My (Angelika’s) Story
Traveling has always been my passion. That is why I decided to study tourism business management and invest every cent in a new journey. I’ve explored many countries in Europe and Latin America (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba, and Costa Rica) as well as countries in the Far East like Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates. I also lived in the US for a year as a high school student.
In 2010, I decided to leave my home country Germany (thought to be just a year or two), to improve my Spanish and learn to dance salsa – the best place for that was Latin America. My first destination was Quito (Ecuador), where I worked for a tour operator organizing trips in the Galapagos Islands as well as Perú and Venezuela.
In 2012, I packed my bags and took a 30 hours bus ride from Quito (Ecuador) to Bogotá (Colombia) to start my Colombian adventure. While working in tourism and being part of the incredible growth of Colombia as a tourist destination, traveling over the whole country, and improving my salsa dancing, I fell in love with Colombia and its people. Soon, I became a victim of the former tourism slogan “The Only Risk Is Wanting to Stay.”
Working for more than 15 years in the tourism industry, I gained a broad network of contacts in Colombia. I traveled to almost every corner of this diverse country, living the experiences firsthand. Thanks to my trilingualism (German, English, Spanish) and travel experiences, I’ve been the key figure in organizing amazing trips for thousands of travelers.
I believe that travel has the power to open hearts and minds and to “create stories” between people from different countries, backgrounds, and cultures. It can preserve natural and cultural heritages as well as empower local communities. Travel can transform lives.
I want to invite you to discover Colombia by showing you the most beautiful places, meeting fascinating people and getting to know their inspiring stories….and of course, hit the dance floor to do some real salsa dancing!
General Manager at WhereNext Travel
Coqui, Choco - Colombia’s Pacific Coast
WhereNext, a Creative Agency Meets WhereNext Travel
WhereNext Travel’s private investor, Gregg Bleakney, has devoted his career to growing Colombia's tourism sector through his storytelling agency, WhereNext. Gregg was born in Seattle, USA, and moved to Colombia in 2012. Since 2017, his agency has helped the Colombian Ministry of Tourism (Pro Colombia) discover and tell its most incredible stories about people, places, and wildlife.
Angelika and Gregg decided to pair WhereNext’s storytelling experience with Angelika’s operational expertise in travel to build itineraries that allow your customers to live Colombia's best stories firsthand.