About

After attending school for travel and tourism and then with over 20 years of experience in the travel industry, I am excited to apply my knowledge and skills to support and promote the goals of NY PATA. Throughout my career, I have held various roles including travel advisor, agency owner, and business development in retail/host agencies. My passion for travel has led me to lead travel advisor FAM groups with Hurtigruten and Aurora Expeditions in different areas of the world. I am now Business Development Manager – Northeast, Azamara Cruise Line. I exhibited multiple times at the NY PATA Trade Shows.

My goal is to help travel advisors find the perfect cruise experience for their guests and match their personal travel goals. I successfully served two years as secretary on the NY PATA 2022-2023 Executive Board. I am confident that I can continue to bring the same enthusiasm and dedication to the NY PATA Chapter and contribute to its growth and success.

I have over 30 years of experience in the travel industry, being the founder of Panorama Travel - one of the most reputable and reliable tour operators in the US located in NYC. With my extensive airline relations experience, I also hold the position of Picasso Travel VP of Airline Relations. I have extensive experience serving on several executive boards including PATA New York Chapter where I served for two years. I can confidently state that I have a broad knowledge and expertise in most of the areas of national and international travel business.

Panorama Travel organizes and conducts a wide range of familiarization trips for travel agents on regular basis. I strongly believe that my out-of-box way of thinking, creative approach to business solutions and meticulous attention to details will be beneficial for PATA New York Chapter.

I started my Journey in the Travel Industry in 1985 with Pan American World Airways and gained experience in tour operations, wholesale, and corporate travel. I am an expert in Jewish Heritage Tours, and also in Air & Product Development. Also, I've been with Trafalgar Travel for 15-years as supervisor. I serve as president of the Sociedad Honduras New York Inc. As a PATA New York Chapter member and travel advisor, I've gained knowledge on many Asian destinations and discovered a new path of destinations in Asia-Pacific for my clients. I consider our Chapter my extended family. I have a passion for the PATA New York Chapter mission and ready to contribute to our Chapter by serving on the Committees and renewing travel trade relations in the post-pandemic era.

Pradip Shrestha is a seasoned professional with a rich background in the travel and tourism industry. Currently serving as the Honorary Public Relations Representative (HPRR) for the Nepal Tourism Board in New York since 2016, Pradip has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to promoting Nepalese tourism on the global stage. With an illustrious career spanning 25 years, he brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the table. Pradip leads a prominent travel agency dedicated to showcasing the beauty and cultural richness of Nepal. Under his leadership, the agency has become a key player in the promotion of Nepalese tourism.

Pradip Shrestha is an esteemed member of the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) in New York City, further solidifying his commitment to upholding industry standards and best practices. Pradip’s unwavering dedication to the growth and development of the travel and tourism industry is evident through his active involvement in various organizations. His role as the HPRR for the Nepal Tourism Board, coupled with leadership positions in chambers of commerce and international travel associations, underscores his passion for advancing the industry. In his pursuit of excellence, Pradip Shrestha has consistently demonstrated leadership, strategic vision, and a deep understanding of the global tourism landscape.

Board Member

Boris Miketic is the recipient of the presidential medal, ”The Order of Croatian Weaver” presented to him by the first president of Croatia, Dr. Franjo Tudjman, for his efforts in promoting Croatia as a tourist destination. He is an avid traveler and has visited over 120 countries in five continents. Such extensive travel makes him a strong advocate for his customers seeking travel advice. He has also served on the Croatian Government's Advisory Council for Croats Abroad for 4 years. In addition to nurturing the tourism industry between Croatia and the United States, Mr. Miketic provides translation services on birth/death certification, divorce documents, power of attorney and advisement on the inheritance process in Croatia. He has also provided countless services to help Croatian Americans get citizenship in their homeland and has been a notary public in both Queens and New York Counties for 25 years. Boris Miketic was a host on the Croatian Radio Show in NYC in order to convey news and broadcast traditional Croatian music to the Croatian community living in the Tri-State area for over 20 years. Lastly, he helped raise over $40,000 of humanitarian aid to rebuild the Petrinja and Sisak Hospital after the 2020 Zagreb Earthquake, as part of the Croatia Fund in New York. Much obliged to ACAP for the recent award.

Boris Miketic is a graduate in Law from the University of Zagreb and has an Economics degree from CUNY Queens College. He has been active in the Croatian tourism industry for over 30 years as President of Croatia Travel Agency, resulting in long-standing relationships with many Travel Industry Business Partners. Boris Miketic is an active member of the PATA New York Chapter executive board.

I started my travel media career in 1989 with OAG Travel Magazines. At Travel Agent magazine I helped create the Cruise/Tour Expo shows in 1995. I also wrote a bi-monthly column and was Advertising Director for Travel Agent International. I was Executive Publisher at Travel Trade Publications and Trade Shows. In February 2018, Steve Perillo, CEO of Perillo Tours and I launched Travel World VR. We are the leading producers for travel 360/VR videos and the leading distribution platform. I propose to educate and assist our members on VR production and viewing. I am offering a discount, and I will give free Travel World Virtual Reality headsets to view

As a business leader, I have the knowledge and expertise needed to help NY PATA make sound business choices. VR videos on the Travel World VR app. It is no longer a luxury. 360/VR for tourism is the future of the travel industry.

With more than 38 years of experience in various fields and an intrepid traveler to more than 72 countries and counting. Iris has spent most of her professional life in the Travel Industry, holding positions at Micato Safaris as Chief Financial Officer, Trustee, and Director of Human Resources. She previously held a diplomatic position at the Permanent Mission of Honduras to the United Nations as the Assistant to the Ambassador of Honduras. Her education includes accounting, finance, business administration, technology, hospitality, and travel & tourism. Iris is a Certified Travel Consultant, verified and re-certified by the American Society of Travel Advisors.

She has spent more than 33 concurrent years on the field of non-profits, serving as Treasurer at AmericaShare; at High Water Women Foundation, helping low-income students build their financial skills; at New Life Fellowship volunteering as an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher for adults; supporting the Kiwanis movement of improvement communities for children; and most recently joined CCAMRE (Canadian Central American Relief Effort) volunteering as a translator between Canadian doctors and the Mayan Chorti people in the Merendon Mountains of Guatemala. Iris has been a long-time member, and director on the executive board of several prestigious travel organizations, such as the 41-74 Club of New York, ASTA, AWTA, FIJET, NY PATA, Skal International, Tourism Cares, and others.

Bill Gardiner is a Forty-Nine year veteran of the travel industry. He has worked in all aspects of the industry during his career. He is the Director of Business Development for Downtown Travel, Holidays with Downtown, and The Best Agent.Pro (Downtowns new B2B booking engine). He has been employed by a number of leading Tour operators and Air Consolidators during his career. Bill was the President and one of the founders of National Trade shows a leading Travel industry trade show and event company.

Bill Gardiner attended Villanova University, where his field of study was marketing and management. His professional accreditations include being both a Certified Travel Counselor (CTC) and Certified Travel Industry Executive (CTIE) designations. These were granted by the Travel Institute. He has consulted for and operated programs for various travel companies throughout his career. His professional affiliates include; The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA), CCRA, NY PATA, PTANA, ASTA Small Business Network, Travel Agents of Tennessee (TAT) and SKAL International. He has served on numerous local and national committees for these organizations. He served as President of NJ-SKAL for the 2011/2012 year. He is a resident of New Jersey where he lives with his wife Susan. He has four children and eleven grandchildren.

Akbal Setia has more than 20 years’ experience in tourism development and promotion. He directly involves and speaks on tourism research, worldwide branding, destination marketing, communication, networking, advertising and entrepreneurship. He was the officer-in-charge of studies on hotel, worldwide brand research, site attractiveness index, domestic tourism profiling and airport helpdesk/facilitation for Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board (Tourism Malaysia). He was the receiver of Top 100 Business-Style Award (Vietnam), Management Special Recognition Award (Tourism Malaysia), Excellence Service Award (Tourism Malaysia), Representative for the JICA’s Local Government Administration and Services Program (Japan) and currently serving PATA New York Chapter as Honorary Board Member (2022-2024) and University of California, Riverside Extension as Advisory Board for Design Thinking Program (2022).

Professional Experiences:

1. Vice President, Americas, Tourism Malaysia (Los Angeles, USA) (2020 – current)
2. Regional Director, Tourism Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur/Central Region) (2015 – 2020)
3. Divisional Deputy Director, International Promotion Division Southeast Asia (ASEAN) (Putrajaya) (2014 – 2015)
4. Acting Tourism Attaché, Embassy of Malaysia (Manila, The Philippines) (2014)
5. Tourism Attaché, Embassy of Malaysia (Hanoi, Vietnam) (2009 – 2013)
6. Special Officer, The Office of Tourism Minister, Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) (2009)
7. Deputy State Director, Tourism Malaysia (Sabah) (2007 – 2008)
8. Assistant Director, Research & Planning Division, Tourism Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) (2002 – 2007)