About TravelDragon
We’re creating a destination for travelers to research trips and connect directly with the best small-group travel and unique-accommodation providers in the world. We let you filter 1000s of results by comfort and exertion level, price, group size, committment to sustainable travel and “experience” category. With over 5,000 trips on the site, offered by over 500 excellent companies, we think you’ll find inspiration.
Why did we make TravelDragon? We believe that there is a world of unique travel experiences out there that most people don't know about. Hundreds of small tour operators around the globe are offering unique trips and accommodations that we want to make searchable in a single place for easy comparison. And, once you find that next special trip or accommodation, TravelDragon connects you directly with them by phone or email. We are not a booking site or a call center; we're here to help make the discovery process easier.
About the providers on TravelDragon
Each tour provider is personally invited to be part of TravelDragon. We believe we have the best of the best. We’ll be constantly adding new providers recommended through our network of trusted industry friends and travelers. We began by using Kathy's 20+ years experience in the industry and network of 3,000+ past travelers who have joined her on tours around the world. Our travelers are generally interested in comfortable accommodations, authentic experiences, knowledgeable guides, and fabulous local food and wine and the offerings on TravelDragon reflect these values.
About Kathy Dragon (Founder, CEO)
I started leading bike tours in 1987 and never looked back (occasionally in my mirror). I’ve grown walking, biking and cultural tour companies, led over 3000 guests on small group adventures, and worked with hundreds of guides and small operators world-wide to create unique itineraries. Along the way I’ve helped large organizations including Whole Foods Market and Eons.com understand and incorporate travel into their offerings. I frequently consult and speak to organizations interested in reaching the boomer and beyond consumer and understanding how they interact with travel, social media and healthy living.
The Dragon’s Path, my own little tour company, began in 1987 and offers Cultural Walking Adventures Worldwide which I personally escort. These few custom trips each year keep my feet on the ground and close to both the consumer and operators to sense trends and ensure quality.
One of my goals has always been to connect consumers with great itineraries, great local guides, and operators. TravelDragon allows me to connect travelers with operators I have personally known for years, and those recommended by trusted colleges.
About Brian O'Neill (Founder, Chief Design Officer)
Hello! I've been working with my good friend Kathy on TravelDragon for the last few years to define a user experience vision and to design and execute that vision. In plain english, I design the experience of searching exploring the thousands of unique trips and accommodations our operators we offer in an easy, useful, and fun way. In addition to designing and managing engineering for TravelDragon's public-facing site, I also design the administrative parts of TravelDragon where our operators enter and update the trips appearing on the site. My goal is that our operators can spend as little time as possible using TravelDragon and instead, focus on running their businesses and providing great travel experiences (nobody likes maintaining websites and content!)
In addition to designing useful, usable, and beautiful sites and applications for 15 years, I am a professional musician and have a degree in percussion performance. For almost 25 years I have performed classical, jazz, and world music in a variety of settings. I maintain an active performance schedule in Boston and New York with a variety of groups and as with travel, I believe the world's music can take you to new exciting places. My travels and performances have taken me to Mexico, Japan, and Eastern Europe including performances at Carnegie Hall (NYC), the Teatro de la Ciudad (Mexico City), and Boston's famous jazz club, the Regatta Bar. My musical projects are as diverse as the trips on TravelDragon including a rare Mexican "son" group called La Tuza, a Brazilian choro ensemble, a Balkan group, an Ottoman classical ensemble, and my own group, Mr. Ho's Orchestrotica— the world's only 21-pc space-age pop / tiki band. Read more about my design consultancy at rhythmspice.com and my music at crashandboom.com.
About Opus the Dragon, our mascot
What’s up with the Dragon? Opus the Dragon, the mascot and dragon who appears to be eating her tail. TravelDragon logo. Believe it or not, this actually is very relevant…
The Ouroboros is an ancient symbol depicting a dragon swallowing its own tail and forming a circle. It most generally symbolizes ideas of cyclicality, unity, or infinity and often represents self-reflexivity especially in the sense of something constantly re-creating itself, the eternal return. We feel that travel is often about re-creation. It can also represent the idea of primordial unity. Echoing symbols such as the Yin Yang, which illustrates the dual nature of all things, but more importantly, that these opposites are not in conflict. In alchemy, the ouroboros symbolizes the circular nature of the alchemist’s opus, which unites the opposites: the conscious and unconscious mind. (Thank wikipedia for giving us the story of our dragon.)
