Dean McMackin

My expertise

Cruise
Private Tours
Multi - Destination
Honeymoons
Disney
Couples
Families
Safari

I'm based in

Swindon

Available for new enquiries

It's Nice To Meet You

Hi, I’m Dean – thanks for stopping by!

I’m an independent travel adviser with Travel Counsellors, running my own business here in Swindon. What that means for you is simple: a genuine one-to-one service, built around your schedule (not the other way around).

Everything you book with me is 100% financially protected through either the Travel Counsellors Financial Trust or ATOL, giving you some of the best protection in the industry and total peace of mind.

I’ve been in travel for nearly 20 years and love nothing more than creating holidays that feel truly special. From weddings, group trips and sporting events to cruises, long-haul adventures, car hire, package deals and tailor-made escapes, I can take care of it all. I can also book holidays with trusted brands like TUI, Jet2 and easyJet, so you really do get the best of both worlds: big brands and personal service.

While I’ll be your main point of contact from start to finish, I’m also backed by an incredible team of travel experts who I call on for specialist enquiries. Whether that’s Emma, our Disney Ambassador, Kat, who specialises in unforgettable safari trips, or other experts covering everything from luxury cruises to bucket-list adventures, there’s always someone perfectly suited to your holiday needs.

I know Dubai and Australia particularly well, having visited many times, and I also have strong experience planning trips to Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Thailand. After visiting these destinations recently, they’ve become real favourites of mine, and I love helping clients experience their culture, landscapes and incredible food. Alongside this, I have a real passion for designing cruise holidays.

Whether you’re after a laid-back escape or a full-on, action-packed adventure, I’ll go the extra mile to make sure you and your family get exactly the holiday you’re dreaming of.

By letting me take the stress out of planning, you can relax knowing everything’s sorted. All you need to think about is what to pack (and sadly, I’m not legally allowed to do that part).

If you’re ready to start planning your next trip, I’d love to help, just get in touch whenever suits you.

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Explore my guides and blogs

Dean Around The World with Karen Thornton

Dean Around The World with Karen Thornton

This month on Dean Around the World, I sat down with my colleague and very good friend Karen Thornton to talk travel. From childhood memories in Austria to unforgettable sunsets in Barbados and a deep love for destinations like Saint Lucia, Sri Lanka and Iceland, her stories reminded me exactly why travel means so much to all of us. Huge thanks to Karen for sharing her travel memories – I loved

22 Feb 2026 5   min read

Dean Around The World with Aaron Drinan

Dean Around The World with Aaron Drinan

This month i asked Swindon Town striker and EFL top goaldcorer Aaron Drinan his thoughts on Travel and what he enjoys and is looking forward to regarding his future travel plans

08 Dec 2025 5   min read

Exploring Sri Lanka: A Trip I’ll Never Forget

Exploring Sri Lanka: A Trip I’ll Never Forget

Exploring Sri Lanka: A Trip I’ll Never Forget Sri Lanka has been an absolute blast. From the busy streets of Colombo to the tea hills of Nuwara Eliya and the beaches of Bentota, there’s so much to see and do. I want to say a huge thank you to Chanaka and Priyal, our guides for the week .Funny, super knowledgeable, and just great people. And to PulA from Colombus, honestly one of the nicest, humbl

10 Oct 2025 5   min read

Nuwara Eliya to Bentota

Nuwara Eliya to Bentota

Our final day in Sri Lanka began with breakfast and one last look at the misty hills of Nuwara Eliya before we set off for the coast. The journey took us from the cool mountain air down to the warm, sunny beaches of Bentota — it felt like the perfect way to end the trip, by the sea. When we arrived, we checked into the Thaala Bentota Hotel, a lovely beachfront spot with a calm, laid-back feel. Af

10 Oct 2025 5   min read

I SAW A LEOPARD

I SAW A LEOPARD

This is possibly the best day I’ve had on a FAM trip! It started with a jeep safari in Yala National Park and what a morning it was. We spotted not one, not two, but three leopards. Seeing a leopard in the wild has been on my bucket list for years, and today it finally happened. To see them so close, in their own space, was something I’ll never forget. Yala is a brilliant place, full of life. We

10 Oct 2025 5   min read

Did i tell you about the time i bumped into an Elephant

Did i tell you about the time i bumped into an Elephant

After getting up early and having a proper look around the Heritance Tea Factory Hotel, which used to be an old tea plantation and factory, we ended up switching things up a bit. Our safari got pushed back to tomorrow, so instead we decided to leave Nuwara Eliya and make our way towards Ella. And as usual, the best days seem to be the ones that aren’t planned at all. We stopped off at the famous

10 Oct 2025 5   min read

Nuwara Eliya Itinerary

Nuwara Eliya Itinerary

Today we set off from Sigiriya and made our way to Nuwara Eliya, a hill country town known for its cooler weather and old colonial charm. The drive itself was brilliant — winding roads, rolling green hills covered in tea bushes, and small villages dotted along the way. It was amazing how quickly the scenery changed Our first stop was the Labookellie Tea Estate, one of the most famous plantations

10 Oct 2025 5   min read

On top of the world-Well Sigiriya

On top of the world-Well Sigiriya

Sigiriya, Dambulla & Kandy We started the day with a visit to Sigiriya, the famous Lion Rock, and one of Sri Lanka’s most iconic landmarks. It’s the kind of place that photos just don’t do justice .Seeing it rise up out of the jungle is an incredible sight. The climb to the top is around 1,200 steps, but it’s very manageable if you set off early before the heat builds. The route winds through an

10 Oct 2025 5   min read

Day 2 - Colombo to Sigiriya

Day 2 - Colombo to Sigiriya

After breakfast at The Kingsbury Colombo, it was time to say goodbye to this beautiful hotel. The Kingsbury has a lovely classic feel to it, with brilliant service. It is definitely one I’d suggest to my customers for a stay in Colombo. We then set off on our journey towards Sigiriya, a four hour transfer with a stop for lunch at Lora Café. The food here was brilliant with a superb choice for eve

10 Oct 2025 5   min read

Sri Lanka – Day 1: Arrival & Colombo

Sri Lanka – Day 1: Arrival & Colombo

After a smooth flight with SriLankan Airlines we arrived in Colombo to a lovely welcome from our hosts, Colombia Tours. The flight went very quickly with a great range of entertainment and food. It was a late flight so I skipped dinner and waited for the breakfast omelette, which was a good choice. Immigration was smooth and took no longer than 15 minutes which was fantastic. After the welcome

01 Oct 2025 5   min read

Coming Soon

Coming Soon

Coming soon- Daily live blogs and updates regarding my upcoming trip to Sri Lanka. Follow myself and 13 other Travel Counsellors as we showcase what this amazing country has to offer

25 Sept 2025 5   min read

A Pleasant Surprise: My Experience Aboard Ambassador Ambition

A Pleasant Surprise: My Experience Aboard Ambassador Ambition

Embarkation in Liverpool was stress-free, with plenty of welcoming staff on hand to make the process easy. Alongside over 20 fellow Travel Counsellors, we toured the ship’s key areas, including restaurants, bars, the gym, and public lounges. Despite its smaller size, the Ambition felt spacious and well designed. The relaxed atmosphere, free from the crowds often found on larger ships, was a welco

31 May 2025 5   min read

Day 2 On The Ambassador Ambition

Day 2 On The Ambassador Ambition

Day 2 – Onboard Ambassador Ambition Up early to check a few customers in and then concentrate on day 2 onboard the Ambassador Ambition. An early start meant a visit to the gym and like everything else so far, I was pleasantly surprised. It’s spacious, modern, and far better equipped than I expected. After a good workout, I wandered through to the spa and treatment area. Again, absolutely superb.

30 May 2025 5   min read

Day 1 Onboard the Ambassador Ambition – A Refreshing Change of Pace

Day 1 Onboard the Ambassador Ambition – A Refreshing Change of Pace

As a Cruise Ambassador for Travel Counsellors, I’ve been invited onboard Ambassador Ambition for a short sailing from Liverpool to Bristol. Over the next few days, I’ll be exploring everything this ship has to offer and so far, it’s already full of pleasant surprises. Having spent most of my time on larger cruise ships, this is my first real experience of a smaller vessel and honestly, I’m impres

29 May 2025 5   min read

All aboard

All aboard

Norwegian Aqua: A Fun New Cruise Option I just got back from an awesome 3-night sailing on Norwegian Aqua, NCL’s brand-new ship and the first in their Prima Plus Class. I was lucky enough to hop on board for its inaugural sailing from Southampton, and if you’re looking for flexibility, great food, and a fun vibe, Aqua is definitely worth checking out. She’s off to the Caribbean now, but this qui

01 Apr 2025 5   min read

Cambodia Suprise

Cambodia Suprise

Halfway Through Cambodia: A Journey of Culture, Adventure & Unexpected Surprises My familiarisation trip to Cambodia has been nothing short of incredible so far. From jungle bike rides to luxury hotels, candlelit ceremonies to Marmite at sunrise, every day has brought something new. Here’s a look at what I’ve been up to so far. ? Touchdown in Siem Reap The journey started in style—with generou

11 Mar 2025 5   min read

Why Cruising Could Be For You

Why Cruising Could Be For You

With the number of new-to-cruise passengers increasing – 27% of cruisers over the past two years are new-to-cruise, that's an increase of 12% over the past year i thought it would be great to speak with someone about what makes Cruising so special for them This week, I had the pleasure of sitting down with cruise blogger Andy who runs the website https://mycruiseblog.co.uk/, his passion for the

29 Sept 2024 5   min read

It's more than just booking a holiday

It's more than just booking a holiday

The Other Side of Being a Travel Agent: Ever since I started working in travel nearly 20 years ago, I’ve always loved putting together peoples holidays whether it’s an hour away or the other side of the world. Since i launched my own business 4 years ago the travel industry has had to navigate Airport Strikes Volcanic eruptions Oh and a Global pandemic Recent events in Dubai have shed light o

20 Apr 2024 5   min read

Dean Around The World

Dean Around The World

Dean around the world.... I bet you read that to the tune of Lisa Stansfields song didn't You :-) Every month i will be bringing you this feauture from travellers. This month I sat down with Bianca Austin and her Husband Charlie to discuss their favourite and not so favourite holiday locations this week with some brilliant answers from them that will hopefully give you a few ideas of where you'd

27 Apr 2023 5   min read

Dean Around The World With Martin Peters

Dean Around The World With Martin Peters

Dean around the world.... I bet you read that to the tune of Lisa Stansfields song didn't You :-) Every month i will be bringing you this feauture from travellers who are either famous or not. I start with Martin this month... He is not ?? Dean around the world with Martin Peters Do you remember your first holiday either home or abroad? My first holiday was to Disneyland Paris with my sister

10 Apr 2023 5   min read

NCL Prima-

NCL Prima-

I was lucky enough to sail on the Norwegian Prima last week and I think I have a new favourite. The Norwegian Cruise Line’s 18th cruise ship set sail from Reykjavik, Iceland in August and I watched on as Katie Perry set sail on her and to say I was jealous is a understatement so to be invited a month later was an absolute honour. . Prima is the first ship in an entirely new class for Norwegian, a

27 Sept 2022 5   min read

Costa Rica By Martin Peters

Costa Rica By Martin Peters

Costa Rica It’s been 9 months since I visited Costa Rica as part of a 9 week trip of Central and South America. Including where I went on this trip, I have been fortunate enough to visit 43 countries and have lived/worked in 4. Travelling has been a huge part of my life for about 7 years now and I really hope that this blog will make you consider adding Costa Rica to your bucket list. It’s a pla

09 May 2020 5   min read

Did you hear the one about the man who set up a travel agency during a global health pandemic

Did you hear the one about the man who set up a travel agency during a global health pandemic

That’s me! Those that know me will tell you that during my life I have made a few wrong decisions and at the time of writing this I have no doubt a few of you are thinking he’s done it again but it’s strange that during these crazy times that I am strangely optimistic. Am I worried? Too right I am but the reason I took the plunge and decided to do this was that I simply love travel and so do most

20 Apr 2020 5   min read

Why Dubai?

Why Dubai?

Hello It seems very strange to be writing a blog in these extraordinary times but for my own sanity, I thought, why not? So why not start with the one place our family call our happy place, Dubai As a family we have now visited Dubai numerous times, in fact, our first time was as a couple where my wife simply fell in love with the place and I wouldn’t be exaggerating by saying she fell in love w

08 Apr 2020 5   min read

What my customers say

"Me and my wife have made some amazing memories travelling to new york,las vegas & philadelphia an all these were made possible by dean an he goes above an beyond with everything and little extras if needed we would not book our travels with anyone else heres to many more Daz & sue"

Darren Medcalf

Worksop

Such an amazing experience working with Dean! We’ve been booking our Holidays with him for over 4 years now and everything is always handled so smoothly and stress free. I really appreciate all the help and attention to detail. Thank you for always making the process so easy, I’ll definitely be booking again 🤍

Jordeen & Antoine Buckley/Semenyo

Manchester

We booked our magical trip to Lapland through Dean and Vikki. The service we received from them was fantastic. Vikki was in touch regularly in the lead up to our trip to make sure we had everything ready and was always available to answer any questions we had. The trip was magical and the kids absolutely loved every minute. ?? ?? ?? We even got to see the amazing Northern lights! Thank you both ??

Stacie Songhurst

Swindon

Dean, I’d like to say a massive Thankyou for organising Adéle’s surprise 40th birthday trip to Dubai. I would highly recommend booking your holidays with Dean, he made it stress free from the initial quote to actually boarding the plane. Thanks again we had a blast!! Same again next year

Paul Newson

Swindon

Dean was a great help, gave him the brief of what I wanted along with the budget. Promptly came back with a couple of holiday’s. So quick and easy it took the stress off my shoulders. Can’t wait to go now. Definitely will use him again.

Vicky Turner

swindon

Best customer service I’ve ever known from a travel agent

Carl McCulloch

Swindon

The 2nd time I’ve used this service as everything gets sorted for me and I don’t have to worry about a thing. I will be using Dean again - He is very professional and has friendly service. Happy to solve all queries and with you all the way even when you are on the holiday he makes sure you got everything you need for a relaxing no stress holiday

Kerry Cullen

Wiltshire

Highly recommended! Great help with booking holidays for next year! Multiple flights, hotels, tours and transfers. Very professional and top class! ??

Martins Pukitis

Swindon

Dean has been really helpful and answered all my questions promptly. Nothing has been too much trouble - thanks

Jo Vizor

SWINDON

Dean is a fabulous travel counsellor. Excellent service throughout our transaction, he was able to answer all of my questions and queries. Will use him again for sure.

Nathan Norris

Reading

Very personalised service goes above and beyond, would definitely recommend using Dean for all holiday needs.

Paul Manning

FARINGDON

Dean has been brilliant. We literally gave him a brief idea of what type of wedding/holiday we were looking for, and I mean brief! We were blown away by what he came up with. Dean has also been very easy to contact and communication has been great throughout the booking process. Would totally recommend.

Richard Hanley

Swindon

Dean helped us book our holiday for 2022. very friendly, honest and helpful, and quick to respond giving us lots of information for our trip. we highly recommend Dean to book your holiday. We will definitely use him again for further bookings

Rebecca Bean

Wiltshire

I can’t recommend Dean highly enough. We decided to use him based on the recommendations. Dean was absolutely brilliant from day 1. Providing advice, suggestions and put together a dream trip to Dubai for us. We were so looking forward to it before the COVID situation hit. However, it was during this time that Dean went on to further surpass any expectations we could’ve had. Unfortunately, we decided to make the difficult decision to cancel our trip. Despite the fact that he was knowingly losing his income, he was supportive and informative. He duly went about making all the arrangements and was able to secure us a full refund, including our deposit. The money was returned to me in a timely and efficient manner. Dean was professional, courteous and kept us updated throughout the entire process. A completely different experience to previous package holidays we’ve had through High Street Travel Agents. I won’t be using anyone else for future holidays. As soon as we’re able to, Dean will be my first point of contact for our next holiday.

Richard Jordan

Swindon

Super excited to be jetting off to beautiful Dubai next year after Dean pulled a fantastic half term break for the family. The best price; better service and an out-of-this-world hotel! Didn’t think we’d be getting the opportunity so soon after C-19 to visit such an amazing and iconic place. Big thank you to Dean for working on this. The family and I are the most excited!!! Booking a holiday with you was a pleasure rather than a worry; you’ve made the whole process easy and at such a fab price. All bookings will go through you moving forward.

Gemma George

Swindon

Had an amazing trip organised by Dean can’t recommend using him enough. It was the first time using a travel advisor and I will never go away without using him again. He made everything easy and effortless and was there at the end of the phone for any questions that we had. I was under the impression you had to pay for a travel advisor but the cost comes from the other side and not the person travelling. The fact dean is well-traveled and had stayed in the place we stayed made it even better as he could recommend places to visit etc. We were looked after from our front door all through the trip and back home again. This was during the pandemic and all went fantastic. Thank you dean for giving us literally a trip of a lifetime xx

Linzy Loscombe

Swindon

Dean has been absolutely brilliant over the past 4 weeks, despite our holiday not being booked through him. Unfortunately we had our holiday cancelled and the tour operator was far from helpful, Dean reassured us and helped guide us down the correct avenues and we have now managed to be refunded! It is such a relief and we felt in very capable hands throughout. We will certainly be using Dean for future travel arrangements, as our experience has shown just how dependable and knowledgeable he is. Thanks again!

Vee Razzo

SWINDON

Dean has been brilliant with our holiday request, finding all the different possible options that we can have. Going above and beyond, he has quoted everything up. Once this lockdown is over we will be ready to go. Thank you Dean

Lesley Ann

Swindon

Super excited to be jetting off to beautiful Dubai next year after Dean pulled a fantastic half term break for the family. The best price; better service and an out of this world hotel! Didn’t think we’d be getting the opportunity so soon after C-19 to visit such an amazing and iconic place. Big thank you to Dean for working on this. The family and I are the most excited!!! Booking a holiday with you was a pleasure rather then a worry; you’ve made the whole process easy and at such a fab price. All bookings will go through you moving forward.

Gemma George

SWINDON

Dean is the consummate professional, he will listen to your needs and help with your problems. Dean has helped me and my family many times in the last couple of years. I cannot recommend him highly enough.

Darren Galbraith

Hungerford

Discover the world with me

Tanzania

Tanzania

The amazing Tanzania is ideal for a Safari finished off with a 7 night beach stay

25 May 2021

South African Safari

South African Safari

A clients video of South Africa. Safari really is on most peoples bucket list. Get in touch if you would like me to create a once in a lifetime trip

05 Nov 2020

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Tailor-made for you

Your holiday isn’t just a trip away. It’s a longed-for escape, time to reconnect with loved ones, or a dream adventure you never thought possible. That’s why I take the time to truly get to know you and understand your hopes and expectations, then use my experience, connections and passion for the destination to create a trip that makes those dreams a reality.

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Personalised service. Always

When you plan a holiday with me, you’ll be given my personal mobile number from the very first call. I’ll listen to your thoughts and ideas like I would a friend and arrange accommodation, activities, and flights that are all personalised to you. And I’ll share my personal tips and recommendations, so you can experience the true beauty of each destination.

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Stress-free travel, and more time
for what matters most

I believe your time away should be stress-free, easy, and seamless from start to finish. So, I take care of all the details for you - from ATOL protection, insurance, and flexible payments to access to the myTC app, which keeps everything in one place.

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Support when it matters most

If the unexpected happens, you can rest easy, knowing that I’ll handle any last-minute changes, flight cancellations, or disruptions before you even pick up the phone. So you always feel happy, carefree, and ready to make the most of every moment.

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