As a full-time travel advisor of 4+ years, my professional specialty is the careful planning, design, and logistical implementation of 100% customized travel itineraries created for any budget, interest, destination, and type of traveler. I have extensive experience with heavily detailed and personalized management of vacations as short as 3 days, and as long as multiple months. While most of my past clients have come to me to produce specialized European itineraries, I’m also very well-versed in Asia and South America and feel comfortable producing itinerary designs for anywhere else around the globe as well. Prior to becoming a professional advisor, I had 20+ years of customizing and implementing the logistics of my own personal travels, often involving multiple weeks of travel at a time, to 5+ cities and multiple countries in a single trip. As a professional member of ASTA, IATAN, and Travel Leaders Network through my agency Grandview Travel, I also have access to an enormous network of close industry contacts in hotels, tour companies, and more, which enables me to not only acquire special discounts and/or benefits for my clients, but also VIP treatment and specialized private guides that are generally unavailable to consumers. My professional reviews can be found here.
I have a Masters in History of Art & Museum Studies, several years of PhD experience in History of Art (specializing in Nineteenth-century European art), and have advanced language skills in German, as well as beginner skills in Korean. In my free time, I am a voracious reader of history books and nonfiction, as well as historical fiction, sci-fi, and spy novels, and enjoy listening to Korean pop music, gardening, cooking, watching documentaries, drinking coffee, and interior decorating.
Specializations
While I am well-versed in almost every destination throughout the globe and am happy to arrange any type of travel for you, there are a number of types of itineraries I hold particular expertise in.
- EUROPE
- France, especially Paris, the Loire Valley, Provence, and the Riviera
- Spain, especially Andalusia and the south
- Greece, Italy, and the Mediterranean
- Germanic regions, with a focus on Bavaria and Austria
- Central and Eastern Europe
- MOROCCO
- JAPAN
- VIETNAM AND THAILAND
- RIVER CRUISES
- CENTRAL AMERICA
- ART HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY
- especially France, Italy, Germany art museums and galleries
- Islamic and Near Eastern architecture and archaeology
- ancient Greek and Roman archaeology
- Japanese and Chinese art and painting
- SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL
- SOLO TRAVEL
- I believe that solo travel offers very specific benefits and rewards that are often lost when traveling with companions. Studies show that solo travel offers more serendipitous moments, inspires creativity, and engages the mind and soul in very powerful ways. It can be nerve-wracking to go on your first solo trip, so let me take you by the hand and help you feel comfortable, safe, and secure in planning your perfect solo trip! I can help you decide on your destination, or if you already have one in mind, help you plan the best solo itinerary and book the safest and best places to stay.
- LUXURY AND HIGH-END TRAVEL
- OFF-THE-BEATEN-PATH DESTINATIONS
- RETURN-VISIT ITINERARIES
- Is this your second, third, or fourth time visiting Paris, Rome, or Athens and you’re looking for unique and new things to do that the mainstream sight-seer wouldn’t necessarily experience on their first trip to the destination? These are my favorite sorts of itineraries to arrange!