For over a decade, News Desk Plumtree has redefined travel by prioritizing authenticity over cookie-cutter tours. Born from a passion for uncharted landscapes, we’ve grown from a local Canadian startup to a global curator of transformative journeys. Our founders—avid explorers themselves—built this company on the belief that travel should ignite curiosity, not checklist tourism.
The travel industry thrives on fleeting trends, but we remain anchored in sustainable, immersive experiences. From securing permits for remote Arctic treks to designing culinary trails through Southeast Asia, our expertise bridges the gap between ambition and reality. We don’t just book trips; we engineer moments that linger in memory long after the passport stamps fade.
Our clients range from CEOs seeking private island retreats to families embarking on their first European tour. What unites them is a shared desire for travel that feels personal, not transactional. Behind every departure lounge handshake lies years of logistical mastery, cultural insight, and a relentless commitment to exceeding expectations.
General Director
Head of Logistics
Luxury Travel Specialist
News Desk Plumtree began in 2011 as a two-person operation in Vancouver, fueled by founder Daniel Hargrove’s frustration with impersonal travel agencies. His vision: a service that treated travel like a narrative, not a product. Early clients were referrals—honeymooners wanting more than a resort wristband, retirees craving Patagonia beyond the cruise-ship crowds. Word spread, and by 2015, we’d orchestrated over 300 custom trips across six continents.
The turning point came in 2018 when we partnered with Indigenous communities to launch culturally sensitive Arctic expeditions. This initiative, later featured in National Geographic Traveler, cemented our reputation for ethical, groundbreaking itineraries. By 2020, despite global travel halts, we pivoted to virtual tours and crisis repatriation, proving adaptability is as vital as ambition.
Today, our team of 25 specialists handles everything from corporate retreats in Kyoto to month-long African safaris. Yet we’ve retained the ethos of those early days: Travel is personal. Every passport we stamp carries a story we helped write.
We balance kids’ energy with grandparents’ comfort seamlessly. Think babysitting by vetted locals while adults dine, or wheelchair-friendly routes through ancient ruins.
Your trip is built from scratch, reflecting your pace, interests, and quirks. Hate mornings? We’ll swap sunrise tours for midnight jazz. Allergic to seafood? Menus are pre-adjusted worldwide. Our planners obsess over preferences you didn’t know mattered until every day feels effortless.
Decades of cultivating relationships mean perks like bypassing Louvre lines or landing a last-minute reservation at Paris’s secret supper clubs. Our guides aren’t just licensed—they’re folklorists, ex-diplomats, or even retired explorers who share untold stories.
For complex trips (e.g., Antarctic cruises or Olympic Games visits), we recommend 12–18 months to secure premium accommodations and permits. Simpler journeys require 6 months. Last-minute requests are possible but may limit exclusivity.
While we operate globally, our deepest expertise lies in Canada’s Arctic, Southeast Asia’s cultural hubs, African safaris, and European heritage trails. We also excel in hard-to-plan regions like Iran or Venezuela due to trusted fixers on the ground.
Our logistics team monitors global incidents in real time and proactively reroutes clients. During Iceland’s 2021 volcano eruption, we repositioned 22 clients to alternative geothermal sites within hours. All contingencies are pre-planned.
We exclusively offer private travel unless you join our curated "Pioneer Group" departures—small, like-minded cohorts for select itineraries (e.g., a 10-person Bhutan trek).
Our fees cover negotiation leverage (e.g., free suite upgrades), emergency safeguards, and access money can’t buy. One client’s "impossible" request—dinner inside the Pyramid of Giza—cost $15K but required $200K in diplomatic favors we’d secured years prior.