to travel. The former journalist and editor worked for three years on the Olympic Games in Sydney and is now based in Singapore, where she is Vice President of Communications for Accor, overseeing South East Asia, Japan and South Korea. She is passionate about the environment and loves long walks, photography and discovering new restaurants and bars.

Dr Tiana Templeman is an award-winning freelance journalist, travel author, cruise columnist, travel copywriter, radio presenter, and media industry educator and academic. She is the creator and editor of the popular travel website The Travel Temple and contributes to media outlets including The Australian, Escape, BBC Travel, NZ Herald, The New Daily, Cruise Critic, Senior Traveller, Luxury Escapes, and Family Travel. She also appears on radio talking about where to visit, what to see and travel industry trends.

Kim has enjoyed over 30 years in the travel industry in one way or another. She worked for airlines, travel agencies and hotels, before turning her focus to sharing her knowledge and experiences via the weekly ‘Doc Holiday’ travel-advice column for News Corp’s Escape Magazine for many years. As a freelance journalist, she also contributes feature stories and reviews to Escape in Australia, international magazines and online outlets. Kim continues to explore new destinations, and believes: “Of all the books in the world, the best stories can be found between the pages of your passport”.

Marie Barbieri is an award-winning travel writer and photographer who contributes to newsstand travel and health magazines, inflight publications, newspapers, blogs and websites. She has been hemisphere-hopping for more than 25 years, and 13 years ago, left her native England for the otherworldly landscapes of Australia. Marie is most at home in the outdoors, and enjoys bushwalking, cycling, roller-skating, snorkelling, and yoga. She has a deep passion for wildlife conservation, and holistic health, fitness and wellbeing. But give her a pot of Earl Grey tea and a bag of milk chocolate Lindor balls and she’ll love you forever.

Travel writer, editor, scuba girl and passionate eco-warrior, Deb has over 25 years’ experience in publishing and has managed to travel (and dive) through most of the South Pacific and South East Asia. Deb now uses these experiences to design tailor-made dive holiday experiences for her clients at Diveplanit Travel.

When Deb’s not planning dive holidays for her clients – or writing blog posts on the Diveplanit Blog she also writes for a number of travel publications, including Scuba Diver Magazine, Scuba Diver Life, Pacific Island Living, Signature Luxury Travel & Lifestyle, Holidays With Kids and several inflight magazines.

Rafferty Laight offers a unique voice in travel. 12-year old Rafferty is an accomplished storyteller and interviewer, having produced content for award-winning blog, boyeatsworld.com.au for a number of years. He is also a published travel writer, & Kid Editor at Holidays with Kids magazine, travel television host, official ambassador for Nickelodeon Australia’s Junior Citizens of the Reef, and a highly regarded public speaker. This well-travelled Australian tween boasts a professionalism and a passion for sustainability, travel and exploration far beyond his years.

Fear is found on a creaking glacier in the Caucasus mountains and joy is encapsulated in the perfect Shanghai dumpling. Belinda Jackson has visited all continents, lived in three, and has a soft spot for the wilds of the Middle East, scarves and carpets. Her second home is Cairo.