The countdown was on! Every December, we would leave our hometown of Santa Cruz, California, and fly from San Francisco to paradise for three weeks- and the anticipation brought so much excitement! We had traveled together as a family for as long as I could remember. Long trips in our motorhome where my sister and I mastered many things together-playing the game of Uno, singing along to the best of ‘80’s country, and experimenting on each other with the latest hairstyles. To this day, when I hear one of those songs, I always sing along with a smile.
Our Christmas vacations were spent on Kauai every year, which included missing a week of school. One year, I had a teacher who asked me to forget all of the homework and write a research paper on the culture and history of Hawaii. This research fascinated me and was the beginning of my interest in world cultures.
Kauai is a very special place; beautiful, relaxing, fun and adventurous. When we traveled, we only ate where “the locals” ate. We listened to the local music and made local friends as well as developed friendships with other travelers from all over the world. Every day was a new and exciting adventure which was taken to a new level when we were old enough to go and hang out with our local friends. Body surfing on waves we shouldn’t be anywhere near, hiking through a remote jungle and jumping into a pond over a waterfall, snorkeling with sea turtles, spending a day at the local high school to really get some culture; there was always something fun and interesting to do.
My travels continued as I went off to college. I would go anywhere and everywhere I could. One summer, I worked on Oahu as a lifeguard on a catamaran! A persuasive assignment in my Speech class was focused on why everyone should travel, and started with “Just get up and GO!” I truly believed that everyone should be traveling, and I still believe this today!
It was no surprise that my career started with a very large corporate and leisure travel agency in downtown San Francisco. It was there that I furthered my travel planning and worldwide knowledge by helping anyone on staff that I could. It was amazing how much I could glean from them. My boyfriend (now husband) was in year-round dental school so when he had a quarterly break, I always had an exciting trip planned for us. During my time at this agency, I had the opportunity to write a comprehensive travel and hotel directory for a major corporation in the Silicon Valley. I learned a lot about cities and hotels around the world and couldn’t wait to experience them for myself.
I later joined the Park Hyatt San Francisco as a Sales Manager and worked with Fortune 100 companies. It was there that I learned an appreciation for the finer things- and that 5-star hotels really do live up to their reputation! I moved on to further my experience with a worldwide tour company and was educated on destinations all around the world.
When I joined my husband, Chris, at his new dental practice in Petaluma, California, I arranged our schedule so that we could take several days off a year to travel. I continued to be fascinated with countries all over the world and planning trips abroad as well as in the United States. I quickly learned the value of having a good travel credit card and how fantastic points are. To this day, I manage our points very carefully and it has afforded us a lot of worldwide travel.
We had our first baby, Lucas, and were on an airplane four months later. Two years later, we had Aiden, then two years later, Gavin; three beautiful boys who love to travel! We have always traveled with our kids, and our destinations and itineraries have depended on their age and stage, which I recommend, to ensure maximum enjoyment for parents. We have traveled all over the world together- learning about the histories and cultures of all of the countries we have been to. This always includes eating incredible food, which is very important, because Chris and I are foodies and the boys are always hungry. I am a certified Nutrition Educator, so good quality local food is always a priority (including local yummy treats, of course!) Adventure and fun await in all of our travels, as well as rest and relaxation. We have met wonderful people from all over the world, and some of our trips have been planned based on the recommendations of these interesting people. Our family has really bonded on these trips and we often talk (and laugh!) about our experiences while traveling.
Our worldwide travels have included fun adventures all over Europe, Central America, Southeast Asia, North Africa and North America. Where we stay and the level at which we travel (from high end to budget and everywhere in between), depends on the country we are visiting in order to have the best experience for the best value. Some of our favorite adventures include: racing on the original Olympic track in Greece, riding camels in the Sahara Desert and sleeping at a Berber camp under the stars, cave tubing and zip lining through a rainforest forest in Belize, riding luges down a mountain after touring a prominent castle in Bavaria, staying on a oceanfront cacao farm and processing chocolate in the rainforest of Panama, spending the night on a junk and kayaking on Halong Bay in Vietnam, and hiking the spectacular Cinque Terre in Italy. See more of our Top Travel Experiences
We have spent more time in Italy than any other country because we love pretty much everything about it! Read about The Best Place Places to Visit in Italy
I created GoFam to encourage families to Go! Start traveling together with kids of any age (yes, even tweens, teens and college-age) and keep going! Family travel and vacations are great ways to connect and get in touch with each other through having new experiences (and fun!) together. It expands perspectives and is good for everyone to be challenged and see different beliefs and ways of living. The education and lessons learned are invaluable for everyone. However, there are important steps that need to be taken to successfully plan a family trip. I will show you how, teach you everything I know, and help ensure a memorable and special experience for your whole family. My expertise has come through years of travel, many successes, and some mistakes (which I will share with you, so you can learn from them!). I have helped many friends and acquaintances plan special family trips all over the world. I’m so happy that you have chosen to read my blog! I’m excited for you to begin or continue on with THE best hobby…Family Travel!
I have so much to tell you about! Read more on The Blog