In our latest inCROWD interview, we catch up with Danene Dustin, senior global sales executive at Morris Meetings & Incentives on her passion for incentives, travel and nature.

Danene believes in a healthy lifestyle so at times a quick hike under a bright sun and clear sky beats traveling to the most exotic destinations, but don’t be fooled, as she is a travel veteran. In her early years, Danene lived in Australia and later resided in Colombia, South America. She knows more than most what a successful incentive trip entails having extensive experience in conference coordinating and event planning. She has a Bachelor's degree in Travel & Tourism as well as a Master of Arts degree in American Studies.

Danene's love of people and culture fuel her travel passion. An expedition into the depths of the Peruvian Amazon and traveling throughout Morocco are among her favourite travel experiences…

The thing I am most looking forward to at this year’s inVOYAGE in Mykonos is… rubbing shoulders with others in the travel/event industry in a beautiful setting that I will learn about in order to confidently sell to a client for a future incentive programme or meeting.

The thing I most love about working in events is… seeing the excited faces of the trip earners when they arrive onsite to a beautiful resort or hotel and watching them throughout the programme as they take in all the incredible scenery and activities their company has awarded them for a job well done.

Luxury to me means… being wrapped in a fur blanket while lying on a very comfy sofa with a cool, fizzy lemonade with smooth jazz playing in the background, all while reading an extraordinarily interesting book, dozing off here and there, without a care in the world.

My earliest travel memory is… moving to Australia to live for four years at the tender age of six. Along the way we stopped in Hawaii, Samoa and Fiji. It was truly an eye-opening experience for a little girl in the mid-1970s.

City slicker or beach bum?
Beach or mountains! I have become very fond of quiet spaces within nature as I love hiking, walking and exploring all the beauty of this world.

If you could get on a plane right now, where would you fly and why…
I would actually drive to Southern Utah and go explore some slot canyons I have yet to visit, in Escalante Staircase, to be more specific.

Suitcase essentials 
Blanket for the often-cold plane and Bose headphones.

Your favourite hidden gem?
Wild Rose Trail which I can see from my back deck. I hike it year-round and find pure peace and joy when doing so.

Most memorable event moment… Palm Grove dinner in Marrakech, Morocco, complete with camel rides, belly dancers, a fire eater, and a traditional Moroccan dinner served in tajins.

Do you have a mantra you live and work by?
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.” — Theodore Roosevelt

When I’m not working, I’m most likely to be… walking, hiking, working out, baking, playing with my granddaughters, or creating something with yarn

When the pandemic is over, I am most looking forward to… leaving the mask at home and hugging everyone!