Our Trusted Travel Advisor Network
Need some help with your vacation planning?
Travel can be complicated — and expensive — so it helps to have the expertise of professionals who can help you find the best deals and ensure that you cover all your bases when building that dream trip.
We have met several passionate travel advisors who have helped us during the past two decades of our own travel adventures.
Six Reasons to Use a Travel Professional for Your Vacations
1. You Get Expertise and Insider Knowledge
Travel advisors are travelers, too, and most have been a wide variety of destinations and regularly attend conferences where they meet with representatives from the visitors bureaus of places all over the world. This keeps them well informed about travel trends and cool new attractions and activities that make these places special. They can recommend hidden gems, the best times to visit or deals you might not easily find on your own.
2. They’ll Save You Time
Planning a trip can be overwhelming. It typically means researching flights, hotels, itineraries, and any visa requirements. This can takes hours. A travel pro handles the legwork, which streamlines the process and eliminates any stress.
3. You Get Personalized Planning
You want a trip that feels special to you. You can outline your specific interests, budget and schedule so that you get an experience that feels highly curated a tailor-made for you and your family. This won’t happen on generic online booking platforms.
4. Access to Deals and Perks
Travel advisors will have relationships with airlines, hotels, cruise lines and tour operators, that give you access to exclusive discounts, upgrades or amenities that aren’t available to the public.
5. Support During Your Trip
If something goes wrong — flight cancellations, lost luggage or unexpected changes—a good agent steps in to fix it, often much faster than you could on your own. They’re your advocate. Once again, this eliminates the stress that can come with a complicated travel itinerary, giving you peace of mind.
6. They Make Complex Trips Hassle-Free and Memorable
For multi-destination itineraries, group travel or places with tricky logistics (like visa requirements or remote locations), travel pros handle all the complicated matters and give you a well-organized and detailed itinerary, so that you can just enjoy your vacation.
These Are the Experts We Trust
This is our list of preferred travel advisors, people who we’ve grown to trust and can confidently recommend to friends, family and readers. So, if you would like to build a great travel experience, whether it’s an expedition cruise, all-inclusive resort getaway or other type of vacation, connect with one of these excellent travel pros to have a chat about your plans.
This list is organized by travel style, so you can easily find your specialist to help you create a memorable trip just the way you like it.
Luxury Cruises
Wendy Snyder, Life’s A Trip
Wendy has been in business since 1985. That’s more than 40 years selling luxury travel.
She says that “travel makes you richer” and enjoys crafting memorable vacations that include river cruises, expedition cruises, safaris and private concierge travel.
Phone: 301-421-4400
Email: wendy@lifes-a-trip.com or info@lifes-a-trip.com
Website: www.lifes-a-trip.com
Mary Beth Perini, Perini Travel
Mary Beth’s helped design wonderful vacations for more than a decade, specializing in river and ocean voyages. Most of her cruising focus is on family and luxury travel, honeymoons and couples.
Mary Beth says her goal is to ensure that her clients are on the correct ship and itinerary for them.
“With so many options, I spend time curating the best cruise vacation for my clients,” she says.
Phone: 845-641-9083
Email: mperini@dreamvacations.com
Website: perinitravel.com
Melissa Curtin, FORA Travel Advisor (and longtime travel writer)
Melissa loves helping clients make memories of a lifetime. She says “everyone should travel like a VIP.” She specializes in luxury, river and expedition cruises, as well as VIP perks. This means Melissa can enhance your cruise trip and hotel experience through perks such as room upgrades, spa credits, welcome amenities and more.
Phone: 310-993-1226
Email: Melissa.Curtin@fora.travel
Website: https://www.foratravel.com/advisor/melissa-curtin
Expedition Cruises
Wendy Snyder, Life’s A Trip
Wendy has been in business since 1985. That’s more than 40 years selling luxury travel.
She says that “travel makes you richer” and enjoys crafting memorable vacations that include river cruises, expedition cruises, safaris and private concierge travel.
Phone: 301-421-4400
Email: wendy@lifes-a-trip.com or info@lifes-a-trip.com
Website: www.lifes-a-trip.com
Friends and Families/Large Groups and Charters
Trapper Martin, Shane Smartt & Associates — Your Vacation Heroes
Trapper and Shane have been in the travel business since 2011, specializing in all types of land and sea vacations. Whether you’re planning a family getaway, a luxury escape, or an unforgettable safari, their team can help you plan it all.
With a team of seven associates, they ensure that someone is always available to answer your questions — whether you’re currently on vacation or planning your next adventure.
Trapper and Shane travel extensively while working abroad, exploring the latest ships and resorts, and meeting with trusted tour providers. This hands-on experience gives them the first-hand knowledge needed to help make your vacation perfect.
Phone: 877-232-2228 (toll free) or 202-330-1301 (office)
Email: trapper@dreamvacations.com
Website: YourVacationHeroes.com
Chris Caulfield, CruiseOne
Chris has more than a dozen years as a travel advisor, specializing in cruises.
“Every cruise line has its own personality, and my goal is to ensure you take the right cruise for you,” Chris says. “All while getting you the best value.”
Phone: 888-959-7578 (toll free) or 914-984-5314
Email: ccaulfield@cruiseone.com
Website: https://ccaulfield.cruiseone.com
Safari Trips and Other Adventure Travel
Chip Barker, Oceans & Lands: Luxury & Expedition Travel
Chip specializes in a variety of curated travel experiences, offering expertise on everything from boutique cruises to rugged expeditions and yacht getaways.
Phone: 813-504-9974
Email: info@oceansandland.com
Website: www.OceansAndLands.com
Resorts and Other Land-Based Vacations
Chip Barker, Oceans & Lands: Luxury & Expedition Travel
Chip specializes in a variety of curated travel experiences, offering expertise on everything from boutique cruises to rugged expeditions and yacht getaways.
Phone: 813-504-9974
Email: info@oceansandland.com
Website: www.OceansAndLands.com
Female Group or Solo Travel
Susan Gould, TTL Travel Group — Dream Vacations
Susan launched her travel business in 2018, combining a passion for exploration with a commitment to exceptional service. As her business grew, she recognized a unique need: safe, affordable, and enriching group travel experiences tailored specifically for mature women. In response, she founded The Traveling Lucys Facebook group, which has flourished into a vibrant community of more than 4,700 women. Susan specializes in curating these group travel experiences for the Lucys, as well as designing customized international itineraries for families seeking meaningful, well-planned vacations.
In addition, Susan leads a dedicated team of travel advisors who provide expert planning services for cruises and land tours, catering to individual travelers looking for seamless, personalized travel experiences.
Whether you're dreaming of a solo escape, a family adventure, or joining a group of like-minded women, Susan and her team can turn your travel dreams into reality.
Phone: 321-370-4533
Email: shgould@dreamvacations.com or info@thetravelinglucys.com
Website: sugould.dreamvacations.com or www.thetravelinglucys.com