Aisle to Islands

10/07/2026

Every so often a property joins Virtuoso that makes me stop what I'm doing. Awasi Iguazú is one of them.

It sits minutes from Iguazú Falls, deep in Argentina's Atlantic Forest, and it's small on purpose. Just fourteen villas, each one raised up into the jungle canopy with its own terrace and plunge pool. Dinner is contemporary Argentinian cuisine made with ingredients foraged from the rainforest around you, and if you want a massage, it happens in your villa with the river running below.

But the part that sold me is this: every stay comes with your own private guide and 4WD vehicle. Iguazú is one of the most visited natural wonders in the world. Having someone who builds your days around you (when you want to go, how long you want to stay, what you actually want to see) changes the entire experience.

It's all-inclusive, it's a Relais & Châteaux property, and it's exactly the kind of place I love to plan a trip around.

10/05/2026

If you asked me today where to send you, this season, I'd tell you Montana. Specifically, Paws Up Montana.

It's a 37,000-acre working cattle ranch where the luxury is real and the setting is genuinely wild. And right now might be the best-kept secret of the year there. It's not snowing yet. Days in the 70s, crisp mornings, and evenings cool enough that you want to be gathered around a fire, which is exactly where you want to be anyway.

Now, some people might say, "Jessica, of course you're promoting it, you worked there." To which I say, yes. Absolutely. I've seen the inner workings, the drama in the back, all of it. And I will still recommend them every single time, because it is that special.

The food alone is worth the trip. Different dining areas depending on the season and a culinary team with James Beard–nominated chefs, all built around Montana's seasonal bounty. The spa is its own world too, with private canvas treatment tents overlooking the meadow.

And it's genuinely built for the whole family, with an entirely separate adults-only side called the Green O tucked into the pines if that's more your speed.

But where Paws Up really shines is the adventure. Over 100 miles of trails, 10 miles of the Blackfoot River, in-house guides, and more Western activities than any ranch resort in the state. Archery, ATVs, arena riding lessons, fly fishing, and an actual cattle drive. And if you time it right, you might catch them moving the horse herds into the closer fields for winter. It is a scene straight out of Man from Snowy River, and it is genuinely magical to witness in person.

If a trip like this has been on your mind, this is a great season to go. Send me a message and let's talk.

09/28/2026

New blog post: Is a Travel Planner Worth It?

Most people in my industry answer this question with adjectives. I wanted to answer it with math, because hello School Season (yuck).

The hotel amenities you get through a preferred partner program scale with nights and rooms, not with what your trip costs. Breakfast is per morning. The credit is per stay. And it all applies per room, so a family booking four rooms gets four times what a couple in one room does.

Which means a two-week itinerary, or a trip where everyone is coming along, can hand back most of what the planning costs before you count anything else. I ran the actual numbers on a real example in the post.

I also wrote the other half of it. The two situations where booking direct is genuinely the better call, and the kind of traveler who honestly might not need me for the planning at all (some people love the research part, and they're good at it).

Send me a message if you want me to run the numbers on a trip you're considering.

On a long trip hotel amenities cover most of a planning fee before you count the upgrade. Here's the real math, and who might not need a travel advisor

09/26/2026

Here's something that surprises people about booking a big trip. If you can afford it, you can almost always go. What you can't always get on short notice is the exact version of the trip you pictured. That part comes down to timing.

If you want a resort in Mexico next spring, you'll find a room. But if you want the connecting suites so the whole family is together, or the room with the private plunge pool, or the villa with a bunk setup for the grandkids, those specific configurations are limited, and they go first. Often long before the resort is anywhere close to sold out.

Same with the places that are small on purpose. A boutique resort with thirty rooms, or an exclusive cruise with a fixed number of cabins, simply don't have many rooms to give. When they're gone, they're gone, no matter the budget.

That's the part that catches even seasoned travelers off guard. Money can get you in almost anywhere. What it can't always do is get you the exact experience you had in mind if the window's too tight.

As a general rule, six months is often enough runway, nine is ideal, and the more flexible you are, the less the timeline matters. The trips that benefit most from starting early are the ones with the most moving parts. Multiple countries, multiple stops, a group all traveling together, etc.

This isn't about urgency. It's about giving yourself enough time that the trip you take is the trip you imagined, down to the details that actually matter.

When you're ready to start the conversation for your next trip, I'm here, whether it's six months out or well beyond.

09/25/2026

Three properties, three corners of the world, one thing in common: they're extraordinary, and I can book every one of them with benefits layered in that you wouldn't get on your own.

Bvlgari Resort Bali, on a clifftop in Uluwatu. Maroma, A Belmond Hotel, on a storied stretch of the Riviera Maya. And Rosewood Mayakoba, reached by boat through private lagoons.

At each one, my clients are treated like someone the property was told to take care of. Staff know their name, the upgrade is handled when available, and the little things are seen to before they have to ask.

This is the caliber of travel I plan, and the access most people never see from the other side of a booking website.

If there's a trip you've been meaning to take, send me a message.

09/17/2026

There's a version of the holidays where you still bring everyone together, but you're not the one managing all of it. Just the whole family, somewhere they'll never forget. That trip gets planned months ahead... Which means now.

If gathering everyone somewhere beautiful has ever crossed your mind (a milestone year, a big anniversary, or simply because everyone's schedules finally line up) this is the kind of trip I love to plan.

Not the quick weekend booking. The one that takes real thought. Where you want it done right and would rather enjoy the details than drown in them.

I hold Virtuoso and Rosewood Elite access, which means my clients are genuinely recognized and cared for at some of the best properties in the world. And they have someone who designs the whole trip around them and handles it start to finish, so the only thing left for you to do is show up and be with your people.

If that's a trip you've been thinking about, let's talk. The best weeks fill early.

09/11/2026

We remember the horrific terrorist attack, the tragedy of the lives lost and the heroes that were made that day.

09/09/2026

"Why would I use a travel planner when I can just book it myself?"

Yes, you can book your own trip. I know that. So let me be honest about why you'd still want me.

It's probably not the part you'd think.

Yes, I get you perks. Room upgrades, breakfast, resort credits, early check-in when you've been traveling for eleven hours and you just want the room and a shower. They're layered on top of a competitive rate, and those are all nice, but that's not why my clients keep coming back.

When something goes sideways on a trip (and on a big trip, occasionally something does), I'm the one on hold fixing it. Not you, you're at the pool with a drink. I'm the one working the phone about the transfer that never showed, or the excursion that was cancelled.

And sometimes it's bigger than a phone call. I had a client who broke her leg before a two-week trip. So I went back through every hotel, every room, every reservation. There were obviously some things that had to change completely (caves are not wheelchair friendly, go figure). But she still had the trip she planned for. It was just reworked for her new wheels.

You don't get that from a booking website.

You're not paying me to click "reserve." You're paying me to be the person who already knows your whole itinerary when something changes, and handles it so you don't have to.

If that sounds like the kind of person you want in your corner on the next trip, let's talk.

07/04/2026

First Prayer of the Continental Congress, 1774

"O Lord our Heavenly Father, high and mighty King of kings, and Lord of lords, who dost from thy throne behold all the dwellers on earth and reignest with power supreme and uncontrolled over all the Kingdoms, Empires and Governments; look down in mercy, we beseech Thee, on these our American States, who have fled to Thee from the rod of the oppressor and thrown themselves on Thy gracious protection, desiring to be henceforth dependent only on Thee. To Thee have they appealed for the righteousness of their cause; to Thee do they now look up for that countenance and support, which Thou alone canst give. Take them, therefore, Heavenly Father, under Thy nurturing care; give them wisdom in Council and valor in the field; defeat the malicious designs of our cruel adversaries; convince them of the unrighteousness of their Cause and if they persist in their sanguinary purposes, of own unerring justice, sounding in their hearts, constrain them to drop the weapons of war from their unnerved hands in the day of battle!

Be Thou present, O God of wisdom, and direct the councils of this honorable assembly; enable them to settle things on the best and surest foundation. That the scene of blood may be speedily closed; that order, harmony and peace may be effectually restored, and truth and justice, religion and piety, prevail and flourish amongst the people. Preserve the health of their bodies and vigor of their minds; shower down on them and the millions they here represent, such temporal blessings as Thou seest expedient for them in this world and crown them with everlasting glory in the world to come. All this we ask in the name and through the merits of Jesus Christ, Thy Son and our Savior.
Amen."

- Reverend Jacob Duché

07/01/2026

I say "legacy" a lot in my work. I know it can start to sound like a buzzword after a while.

So let me actually tell you what I mean by it.

It's not the venue. It's not the florals. It's not even the ceremony itself, as beautiful as that moment is.

Legacy is the 90 people who got on a plane for someone they love. It's the grandmother in the front row who watched her grandchild become who they are. It's a couple looking at their guest list and saying "we want our wedding to honor our families, our histories, and celebrate bringing it all together into our new family."

That thread, the one that connects the people who shaped you to the people who will witness whatever comes next, is the whole reason any of this matters.

When I work with couples, this is what I'm actually thinking about. Not just the details of the day. The reason the gathering matters in the first place.

Who shaped you. What sacrifices got you here. What the people in that room deserve to feel when they watch you become a new family.

That's why I built the Legacy Wedding Blueprint the way I did. Before a single venue or vendor conversation, I want couples to understand exactly what they're honoring.

Because once you know that, the wedding stops being an event you're managing and starts being a statement about who you are and where you came from.

That's what I mean when I say legacy.

The Legacy Wedding Blueprint is three parts.

A Three-Part Journey to Understanding Your Wedding Vision