Exclusive Resorts Co-Founder Tom Filippini Creates Online Travel Company Next Great Place

By: Destination Club News
Date: December 15, 2010

Tom Filippini is a self described travel enthusiast. "I just love to travel. I relish in everything from the ultimate luxury to backpacking or staying in huts or hostiles to climbing mountains." During his excursions, Filippini has visited roughly 50 countries and nearly every state in the US. This passion for travel also led Filippini to be one of the co-founders of Exclusive Resorts, the world's largest destination club, where he served as Executive Vice President, generating over $750 million in new membership sales. Filippini and fellow Exclusive Resorts alum Erik Mitisek have since left their positions with the travel giant and are off to their next adventure: Next Great Place, an online travel planning company that "streamlines the process of planning and booking unique, complex vacations."

The Next Great Place model begins with travelers submitting a "vacation request," detailing information such as destination desired, number of guests, and budget. Next Great Place subsequently submits the request to a vetted group of suppliers in the desired destinations. Over the next 48 hours, those suppliers create customized travel proposals that are returned to the traveler who chooses the proposal they like the most, locking in the proposed rates.

"Our vision is to improve the lives of travelers by facilitating their enjoyment of more frequent and better vacations with family and friends," said Filippini. "Our online travel network will match travelers seeking custom experiences to pre-screened travel suppliers, ultimately creating a more efficient and hassle-free way to plan unique vacations."

Next Great Place will target family-oriented accommodations including condo-hotel residences and individual villas with each supplier vetted using the company's proprietary 300-point checklist to ensure the highest quality standards in every destination.

The new venture launches its BETA today with two destinations available: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and Vail/Beaver Creek, Colorado. Every four weeks, the company plans to add at least one additional destination with a goal of 100 destinations in the next five years. Safaris, wine tours, heli-skiing, and other experience adventures are also slated to be introduced. The venture's official launch to consumers will take place in Q1 of 2011.

During this soft launch, Next Great Place services will be free to consumers, but the commercial launch will trigger a modest annual subscription fee for access to the network.