'It was the most difficult day of my life'

As Dan Salmon waited anxiously for the outcome of his tiny daughter’s six-hour heart operation, he says it was “the most difficult day of his life”.
 
Savannah was just a few months old when she underwent the surgery to help a condition she was born with, Tetralogy of Fallot, a group of four structural abnormalities within the heart that occur together.
 
And now the creator of luxury travel agency Never a Wasted Journey has published a book, documenting his traveller’s tales over the years, and also sharing the story of his daughter Savannah’s heart condition, with a chapter dedicated to her in the book.
 
The self-published book, Never a Wasted Life, is available on Amazon, and for every book sold, a donation will be made to Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH).
 
Never a Wasted Life tells the story of how Salmon went from backpacking around the world, to being a Mark Warner ski rep and summer lifeguard, to working at Kuoni’s High Street Kensington branch and later concierge company Ten Lifestyle.

He subsequently started his own business 10 years ago and became a travel designer, picking up many awards including a TTG Luxury Travel Award for Luxury Travel Designer of the Year.
 
He added that writing the book was also a way to keep busy and proactive during the pandemic. “If it hadn’t happened, I probably wouldn’t have written the book.

“But like many people in travel, I found myself with time on my hands once trips had been rearranged at the start of it all. I’d always kept notes when on my travels over the years, and decided to put them together, along with talking about my life as a travel agent and the comeback of travel now,” he said.
 
He fitted in writing the book around taking care of clients and homelife. “I have three small children, so tend to be awake at all sorts of hours”, he joked. “I didn’t tell anyone I was working on the book, just spent a couple of hours a day on it where I could.”
 
It runs to 86 pages, but he admitted there were times of writer’s block. “I sat down at the end of last year to really focus on it, but there were definitely periods when I drew a blank! It was best to just leave it and return when I felt more inspired.”
 
A contact at a local business networking group introduced him to an editor once his book was written, and the rest is history.
 
“After the amazing care we experienced at Great Ormond Street Hospital, over many months and visits, we wanted to give something back. My wife and I spent a lot of time at the hospital, and we know we were very lucky with how things turned out for Savannah – some children can be in the hospital for months on end, so we are dedicated to raising awareness of the work the teams do there.”
 
Never a Wasted Life is also acting as a way to share his story with clients, and highlight why people should use an agent.
 
Clients are sent a copy of the book with their travel documentation, and he said the gesture has been warmly received so far. “I really enjoyed recalling memories of all the trips and stories – it’s supposed to be a light-hearted look at travel, and I think people are fascinated by travel generally anyway. This kind of gives them a ‘behind the scenes’ look at what we do as agents, and life at Never a Wasted Journey.”
 
He said he hoped it might also offer a familiar story to other agents in the industry, and to anyone looking to become an agent. “I just wanted to share my story, one I think other agents will relate to.”
 
Never a Wasted Life is available as an e-book to download, or a paperback, an option Salmon said has proved popular so far. He hopes his planned further promotion of the book will lead to more money raised for GOSH.
 
As for Savannah, now 18 months old, Salmon said: “We will always have to be careful, but in December, the hospital told us we wouldn’t have to go back again on a regular basis, apart from annual check-ups for her. And although she will need another heart operation later in life to replace her valve, we feel very lucky.”