“Thank you for the memories!” Brenda Kyllo retires after 45-year career in travel

A prominent figure in the travel industry has announced that she is retiring.

Brenda Kyllo, who most recently held the role of vice president of strategic alliances at AmaWaterways, announced her retirement on Facebook, starting her new chapter on July 1.

“I’m a little worried about how I will fill my days but I have two adorable grandchildren here in Calgary and a third one on the way in Paris that I am looking forward to spending more time with,” she wrote, adding that she plans to enjoy the “real luxuries in life” – friends, family and travel.

Kyllo concludes a distinguished career marked by leadership roles at several travel companies, including CAA National, where she was once vice president, Merit Leisure Group, where she was VP of marketing, industry relations, and product development, and Club Med, where she spent nearly three decades, and ultimately rose to the position of president and general manager for Canada.

Choose a job you love

Retiring, following a 45-year career in travel, “certainly feels bittersweet,” Kyllo wrote PAX in an email Wednesday morning (July 2).

“In my case, the saying ‘choose a job you love and you'll never have to work a day in life’ certainly feels very true,” she said.

Kyllo’s early desire to experience the world led her to give up a good job in the oil industry in Calgary, AB, to follow her heart (and Jean-Noel, her future husband) to the Bahamas to work for Club Med.

At the time, what started out as a six-month break, turned into a 27-year career that led to Kyllo living and working in Malaysia, Australia, Singapore, Canada, France, and finally back home to Canada as president of Club Med Canada in 2003.

“For a girl raised in the Prairies, I always seemed to end up around water and boats!” she said.

Some of Kyllo’s career highlights include the six years she spent in Singapore, overseeing regional operations (including two Club Med resorts in the Maldives), seven years in Paris, managing two Club Med ships, as well as her homecoming to Club Med in Montreal, QC, where she managed a team for five years.

She had the pleasure of working alongside Mike Merrithew and Louise de Grandpre on the retail side before landing a position as vice president of travel at CAA National.

It was through her supplier relations work at CAA that she met and worked with Kristin Karst and Rudi Schreiner, the co-founders of luxury river cruise line AmaWaterways.

In 2014, Kyllo was “very honoured” to become Ama’s first Canadian godmother when she christened the AmaSonata.

“But it was their passion for river cruising, genuine care for their guests and respect for the travel advisor community that made it such an easy decision for me to go and work with them in 2015,” Kyllo said. “The remarkably talented team at AmaWaterways welcomed me with open arms.”

As vice president of strategic alliances, Kyllo took on various roles at the river cruise company, including managing public relations and overseeing the content team.

“Once again, water – this time rivers – and ships shaped 10 wonderful years of my professional and personal life,” Kyllo said.

She gives credit to “all the incredible people I have had the pleasure of working with in this industry.”

“I hold them very close to my heart and count many of them as my dearest friends who have supported me personally through life's ups and downs,” Kyllo said.

A full-circle moment

So, what's next? It's only day two of Kyllo’s retirement – and she admits she doesn’t have a set plan (yet).

“I have no idea what the future has in store except more freedom to spoil my grandkids,” she said. “Life has come full circle as I have returned to live in Calgary to be close to my family – although I do plan to spend quite a bit of time in Paris where my daughter lives.”

It’s clear that every twist and turn led Kyllo exactly where she was meant to be.                                  

“Being open to change, and following my heart into the travel industry, brought me a wonderful husband, two incredible kids, deep friendships and wonderful experiences that will keep me laughing for the next 20 years,” she said. “Thank you for the memories!”

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