At just 29, Access Travel CEO and Founder Angely Dub has already been to at least 80 countries (and counting!)—locking in all seven continents—to truly know the destinations first before offering them to Filipino clients.


Travail Now, Travel Later

Having started her own business at 19, doubts rained down on her but the young entrepreneur is someone who can’t back down, and thus built a travel empire that helps people plan the trip of a lifetime.

Starting a business is not a walk in the park, take it from the lady boss who marched bravely only to get swindled by her business partner, “From being all the way up, bumagsak ako. I had to build myself all over again,” Angely recalled.

Using her last bit of capital, she took the shot of sending Fashion and Travel blogger Laureen Uy to Malaysia for an all-expense-paid travel experiment. With Laureen Uy posting photos and promoting the agency, Access Travel started gaining followers and is now creating life-changing itineraries for the country’s celebrities and notable personalities.

Being the CEO and Founder, Angely also acts as the tour guide leading a group of people to access expeditions in Iceland, South America, Morocco, etc., “I showed them how beautiful the Northern Lights are and ako mismo ‘yung tour guide nila. I’ve been to Iceland seven times, making sure to study everything about the destination—that’s how different Access Travel is; we won’t sell a destination we don’t completely know about,” Angely explained in one of her past interviews.

Being up in the air for a decade now, Access Travel has been consistent with its goal to make Filipinos #MeetTheWorld. 

But an unwelcome guest arrived⁠—bringing travel to a standstill.


Approved or Denied: The Visa to Urge On

Causing massive job and revenue losses, halting flights, and demanding everyone to shelter in place, COVID-19 has completely put the world sideways, especially the travel industry⁠—leaving Angely no choice but to comply with the restrictions and put her passport aside…for now.

But having been mastered the art of being resilience, it’s no wonder that Angely remained unruffled, “I’m very blessed to say this because I’ve been financially prepared my whole life with emergency funds. Of course, it’s sad so many people lost their jobs and families and so many things… But we should not just live for good life, we should always be prepared for the worst.”

As someone who doesn’t sugarcoat what she has to say, Angely has been and is true to her employees as to where the company is standing right now, “Honestly, this is a situation na lahat tayo damay damay, I don’t actually need to explain myself. To anyone including my employees, it’s very basic, I’m not making money, so I can’t support you… I did everything [mandated by the governement], like filing for SSS, and beyond that I tried to help them, but I cannot support anything if I’m not making money, right?... [Employers] are not making money, we’re all part of one picture… But I’m thankful to have smart employees… I’m very happy to see them; lahat sila madiskarte. And they have small businesses na online.”

While most of us are still under quarantine, Angely is certain that we will soon be packing our bags again, hopping on a plane, chasing stories to tell. Until then, the lady boss enjoys life at the slower lane with her family and furbabies—a pace she never knew she needed the most, after zipping around the globe for 10 years.

Call it fate, but Angely has unintentionally put on a mask and apron and the next thing she knew, she is serving sticks of happiness.


A Joke that Provided Hope

What started out as a quip turned out to be a successful offshoot lockdown venture, “I was like, ‘Ma, mag-iihaw na lang ako sa labas ng bahay,’… joke joke lang, naging seryoso, kasi I was trying to help ‘yung mga nag-iihaw sa amin, mga tricycle driver, kasi wala na silang work, naging seryoso when I put it online, so now it’s here and I have to deal with it,” shared Angely.

Angely started Bulilit Kitchen with just Php 3,000, selling ihaw-ihaw and catering to residences within her village only. But on its third week, her team has already served 65,000+ sticks all over Metro Manila. And it’s all thanks to her commendable interpersonal skills, which she acquired from building Access Travel, “If you know customer service, social media, and how to handle people and complains, you will survive. Any business. And those three things are my expertise.”

As the number of followers Bulilit Kitchen has on Instagram grew, so did its menu. Aside from Pinoy street food, BK has now chicharon, ube cheese pandesal, pandeyema, Smoked Beef, seafood, and Premium Burger on its menu.

Bound for a new industry, Angely admits that she’s still new to this field, but like a traveler new to a place, she is willing to learn and explore this destination. After all, this far-from-what-she-does business has been providing employment to some 25 people making Angely beams with pride and no-money-can-buy joy.

A One-Way Ticket to Success

With Access Travel in one hand and Bulilit Kitchen in the other, it’s hard to wrap our heads around the fact that Angely has managed to stay on top of her game, but given her grit, willpower, and feistiness, clearly a global pandemic won’t stop her from coming up with a meaningful venture that delivers happiness to people.

For Bulilit Kitchen updates and inquiries, follow their Instagram account. 



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