Travel design Services
You don't need someone to click 'book' for you.
You need someone who understands why the details matter,
someone who's already spent the time uncovering what makes a place worth your time.
If you're investing weeks of your time and thousands of dollars into a trip, you shouldn't be left wondering what you might be missing. You want someone who knows these places deeply, who understands what makes them meaningful, and who can shape an experience around how you actually like to travel.
Most travel agents will book what you ask for. I design the kind of trip you might not have thought to ask for, the one that actually fits you.
Traditional agents work from packages and supplier deals. They'll sort your hotels and transfers if you already know exactly what you want.
I start somewhere else. Why are you traveling? What do you want to feel? What are you curious about? I build your trip around your answers, your pace, your interests. Not around what's easy or what's being sold.
You aren't hiring me to make bookings. You're hiring me to think about the pace, the context, and the story your trip will tell. I focus on the experiences that will actually matter to you.
What Makes This Different
3. You Travel
2. I Design
I design your trip around what I learn about you: your pace, your questions, what you hope to find or feel. Sometimes that means a morning with a historian in a Florentine studio. Sometimes it means a river cruise that gives you room to slow down and actually connect. If you’re traveling with family, I make sure each person is part of the story, not merely a name on the itinerary.
You'll see the full itinerary before anything is booked. Hotels that suit your pace, guides who know the side streets most people never find, tables reserved at places you might have missed on your own. We’ll shape it together until it feels like your story, not simply a trip that works on paper.
1. We Talk
We start by exploring what actually draws you to travel: the feelings you want to chase, the moments you hope will stay with you long after you’re home.
I don't start with "Where do you want to go?"
I start with questions like, "What are you reading right now? What kind of trip would your teenage daughter actually remember? Do you want to be challenged or restored?"
This conversation is how I learn what kind of traveler you are. Not just where you want to go, but how you want to experience it.
How I Design Your Trip
Before you leave, you'll have everything you need: your itinerary with all the details, the small notes that bring a place to life, and my contact information in case anything arises.
Once you arrive, I keep listening. If the weather changes or your energy shifts, I modify the plan so you can keep exploring without worrying about logistics.
Your job is to experience the trip. Mine is to make sure you can.
Every trip begins with how you like to move through the world: your pace, your curiosity, and the way you want to feel in each place. From there, I design each day so you understand not just where you're headed, but how it all connects and why it matters.
I reserve tables at restaurants that don't show up in search results. The kind where you need to know someone to get in. I'll tell you when to move through a museum slowly, and when a quieter hour will give you the room to actually see it. You'll have maps with my own notes, pointing out what's worth your time and, more importantly, why.
Before you leave, we'll walk through your trip together so you feel not just prepared, but genuinely excited. Your itinerary lives right on your phone, and if something shifts during your trip, I'm a message away. I'll help you adjust without missing what matters most.
When I suggest a neighborhood, it's because it fits your style and pace, not because it's the obvious choice. Often, the most lasting moments come from skipping the expected and choosing something a little more unexpected. I'll help you find those.
What This Looks Like
What I Specialize In
Every designed itinerary is delivered through your private Travel Studio and includes a complete day-by-day plan with cultural context, confirmed reservations for accommodations and key experiences, restaurant recommendations, transportation logistics, and emergency contacts.
Beyond the itinerary itself, you receive access to your Traveler Resource Hub, preparation guidance, and direct communication with me throughout the process.
During your trip, I'm available for real-time support. If that's a last-minute restaurant change, a question about local customs, or something unexpected that needs a quick solution.
The goal is that everything feels handled. You focus on being present. I focus on making sure every detail works.
A river cruise can be one of the most rewarding ways to see Europe, but only if the route, the cruise line, and even the season fit the way you like to travel. The right combination turns a simple journey into something memorable. The wrong one just feels like another trip.
When I design a river cruise, I start by asking how you want each day to feel. Do you want to wake up in Prague and wander quiet streets before the city stirs? Or would you rather skip the crowded excursions and linger over coffee by the water, watching the world go by?
This is for travelers who want the ease of a cruise but aren't ready to give up the sense of discovery that comes from exploring on their own terms.
A small group trip isn’t about ticking off landmarks or trailing behind a guide. It’s about wandering with people who are genuinely curious, led by someone who understands the city beyond the obvious. You find yourself in conversations you wouldn’t have had alone, discovering corners you’d walk past if you were on your own. You never feel like you’re just part of a crowd.
I know which guides help you actually experience a place, and which ones just recite stories. When I recommend a group trip, it’s because I’ve watched how the guide draws people in, how the group moves through the city, and how it fits the way you like to travel.
This is for travelers who want to feel a real connection to a place and its people, but also want the space to follow their own curiosity when something unexpected catches their eye.
Traveling with three generations isn’t about squeezing everyone into a suite. It’s about letting your teenager wander a little, making sure your parent feels comfortable, and knowing the trip was shaped around your family. Not slotted into someone else’s template.
I’ve designed trips where teenagers linger at dinner, grandparents are part of the conversation, and parents finally get to exhale because someone else is handling the details. This is for families who want a trip that turns into a story you’ll tell for years, not just another box to tick off.
Adventure is more than seeking out the most extreme experiences. It means walking into the unknown, being open to surprises, and coming back with a story you never expected to tell.
When I design adventure trips, I look for the moments that feel like genuine discoveries. Maybe it's stumbling onto a quiet overlook on a morning hike, tracing a coastline where every cove has its own legend, or being welcomed into a kitchen simply because you asked a question.
These trips are for travelers who want to come home changed, who care less about checking off sights and more about how a place lingers with them long after they've left.
Everything above is where I begin when I design a trip for you.
From there, I add the details that make your trip feel natural; so you can actually be present in the place, not caught up in the planning.
Travel Enhancements
Imagine visiting a museum with an art historian who shows how each artwork is part of a living story. Or think about cooking in a kitchen that feels like a friend’s, where you can smell sauce simmering and something fresh baking.
I can arrange for someone to meet you at the gate and walk you through the airport; no lines, no confusion, just a calm start to your trip. If you like the idea of arriving at your hotel and finding your luggage already waiting, I work with partners who ship your bags ahead so you can travel light and skip the carousel entirely. And if you have travel points sitting unused, I can help you turn them into flights, upgrades, or experiences that actually fit your trip. Not just whatever happens to be available.
I arrange private flights and yacht charters. I also open doors that aren't available to the public; a museum before it opens, a private estate you'd never find on your own, a behind-the-scenes look at places most travelers will never see.
You can't click and reserve these moments. They happen because of relationships built on patience and trust; and because I know exactly who to call.
This is for travelers who want to experience a place on their own terms. People who care about privacy, flexibility, and finding the corners of a destination that most people never hear about.
How Pricing Works
Designing a trip that feels made for you takes time. For most itineraries, that's 60 to 80 hours of research, curation, and coordination before you ever board a plane. My fee reflects that work, and the two decades of experience behind it.
Trip Design Investment
Starts at $750.
This covers trips up to seven nights, for one to four travelers, in a single country. The fee includes your custom itinerary, property and experience recommendations, all reservations and coordination, and my support before you leave and while you're traveling.
For longer trips, multi-country itineraries, or groups larger than four, the fee is quoted after our phone consultation. Complex European journeys, the kind I design most often, typically start at $1,500 and scale from there based on length, destinations, and the number of travelers.
The design fee is separate from what you'll spend on properties, flights, and experiences. I book those on your behalf.
Last-Minute Planning
Travel requested inside standard planning windows requires faster turnaround and rearranging of my existing work. These fees are added to the standard design fee.
-Requests within 60 days of departure: $350
-Requests within 30 days of departure: $650
Festive Season
Travel between December 15 and January 2 is the most competitive window of the year for properties, experiences, and guides. Requests received after June 1 for festive season travel: $650, added to the standard design fee.
What Happens Next
After our phone consultation, I'll send you a proposal with the scope of your trip and your total design fee in writing. Nothing begins until you've reviewed and approved it.
This is not research for hire. It's the work of understanding what matters to you and building a journey around it so every part of your trip feels considered, and worth the time you put into it.
Common Questions
What's the difference between a travel agent and a travel designer? Most travel agents are experts at booking flights, hotels, and packages. I start somewhere else entirely: with how you want to feel, what you're curious about, and how you imagine spending your days. I handle the bookings, but the real work is designing a trip that feels purposeful, not just organized.
How much does it cost to work with a travel designer? My design fee depends on how complex your trip is.. I walk you through all of this in our first conversation, so you know exactly what to expect. The consultation is always complimentary.
Do I need to be in Phoenix to work with you? No. Most of our planning happens over the phone, video, or email. Many of my clients are in Phoenix and Scottsdale, and I love working with people here, but wherever you are, the process is the same.
How far in advance should I start planning? For most trips, three to six months is ideal. If you're thinking about summer, holidays, or a big family trip, six to nine months gives us more options. But I've also created wonderful trips on shorter notice. It really depends on what you want from your experience.
What if I'm not sure where I want to go? That's actually one of the best reasons to start a conversation. Many of my clients come in with a feeling—they want something cultural, or relaxed, or adventurous, but not a specific place in mind. Discovering what fits you best is something we figure out together.