Travel jobs are the dream for so many professionals. Here at Discovery Sessions, our mission is to give you the tools to design your ideal non-autopilot life around sweet freedom and take on a career that makes you feel alive. If you are reassessing your work and visualizing a future where you can create your dream travel job that you wish existed, here are some inspiring tips from the people who built theirs.

 

In the pursuit of exploration and job satisfaction, these seven individuals created their own dream travel jobs infused with their desired ingredients — warm weather, community, adventure, delectable cuisine, and even foreign languages. Here is what they had to say.

 

7 CREATORS OF THEIR DREAM TRAVEL JOBS

 

Rēnata West: Founder and Storyteller at Pacific Storytelling

The backstory: At the start of the pandemic, I was on furlough as Director of Sales for a US-based tour operator and was still fielding calls from Travel Advisors about the South Pacific. I didn’t realize how much I missed talking about the South Pacific until I wasn’t doing it every day. It was while I was taking these calls that I realized there was a need to educate agents outside of the tour operator model, so I started Pacific Storytelling. While border conditions can change, international cultures do not. We focused on finding cultural experts and interviewing them to educate the North American traveler. 

 

I get to talk to some of the top cultural experts from across the South Pacific and share their ancient knowledge. I also work with South Pacific businesses to help them connect with American travelers. As a New Zealand Māori with strong roots in the Pacific, it’s a thrill and an honor to share the stories of this unique part of the world every day. 

 

 

Tips to create jobs that involve travel: Look for the thing that you have been doing naturally. Indigenous people are born storytellers. We just don’t realize that it is a skill until we leave our homes. Tourism is powerful because you are empowered to be the truest version of yourself.

 

 

Johannes Bergfors: Founder of Meeting Mountains

The backstory: This is my third career after being a fine dining chef and a professional skydiver, most recently. I spent thousands of hours in aircraft, either with a camera attached to my helmet, with a group of students, or traveling to different events around the world. After a decade of this, I eventually got a hearing disorder, and around the same time, I felt like it was time to settle down. 

 

I’m from a bigger city in Sweden, but the Soča Valley in Slovenia is where I chose to live. It’s here that I operate, and this is the area that I know the best, which is why I’m suitable to help my guests get the most out of their vacations here. 

 

 

I started Meeting Mountains with the goal of improving the relationship with nature for visitors coming to the Soča Valley, Slovenia. I do this by bringing them to the mountains, rivers, and waterfalls, to artisan cheese/ honey/winemakers, and to tiny Slovenian villages where time seems to stand still.

 

The best part is that I get to spend time in these beautiful environments and since I am passionate about sustainability and handcrafted things, it feels good to be able to support other small, passionate providers by introducing my guests to them. 

 

Tips to create jobs that involve travel: Start by writing down what the definition of success is for you, then work backward by writing down what’s needed to achieve that. This process can take a long time, but it will give you clarity about whether it’s really what you want and what will be required of you. And remember that your idea of what a dream career is might change in the future.

 

 

Rani Cheema: Culinary Travel Specialist

The backstory: After five years of being an Art Director at the Food Network, I wanted travel to be my end result, I wasn’t sure how or in what capacity but I knew that travel was it. I wasn’t sure how it was going to happen or what it was going to look like. After picking up design jobs overseas in Bangladesh and teaching English to South Korean students (whose English was way better than mine), I came back to the US and met a luxury travel consultant through someone I was dating. The relationship with the luxury travel consultant outlasted the romantic one, and they ended up introducing me to a slew of travel industry folks, which led me to a luxury travel agency.

 

 

 

I have been a culinary travel specialist since 2014. My job really is as simple as planning trips for foodies. This means I not only research and look into luxury boutique properties (Relais & Chateaux is my favorite), but I also look for unique culinary experiences. Sometimes there are clients who just want to indulge or just eat and drink during their honeymoon. There are other clients who want to take classes at a Buddhist temple or go farming in an ancient Mayan Garden. There are others who want to mix it all up.

 

Tips to create jobs that involve travel: Just insert all of the affirmations that are 1000% correct, like trust yourself, trust your desire, trust your gut, and take the leap. Be courageous and brave, and do the uncomfortable and scary things. Also, only you know what’s best for you. So many people will convince you that “Travel isn’t work” and that you “can’t just live your dream”. When I left the Food Network, a lot of people told me that I was stupid because we were in a recession and a lot of my peers couldn’t find work. Every year that I’ve been in the travel industry, my own family members would ask when I was going to get a job. Only you can make yourself happy, so live your life and do whatever your heart desires.

 

 

Mikah Meyer: National Parks Expert

The backstory: At the age of 30, I quit all my jobs and invested my life’s savings into a three-year, nonstop journey living in a van and traveling to all 56 states and territories to document every NPS site. 

 

My dream has always been to become “the Rick Steves of National Parks,” and after setting a world record visiting all 400+ National Park Service sites in a nonstop journey, I gained the authority to be hired regularly as a speaker, consultant, and expert on all things national parks.

 

 

I regularly speak at conventions, colleges, and corporations about US national park sites. I also consult brands on products and content relating to national parks and other national park-related services as they arise.

 

Tips to create jobs that involve travel: Whatever job you’re currently at clearly thinks you’re worth at least $XXX dollars a year. So, instead of giving that value to someone else, invest it in yourself. It won’t happen right away, but eventually, the dollars will flow directly to you instead of to your boss.

 

 

Matthew Meier: Founder of Max Tour in Las Vegas

The backstory: I founded a tour company in 2017 to give travelers a better option when touring the Grand Canyon and surrounding areas. I bought a small van and just got going. This is my seventh year in this amazing position.

 

As a tour guide, I pick people up from their Las Vegas hotel and lead them on a pre-planned itinerary to see some of the most scenic sights in the Southwest. Along the way, I will help them learn about the history and culture of the places visited, set them up for some stunning photos, and just make their time enjoyable by taking care of all the details.

 

 

I do all the driving, point out the best local restaurants, and have all the tickets and hotels arranged for them so they can sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. As the Founder, I create new itineraries and run marketing campaigns to get people to book the itineraries that I create.

 

Tips to create jobs that involve travel: My advice for others to create their own dream job is to do it within their own company. It’s harder to have a dream job if you aren’t in complete control of the operations.

 

 

Carolyn Paddock: Founder and CEO of In-Flight Insider

The backstory: My company, In-Flight Insider, is a bespoke company for the aircraft owner and private aviation travelers. What that means is I’m able to help clients in a variety of ways, and they can pick and choose what they need. I can help the owners of aircraft with staffing their airplanes, service training for the flight attendants, outfitting their planes with supplies, and/or consulting on cabin and galley modifications, and finally, as a travel advisor, I’m able to curate their trips. It’s the whole travel experience.

 

 

 

Tips to create jobs that involve travel: Follow your heart and what excites you, then use your strengths as the fuel to help drive your business. Every entrepreneur will tell you that “failure” is part of success, so expect that not everything you do will be a raging victory. You need to be optimistic, fluid, and most of all, have grit.

 

If you can, hire a business and leadership coach who can help you navigate the ups and downs. It’s a wild and windy road when you have your own business, and it helps to have guidance and support along the way.

 

 

Makayla Cappel: Director of Experience at FTLO Travel and Sojrn

The backstory: I am the Director of Experience (aka Director of Fun) at FTLO Travel and Sojrn. This is more than a dream job for me; it really feels like I’m contributing to something bigger using my unique skill set. I get to figure out how to make people feel happy, safe, and connected through travel and it is so incredibly fulfilling.

 

My sister started a travel company and when a salesperson turned down a job offer, I begged her to let me apply for the role. She initially said no… several times, but finally, she gave me a shot and I knocked it out of the park.

 

 

My role at the company has evolved from a salesperson to trip leader, to operations, to now Head of Experience, which is designed around my skillset and passion for bringing joy to people’s lives. 

 

I help curate the travel experience for FTLO and Sojrn, overseeing everything from trip flow and pre-departure touchpoints to trip leader training and scouting new destinations. In a nutshell, I analyze traveler psychology and figure out how to create the best experience possible for the price point. 

 

Tips to create jobs that involve travel: There are so many interesting jobs in travel and the best travel companies promote from within. Get your foot in the door somewhere, learn as much as you can, and then figure out where you can provide the most value by doing what makes you happy.

 

This is part 3 of our “Create your dream travel job” series. Click here to see more dream travel jobs in part 2.