From Mevagissey to the Arctic, the sisters with an unusual niche

A road sign warning of polar bears isn’t the usual souvenir from a work trip. But for two sisters from a Cornish fishing village, the far north has become part of the job.

Sarah Thompson and Nicola Leith run Mapping Your Travel, a small independent travel agency based in Mevagissey. Over the last couple of years they have been building a rather unusual specialism from the harbourside village: expedition cruising to Antarctica, the Arctic and the Galapagos Islands.

📷Sarah Thompson and Nicola Leith in the Arctic. Credit: Mapping Your Travel

A travel agency with no shop window

The sisters set up the business five years ago, and have lived in Mevagissey for the last twelve. They arrange all sorts of holidays, from family beach breaks to tailor-made, multi-centre trips and bucket-list adventures.

There is no high-street shop. They work from home and meet customers locally, often in a café, or chat to them over Zoom. Now and then they run travel pop-ups and exhibit at wedding fairs around Cornwall too.

Customers come from across the UK, but the pair describe Mapping Your Travel as very much a small Cornish business. It is a member of Hays Travel Independence Group, and its holidays are ABTA and ATOL protected.

“We love being able to help people plan their holidays, whether that’s a week in the sunshine or a once-in-a-lifetime adventure to somewhere they’ve always dreamed of visiting,” said Sarah.

📷On board an expedition ship in Svalbard. Credit: Mapping Your Travel

Svalbard and the expedition ships

Both sisters have always loved travelling. Nicola had already been on an expedition cruise along the Norwegian coast to the Arctic Circle before the pair went further north together.

In July 2025 they visited Svalbard in the Arctic with CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association), the global cruise industry trade association. They looked around several expedition ships, met people working in the industry and got to experience the Arctic for themselves.

📷Nicola Leith with her CLIA Expedition Cruise Champion certificate. Credit: CLIA/Steve Dunlop Photography

A year of training

After that trip, the sisters completed CLIA’s year-long Expedition Cruise Champion training programme, graduating in 2026.

“It’s an area of travel we’ve really enjoyed learning about, and we’re now developing expedition cruising as one of our specialist areas,” said Sarah.

Their expedition cruise holidays page sets out what they offer.

📷A polar bear warning sign in Svalbard. Credit: Mapping Your Travel

Antarctica in 2027

Sarah has a trip of her own lined up. In November 2027 she will head to Antarctica on an expedition cruise, something she says she is incredibly excited about.

📷Where Next? The Bucket List edition. Credit: Mapping Your Travel

A magazine of their own

The sisters have also created and printed their own travel magazine, Where Next? The first edition, The Bucket List, is packed with ideas for journeys around the world, from Antarctica and Japan to Peru, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Australia.

A second edition, The Expedition Cruise, is now being put together. And the back page of the first already teases two more after that, an Adventure edition and a Romance edition.

📷Svalbard. Credit: Mapping Your Travel

📷Svalbard. Credit: Mapping Your Travel

📷Sarah Thompson and Nicola Leith in Svalbard. Credit: Mapping Your Travel

📷Sarah Thompson and Nicola Leith in Svalbard. Credit: Mapping Your Travel