Travel planning for people who care about the details — but don’t want to manage all of them.
Bring me a destination, an occasion, a half-baked idea, a shortlist, or the hotel you’ve already picked. I’ll help figure out which details matter, make the decisions easier, and take the planning and booking off your plate where it helps most — so you can focus on the trip without having to manage every moving part.
START WHEREVER YOU’RE AT
Come with anything from a blank page to a detailed brief.
SHORTLIST
Two options you just can’t choose between.
READY TO BOOK
Something you already know you want to lock in.
ROUGH SHAPE
A trip that needs some structure or a thoughtful addition.
BLANK PAGE
A dream destination. A reason to get away.
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Three ways judgment shapes the trip
ONE VIVID IDEA CAN BE ENOUGH
Theresa had dreamed about seeing the Taj Mahal at sunrise, but the trip had never made it out of her head. After she happened to tell my friend Josh about it while they were seated next to each other on a plane, he connected us. That sunrise became the anchor; I helped build the flights, route, pacing, and the rest of her time in India around it.
A FULL TRIP STILL NEEDS ROOM TO BREATHE
Shelle, Luke, and their kids came with ambitious plans for Europe. We kept a lot of what mattered — multiple countries, very different kinds of stays, and plenty to see — but cut back enough to protect the experience. On unscheduled days, they still had a curated menu of possibilities without having every hour spoken for ahead of time.
SOMETIMES THE TRIP IS ALREADY HALF PLANNED
Andrew already knew which Puerto Vallarta resort he wanted for a friend’s birthday trip. The problem was a maze of room categories, rates, and cancellation rules. I turned the options into a clean apples-to-apples comparison; he chose the room (hot tub included), and I handled the rest.
The internet can show you what exists. My job is to help figure out what makes sense for you.
Good travel planning isn’t about generating the longest list of possibilities. It’s about understanding the trip you’re actually trying to have, narrowing the field, making the tradeoffs clear, and then getting the details right once you decide.
The amount of help should fit the trip — not push every trip through the same planning process.
HOW I HELP
Sometimes I’m shaping the whole trip. Sometimes I’m solving one stubborn decision, coordinating several travelers, finding the right cruise, or adding value to a straightforward booking. I have a methodology, but I adapt it to meet your needs, rather than ask your trip to fit into a predetermined box.
A FEW WAYS TO GO DEEPER
TRAVELING AS A GROUP
A group of friends, several families, wedding room blocks, reunions, retreats, and more — planned with enough structure to keep the shared pieces moving without turning one person into the group travel department.
CRUISES
Cruise can mean a floating resort, a river journey, an expedition, a boutique ship, or something in between. I help decide whether a cruise fits in the first place — then which line, ship, itinerary, cabin, and surrounding travel fit the people taking it.
BOOKING + ADVICE
Sometimes you just want the hotel booked, the flight sorted, a second opinion, or an easy way to browse a straightforward stay yourself. I can make that easier without turning it into a whole laborious planning project.
THE PERSON BEHIND THE PLAN
A strategic planner who happens to plan travel
I spent more than 20 years in strategic communication, where the work was listening carefully, understanding the real objective, sorting through competing priorities, and turning complexity into something people could actually use. Travel advising uses the same muscles — just with better scenery. I pair that approach with firsthand travel, ongoing learning, and a broad network of fellow advisors and suppliers.
A few things clients notice
LISTENING + FIT
“He was very engaged wanting to know what was important to me… There was never any doubt I was in good hands.”
— Andrew, Paris
EASE
“Michael always makes it easy to take a vacation and it’s nice not to have to stress about all the details.”
— Claudia, Maui
RELATIONSHIP
“I genuinely appreciate his understanding of our preferences and the experiences we sought as a family.”
— Eddie, Costa Rica
What are you thinking about?
A weekend girls’ trip. A milestone celebration. A trip that’s already partly planned but a little stuck. A cruise you already picked. An idea that hasn’t quite become a trip yet. Send me a note, and we’ll figure out the useful next step from there.
Prefer to jump straight into the details?