A Luxury Travel Advisor to Celebrities Talks Trends and Top Tips
Rob DelliBovi doesn't just know how the A-list travels. He's the one orchestrating the show.DelliBovi started as a head of sales and marketing at hotels in New York City and noticed a recurring issue:High-profile guests — celebrities, athletes, politicians — would arrive unannounced, and unprepared hotels would scramble to meet their needs. So DelliBovi took matters into his own hands and started a travel company.RDB Hospitality has been booking itineraries for celebs since 2009. It doesn't just cater to high-end clientele; it also helps hotels, restaurants and airlines figure out how to serve them better.'I'm not aware of any company other than ours that is on both sides of the business,' says DelliBovi, who's now based in Miami and serves famous jet-setters worldwide. RDB's focus is on making the travel experience seamless. When a client's plane lands, a car is already waiting to whisk them to a private hotel entrance and directly to their room. The company even handles special dietary requests, like peanut butter with no peanuts.RDB's latest offering, the Hotel Greeter Program, is modeled after the VIP airport experience. Guests skip check-in entirely. Rooms are prepared in advance, preferences are already noted and a personal greeter hands over the keys curbside. 'People pay for convenience,' DelliBovi explains.
For those who aren't looking to travel on an A-list budget, DelliBovi stresses that the personalization celebrities opt for is available for average travelers.'Even three- or four-star hotels will do their best to customize a room,' he says.Heading into summer travel season, DelliBovi thinks 2025 will be record-setting, concerning both volume and price. 'Hotels that used to be $999 a night are now $2,500 a night. Hotels that were $150 are now $300,' he says.His best advice? Don't go to Rome.'Sure, you'll have good food. But it's going to take you forever to get restaurant reservations,' he says.DelliBovi recommends travelers with other options avoid big cities and opt for smaller, less-expensive markets. Think Nashville over Miami, Paros over Mykonos.Says DelliBovi: 'There are a lot of amazing things in places that you might not think you'd want to go.'
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