Virtuoso™ Luxury Travel Advisor
Meet Julia, your luxury travel advisor based in Toronto.
For more than two decades I’ve been busy helping travellers to get the most of their journeys.
I’m always on the road, passionate voyager, and explorer myself, and that was long time since I’ve learned how to serve my clients sufficiently being out of the office.
Not always easy, but proper travel advisor needs to taste travel ingredients before combining them to the perfect itinerary and offering to clients – the same way the chef does when preparing his exquisite dish. And well… you can relay on my taste, I guess. I hold master’s degree in architecture, and I’ve got a bit of experience sleeping in the best of the best hotels of the world.
When I say “the best”, I mean not only expensive and high-branded. Even high brands are my best and easiest sellers, I’m always in search for what we call these days “authentic luxury”: hidden gems in alternative, less known destinations. I have many of those in my portfolio, and they are at your disposal if you are open to step off beaten roads.
Luxury travel business is all about connections.
Julia Kostina
More than any other business. My connections are your connections, and my hotelier friends (owners, GMs) are your friends. That is how it works. And works beautifully.
Being as independent in my work as I can handle, I’m proud to be part of one of the oldest travel establishments in Canada. Renshaw Travel is a family-owned luxury retail agency, 3 generations and tons of glamorous history, and me being with them for last 20 years. Literally, I’m not part of the family, but Don Renshaw Senior (the founder and true legend) was my mentor, somehow kind uncle and dear friend. I learned a lot from current owner Don Renshaw Junior, and oh…I remember Renshaw girls (3rd generation) being schoolgirls – now fabulous professionals and dear friends too.
All photographs on this site, with the exception of those of the Renshaw family, are mine and real. Call me old fashioned, but I’m known for travelling with real photo camera. I mean, camera, not a smartphone. Yes, it is heavy, and yes, you can’t post pictures to Instagram in real time, but quality requires a bit of effort (and back pain). When everyone goes Instagram-worthy, I go focused, and I think it is good to be different. It is true luxury. And quite authentic. Also they say that old-fashion is a new fashion these days. Like slow food vs. fast food.
I have few passions, and one of them is Italy. I’ve got as passionate about it, that I learned fluent Italian and travelled this packed with treasures country through and through. It is just a little part of what I can offer as a professional, but cherished part, and truly learned by heart.
Email me [email protected]. I’m here to make your next journey special. And easy.
