About Us

Suzette Finlayson

Suzette Finlayson, Owner/CEO

Island Expert Travel, its owner/CEO Suzette Finlayson and her staff boast more than 20 years of experience in the travel business. So, what better way to book your holiday than with folks that know the ins and outs of the travel business. In fact, Ms. Finlayson is a certified destination wedding specialist and has been recognized 6 times in 2012-2014 and 2017-2019 by the Jamaica Tourist Board as one of their top 50 travel agents out of 40,000 in the United States.

Ultimately, her passion for service and in-depth knowledge of the travel industry led to her successful travel service, Island Expert Travel. Today, Island Expert Travel offers travel services including destination weddings honeymoons, conventions, family vacations to special events including St. Lucia Jazz, Cropover in Barbados, island tours in Grenada, and Sumfest in Jamaica.

Client Satisfaction Above Profits

The company’s biggest growth is travel beyond the islands. Imagine honeymooning in Italy or exploring the exotic sights and sounds on a Safari tour of the Republic of Namibia. A shopping trip to London may be just what the doctor ordered. Experiencing rich flamenco culture in Spain, trekking through the Black Forest in Baden-Wurttemberg Germany, or getting a once-in-a-lifetime glimpse of majestic icebergs on an Alaskan cruise is all within reach with Island Expert Travel.

A solo traveler or a large group that need a bit more guidance upon landing? Island Expert Travel can arrange receptive tour operators to meet you on arrival to help you feel at home. We are accessible travel professionals. We offer personalized service, understand the cultural nuances of our customers and, most importantly, we rank client satisfaction about profits.

Our Agents:

Nicole White – Destination Event Planner

nicole-whiteNicole White is not only someone who can tailor the perfect destination wedding or honeymoon but she also is the owner of Nicole White Designs − Interiors/Events. Nicole White Designs is a full-service interior design and event planning company, dedicated to transforming the spaces and lives of clients.

Ms. White, a certified wedding and event planner, has spent years turning homes into soothing, yet savvy, retreats, and turning events into decadent affairs for clients throughout South Florida and the Caribbean. She prides herself on cultivating long-standing, intimate relationships with clients as they plan and design for the varying stages of their lives.

With almost a decade of experience as an interior decorator, it was her clients’ love of her design work and many requests to create show-stopping events for anniversaries, birthdays, weddings and baby showers that ultimately forged the growth of her event planning business. She especially enjoys arranging the perfect Caribbean destination event because the islands provide such an array of special locations.

As a Jamaican native, she is deeply inspired by the colors and textures of the Caribbean and constantly fuses those elements into her designs. Ms. White prides herself on creating a room or event guided by her client’s passions – from contemporary to traditional to vintage.

Allow her to transform your space, your event, your life!

Maxine J. Tulloch – Cruise Specialist

Whether it’s a honeymoon, family reunion, business conference, weekend get-away, or a romantic retreat… she’ll find you the perfect cruise at the best price!

Ms. Tulloch is an experienced cruise and destination consultant, and as a professional, she goes the extra mile to make your travel experience perfect.

She has extensive experience in organizing and planning memorable world tours, family reunion and affinity group cruises, honeymoons and unique personal travel experiences. Whether you wish to travel to an exotic destination aboard a cruise ship, experience a unique land tour or a family safari in Africa, let her help you plan your next dream vacation.

She provides a service that is better, faster, more affordable and less stressful than doing it yourself. As her client, you will receive only the best! As your cruise & destination consultant, she’ll assure your comfort in communicating entirely via e-mail. Part of the point of having a travel consultant is that you are freed up to do other, more important things while the travel research is taking place. She will handle all the stress of researching your trip and making multiple phone calls to nail down your cruise, flight or hotel. And she’ll do all of this and update you by e-mail, with response times measured in minutes or hours, not days.

Welcome to the world of luxury travel with Maxine!

Tiffanie Jones Artis – Travel Advisor

Photo of Tiffanie Jones ArtisTiffanie Jones Artis, is the President of Sitra Development Incorporated, a management company that owns Howell and Gene’s Driving Schools that have served Monmouth, Ocean, and Middlesex Counties for over 60 years. Since Artis and her husband bought the driving schools in 2018, the company has experienced a 30% sales growth with focus on marketing and branding, product development, operational excellence, and superior customer service.

Artis joined Island Expert Travel in 2018 after spending 10 years planning trips for her friends and family. Artis is an expert at group travel in the United States, Caribbean, Mexico, and Europe. Artis can plan your dream weddings, milestone birthdays, and family celebrations from beginning to end down to the finest detail.

Prior to Artis becoming an entrepreneur, she spent 25 years in Corporate America leading Fortune 500 brands. Artis’ brand management roles include being the Head of Marketing for North America at Maersk Line, the largest shipping carrier in the world, Executive Global Brand Director at Avon Products Inc. where she was responsible for its $2.5B Global Cosmetics Category, Marketing Director for Alberto Culver’s Multicultural Hair Care portfolio and Brand Manager at Unilever for its consumer brands Suave and Degree.

A native of Chicago, Artis holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accountancy from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She also earned a MBA from Indiana University, Kelly School of Business where she majored in International Strategic Marketing. She studied abroad in the MBA Exchange Program at the Jouy-en-Josas School of Business in Paris, France and participated in the Michigan Ross School of Business Executive Education program.

Artis is a member of the Monmouth Regional Chamber of Commerce, Howell Chamber of Commerce, Letip Chapter of Freehold, National Association of Driving Schools, and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. She is an MLT Capstone Fellow- a prestigious Career Advancement Program. She loves to travel experiencing new foods and cultures, is an avid cook who recreates the foods from her travels, and is obsessed with the Max Fitness challenge, the latest workout craze taking the state of New Jersey by storm. Artis is married to Anthony with two children, Isaiah and Alessia.