So many singers, bands and touring shows have been taking to the road this summer to fill seats in venues large and small. At the same time, many of the people who ticket these shows have been or will be heading out for distant vistas of their own … on vacation!
Yes, we wondered. What are INTIX members doing on their summer vacations this year? So, we asked a bunch of them, and — well — get ready to be jealous some of you!
Summer Vacations Completed
Some of our ticketing and live event professionals have already gone and come back on their amazing summer trips. One such pro is Margo Malone, Senior Manager of Season Ticket Memberships & Special Projects for the San Francisco Giants. Her early summer vacation in June saw her and her husband travel to Ireland with 10 members of her community choir. “We performed in the Dublin Choral Festival at St. Patrick’s Cathedral,” she says. “But before reporting for rehearsals, our group make a detour to Galway and Doolin to attend a traditional FolkFest, which featured traditional Celtic music!”
Margo Malone and her husband in front of the Eiffel Tower.
She continues, “Perhaps the best part of my excellent summer adventures, though, was extending my time in Europe. After the Dublin concert, my husband and I flew to Paris, France, and enjoyed five days of eating incredible food and touring all the popular sites. My reaction to seeing the Eiffel Tower lit up at night was better than a kid experiencing Disneyland for the first time. Priceless!”
Malone wasn’t the only Giant traveling this summer. When we caught up with Amy Matlins, Senior Director of the Ticketing for the NFL’s New York Giants, she was actually on holiday! “My family and I have rented the same lake house in New Hampshire since 2019,” she stated. “We stay right on the lake and go kayaking, tubing, paddle boarding, hiking, play games, talk around the campfire, etc. It’s really fun. We don’t live near our family, so we take these opportunities to build some new family traditions.”
Russell Thompson, Box Office Manager and Event Coordinator at State University of New York at New Paltz, planned his summer travel for the Fourth of July weekend. Just prior to leaving, he remarked, “My wife and kids and I will be visiting my aunt and uncle at their lake house in Canandaigua, New York. We plan on enjoying each other’s company watching fireworks from the dock, swimming in the lake, crushing Solo Stove smores and [chuckling] paddleboarding until we fall in.”
Thompson even had a backup plan in case of inclement weather. The family’s alternate destination was The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester “to explore their ginormous collection of games and interactive exhibits. Just a short, fun family road trip to celebrate the beginning of summer.”
Jamie L. Brouse, Manager of Bucknell University’s Campus Box Office, also focused on family with her summer vacation plans. She says, “I took a long weekend to Seneca Lake with my siblings and their spouses. There were eight of us, and we had a great time touring the wineries, sampling the goods and playing card games in the evening. One of the wineries had Jurassic World and Statue of Liberty [themed features]. It was totally unexpected and fun, more so for those of us who were partaking. I kayaked for the first time, sat on the deck, read and hiked Watkins Glen with its gorgeous waterfalls. That weekend was just what I needed!”
Jamie L. Brouse kayaking at Seneca Lake.
Also going the family route was Daniel McBride, Senior Director of Ticketing & Experiences for the USGA. He has three brothers, and their respective families are currently spread across the country from coast to coast. “Every summer, we get together for a week, generally at a beach town in North Carolina,” he says. “It’s a great chance to unplug, relax and just spend quality time with family. One of the highlights is our annual miniature golf tournament, which my 10 nieces and nephews take very seriously!”
Toby Baptist, Vice President of Operations for LasVegasTickets.com, says his big fun came quite early in the season: “I'll be generous, and say this was the ‘start of summer.’ In May, my wife and I got to take a ‘no kids’ trip, and we went to EDC in Las Vegas. It was a great time to connect with my wife and just experience something new together. I especially enjoyed her getting to relax, dance and just have so much fun. She loves to dance, and when you have three young boys running around you don't get to go out and do it often.”
The couple ended up having such a great time that Mrs. Baptist almost immediately started trying to convince Toby to go back in 2026. He states, “I would suggest everyone reading this go at least once. The Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Insomniac do such a great job with the event, that even if it's not totally your scene, you'll have a great time.”
For Generation Xers and lovers of ‘80s pop culture, Darren Coelho had perhaps the coolest summer excursion. The Associate Athletics Director of Ticket Operations for San Jose University, his wife and another couple visited Chicago and attended their first-ever Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field. “What a special place,” he beams. “We loved every bit of it. And because we all love to laugh, we also did our best Ferris, Sloane and Cameron in reenacting that famous scene at the Art Institute of Chicago!”
Darren Coelho recreating Ferris, Sloane and Cameron's famous scene at the Art Institute of Chicago.
Summer Holidays Still to Come
And then there are those hard-working ticketing and live event professionals who still have a big summer trip to look forward to. After all, we’re only a week removed from the recent July holiday weekends. There’s still plenty of July and August left!
Anja Arvo, Senior Sales Lead at Ferve Tickets, has more than one trip planned. After spending part of June in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, celebrating her and her husband’s anniversary, this month she will be heading to a Buffalo Bisons game in Buffalo, New York, and in August to Hamilton, Ontario, for a Forge FC soccer match as part of the Greater Niagara Ticketing Professionals Summer Social events being offered this year.
She says, “I am most looking forward to seeing what the interest level will be, to see if we can attract new members, to catch up with current members and to tell everyone about the INTIX on the Road series … not to mention being able to have two different game day experiences on both sides of the border!”
Not to be outdone is Aren Murray, INTIX board member. She has three trips planned, two of them to see her sons. One of her boys is a musician for Howl at the Moon, a new piano bar in Fort Lauderdale. Her other son lives in West Virginia and has recently moved into a new home. “His goal is to be an astronaut, by the way!” she exclaims. “For now, he is settling on just being an aerospace engineer. Such lofty goals. We will be spending time exploring nature in this lovely state.”
Finally, she says she will be going to New Orleans for the IAVM conference “to expand my horizons. I love New Orleans. And beyond the learning and networking that I will be taking full advantage of, I will absolutely be enjoying some music and food. New Orleans is the ultimate in round-the-clock entertainment. I can't wait to absorb it all!”
Danielle Pope, Regional Director of Ticketing at Augusta Entertainment Complex, is equally excited for a vacation she has planned for this summer. She will be heading to Ireland and Scotland in August. “I'm taking my mom for her birthday,” she says. “It will be her first time out of North America, so I'm excited for her to finally get a stamp in her passport. We have Irish ancestry, so we'll be traveling to some of those places in the country as well as taking in the beautiful sites and sights.”
Finally, there is Christina Allen, Senior Manager, Box Office, for the Ottawa Senators and the Canadian Tire Centre. Every year, she, her mom and her sister rent a condo in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. “No great plans when we’re there, which are the best kinds of plans, aren’t they?!” she says. “We spend most days poolside, with some adventures into Mont-Tremblant village for some treats. They have the best ice cream and chocolate shops! It’s the perfect relaxing vacation, with lots of old-fashioned, quality family time!”
For many INTIX professionals, of course, summer is one of their busiest times of the year. Consequently, the big vacation can only come in an "off month" like March or September. Whenever you have the time and opportunity to step away from the office, home office or box office, consider taking inspiration from the above members and "take to the road" for your own adventure.