Travel Directors in North America

When you travel with Trafalgar to North America, our Travel Directors will show you the unexpected, provide local insights and share unique experiences you could not have on your own.

Want to know a little bit more about our ultimate insiders?

Meet some of our Travel Directors below.

Jason Cohen
- How long have you been a Travel Director?
  6 years
  
  What region/s do you cover?
  California
  
  What do you love most about your job?
  Sharing my love of the natural beauty and fascinating history of these areas.
  
  What's your best Hidden Treasure?
  A meadow at Yosemite that's quietly beautiful. It's near coach parking, but not easy to find.
  
  What is your most memorable moment on the road?
  Had to extensively re-route due to forest fires. Added lunch stop at a Gold Rush town which the guests loved! It was totally unexpected by them, and worked out great!
  
  The one place you should take a photo?
  Tunnel view at Yosemite
  
  What's your tip for feeling like a local when you travel?
  Explore side streets and back streets- just wander. In San Francisco, visit Ferry Building Farmers Market on Saturdays.
  
  The best restaurant you’ve ever tried during your travels?
  Boulevard, San Francisco
  
  If you had to buy one souvenir what would it be?
  A souvenir that you would buy even if it were in a shop at home.
  
  What is your best shopping advice?
  Look for handmade art that represents the location but it is nice on its own.
  
  What or who is your biggest inspiration?
  The beauty of the California Coast and the Sierra Nevada.
  
  What is your best travel tip?
  Make sure to have some quiet time to experience some things individually.
Karen Frey
- How long have you been a Travel Director?
  20 years
  
  What region/s do you cover?
  Western Canada
  
  What do you love most about your job?
  I have the opportunity to show guests the extraordinary beauty of "My Backyard" - Vancouver Islands and Canadian Rockies
  
  What's your best Hidden Treasure?
  Finding a quiet spot away from all the lodge buildings at Emerald Lake. Sit and enjoy the peace and quiet
  
  What is your most memorable moment on the road?
  A few years ago a group saw a total of six bears in different locations on the road - Wow!
  
  The one place you should take a photo?
  Maligne Lake (Spirit Island) in Jasper National Park
  
  What are your travel 'must haves'?
  Highlighter, white out, calculator, plenty of pens, tilley hat
  
  What's your tip for feeling like a local when you travel?
  Wear a tilley hat/baseball cap - NHL team
  
  Talking the lingo - what should every guest know?
  "What about those Canucks, eh?"
  
  The best restaurant you’ve ever tried during your travels?
  Le Crocodile (Vancouver) - French Bistro
  
  If you had to buy one souvenir what would it be?
  Something made with BC Jade (Wide range of prices available)
  
  What is your best shopping advice?
  If you're buying gifts shop in Alberta (Banff, Jasper, Lake Louise, Calgary) as you don't pay Provincial Sales Tax
  
  What or who is your biggest inspiration?
  As an explorer/adventurer - Mary Schaefer Irwin (explored Rockies/ Maligne Lake)
  
  What is your best travel tip?
  Keep It Simply Silly (KISS)
Greg Martin
- How long have you been a Travel Director?
  22 years
  
  What region/s do you cover?
  Rocky Mountain West, Desert SW, Southern USA, Chicago - LA
  
  What do you love most about your job?
  The opportunity to impart my knowledge and passion of the places we go on vacation gives me great personal satisfaction
  
  What's your best Hidden Treasure?
  Budweiser Brewery - Colorado, Hospitality Room and Clydesdale Horse Barn
  
  What is your most memorable moment on the road?
  Seeing the fun our guests can have playing word and number games
  
  The one place you should take a photo?
  Jenny Lake, GD Teton NP
  
  What are your travel 'must haves'?
  Earplugs, charged camera batteries
  
  What's your tip for feeling like a local when you travel?
  Walking the residential neighbourhoods, Jackson. Taking the St Charles streetcar line - New Orleans
  
  Talking the lingo - what should every guest know?
  "I bet I know where you got your shoes" - New Orleans
  
  The best restaurant you’ve ever tried during your travels?
  The Rendezvous - Memphis
  
  If you had to buy one souvenir what would it be?
  "Rattlesnake eggs", Sun Studios memorabilia - Memphis
  
  What is your best shopping advice?
  Do not leave home with a full suitcase
  
  What or who is your biggest inspiration?
  The great attitude of some of our oldest guests
  
  What is your best travel tip?
  Come with an open mind, great curiosity, and quest for new experiences
Bob Powell
- How long have you been a Travel Director?
  32 years +
  
  What region/s do you cover?
  Western North America
  
  What do you love most about your job?
  Introducing guests to new places and experiences
  
  What's your best Hidden Treasure?
  Moonlight walk (full moon) at Grand Canyon
  
  What is your most memorable moment on the road?
  At Grand Canyon - taking passengers on a sunrise walk (mid July) to Canyon Rim from Yavapar's Lodge, the air was cool and crisp, the guests were in the right mood, and the sunrise was spectacular and emotional.
  
  The one place you should take a photo?
  Mouse, cow and calf at the Triple Lakes in Alaska
  
  What are your travel 'must haves'?
  Camera
  
  What's your tip for feeling like a local when you travel?
  Don't wear name tag (especially in cities - for safety) ask questions of locals
  
  The best restaurant you’ve ever tried during your travels?
  El Pato (Brownsville TX)
  
  What is your best shopping advice?
  Ask your travel guide what he knows about value on local items
  
  What or who is your biggest inspiration?
  My father (who was a savvy traveller)
  
  What is your best travel tip?
  Relax, be open, to new experiences
Deby Dahlgren
- How long have you been a Travel Director?
  1 year
  
  What region/s do you cover?
  Eastern US & Canada
  
  What do you love most about your job?
  Meeting the people and making their vacation a dream come true
  
  What's your best Hidden Treasure?
  Albert Einstein Statue, Washington DC
  
  What is your most memorable moment on the road?
  When spidey was kidnapped! A guided vacation during Oct I had decorated the bus with a giant spider. One morning I found a note that spidey had been kidnapped. For a couple of days I would find various notes and finally a ransom note. Everyone donated $2 (for breast cancer awareness month) and spidey was returned unharmed.
  
  What are your travel 'must haves'?
  iPhone, Laptop
  
  What's your tip for feeling like a local when you travel?
  Shop at a local market
  
  The best restaurant you’ve ever tried during your travels?
  Newseum, Washington DC
  
  What or who is your biggest inspiration?
  Lake George, NY, my parents and all the travelling they did.
  
  What is your best travel tip?
  Pack light

Travel Directors in North America

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