Our Story
A Curiosity For Travel
When I was two days from beginning high school in Houston, my parents told me that I was being sent to live in Italy for a year with some family friends. Not speaking a word of Italian and not knowing anyone, I arrived at Lake Como to begin an experience that changed the course of my life.
My year abroad in Italy sparked a love for travel and a curiosity about different cultures. that has led me to live in Israel for a year, Prague for a semester, Ecuador for a summer, and to live on a ship for 4 months while circumnavigating the globe. I have traveled to 60+ countries and spent almost a decade leading hiking, biking and multi-adventure trips for Backroads throughout Europe and South America.
BECOMING A GUIDE
Backroads Trip Leader
When I first started working as a guide in 2013, my original plan was to spend two years leading trips for Backroads while I “figured out what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.” It didn’t take me long to realize that I love creating once in a lifetime moments and vacations for other people.
Backroads gave me an opportunity to apply my passion for travel and adventure in a professional setting where I learned the importance of adaptability, communication, attention to detail, problem-solving, and having fun while providing exceptional customer service. I experienced the best hotels, restaurants, and outdoor activities in the Dolomites, Peru, Bhutan, Tuscany, Vietnam, Norway, Patagonia, Mallorca, Amalfi Coast and several other Backroads regions. During my months off, I camped throughout New Zealand, completed a yoga teacher training in Costa Rica, and backpacked Southeast Asia and South America.
Looking back on this period of my life, I can’t imagine a better way to have spent my 20’s. Eight years later, it was finally time to stop living out of a suitcase as I finished my last trip for Backroads in 2020. Little did I know, I was about to embark on my biggest professional adventure yet – Bluestone Travel.
A NEW TRAVEL EXPERIENCE
Bluestone Travel
In 2022, I partnered with the Houstonian Club, a luxury fitness and wellness facility, to offer an exclusive hiking trip for Houstonian members in the Italian Dolomites. We had three sold out groups and feedback was exceptional. The initial Bluestone Travel success in the Dolomites led to several new trips that have since been launched.
I collaborated with Explora for my trip in Chile, &Beyond for my trip in South Africa and Botswana, and Backroads for my trips in Bhutan and Finland. In addition to these collaborations, I spent two years researching and developing a trip in the most remote location I have ever been, the Faroe Islands.