It’s great to connect with other travel professionals who keep their finger on the pulse.

One person always stands out: Rick Steves. I pay special attention to his European tips for several reasons. But one reason is that we are of the same age.
It’s my birthday this week, while Steves will be 70 in May. We both hit the road right after high school, with sleeping bags and backpacks.
Along the way, I made lots and lots of travel mistakes. But at the same time, there have been parts of inspiration and important lessons that can help travelers in the future.
My first cross-country flight was from Portland to New York. I remember my parents telling me the story of our United Airlines flight on the DC-6. At that time, airplanes flew in air instead of clouds. And it was bad. We dressed up to “Fly the Friendly Skies,” with my mom in a dress and my dad in a suit and tie.
I’m sure my parents dressed me up quickly. But it was hard – and I got sick.
When we stopped at Billings, Montana, the captain saw me putting on my dinner and took pity on me. He got into the trunk and pulled out my mom’s bag so I could continue across the country in style.
The lesson I learned is that it’s good to have extra clothes in your carry-on. Except.
Alaskan children often experience their first ride in a small plane at a young age. I was about 8 years old. After church one Sunday, my father drove me to the nearby airport in Beaverton, Oregon, and hired a pilot to fly us.
Knowing what I know now, I can remember that it was probably a Cessna 180, with room for four people. My father sat in the front with the pilot and I was in the back seat. We were only in the air for 20 minutes.
Lesson: Small planes can go almost anywhere and the views are spectacular.

Our family did not fly. It was not in our budget. But my grandparents traveled all the time. My grandfather was a newspaper executive in the William Randolph Hearst media empire. She was a million miler on TWA in the 1950s. My grandmother was a writer and editor for Sunset Magazine and Pacific Travel News.
Although they couldn’t take me on many of their trips, they sent letters and saved stamps from all the countries they visited. I got to know my grandmother’s office manager, who kept seals from contacts around the Pacific Rim. My grandfather’s stamps were mostly from Europe.
Lesson: My stamp collection sparked curiosity about the countries where the letters were stamped. That started a lifelong fascination with maps and geography – and later, with traveling to those places.
[Planning tips and a checklist for travel in 2025]
Because my family didn’t travel much, I looked for a way to roam. In the 1970s, I hit all over the West Coast and as far east as Texas. It drove my parents crazy, but I was eager to see friends and relatives around the country. I would not recommend that method now. But that was then.
Lesson: Wear comfortable shoes, stay hydrated and don’t pack anything you don’t want to carry for a long time.

As a senior in college, I made a snap decision to come to Alaska for the summer. Although I knew little about buying tickets and flying, I had a classmate who was a travel agent. So I went to visit Amy at Travel University in Eugene. We talked and flirted a bit. In about 15 minutes he put me on a direct Western Airlines flight between Portland and Anchorage.
Lesson: There are tricks to every business. Until then, I never even knew what a travel agent did. Things have changed since then, but a good travel agent is still worth their weight in gold.
We flew to many remote places in Alaska to go fishing, hiking, sailing and hunting. Having just arrived from the Lower 48, I was struck by the natural beauty of the place, but also the stark contrast between the Bush communities and urban Alaska. We flew to Dillingham, to Nome, to Dutch Harbor, to Prince of Wales Island and many places in between.
Lesson: Although most parts of Alaska are less than two hours from Anchorage by plane, much of the state has the characteristics of a foreign land.
I flew to Europe in 1981 I was on SAS Scandinavian Airlines from Anchorage to Copenhagen. My friend George and I were on a month-long sales trip for several adventure companies offering fishing, rafting, skiing and scuba diving. Between the two of us, we had about five or six bags.
Lesson: We got lost in the bad state of foreign currencies, foreign languages ​​and local customs. We lost two bags once, so it was easy to carry our stuff. We were both curious about the people and their lives in Germany, France, Austria and Italy. They, in turn, were attracted to Alaska. That mutual curiosity, along with a little high school French, helped us a lot.
My friend and I packed our bikes and flew to New Zealand. My boss at the travel agency asked me if I would like to book any hotels. It never occurred to me. Instead, we asked the flight attendant on the Pan Am 747 where to stay in Auckland. He recommended a nice B&B, right next to the Intercontinental Hotel. We had planned to camp all along, but a B&B was a welcome alternative — especially in the middle of town.
Lesson: After three days on the bike, we met other travelers and decided to rent a boat. Be flexible – your plans can change overnight. For the best.
A few years ago I traveled around the world for a month. I called it the “World Rush Tour.” The whole idea was almost daring – just to prove that it could be done cheaply. The schedule changed several times due to war, visa requirements and the schedules of my friends and relatives. Stops included London, Barcelona, ​​Cape Town, Kuala Lumpur, Makassar (Indonesia) and Hong Kong.
Lesson: Use your points wisely. On this trip, I bought a series of one-way tickets on Alaska, Norwegian, Emirates, Air Asia, Garuda and Delta. I was traveling in January, so the bill was under $2,000. Those hotels were more expensive, so I used credit card points to stay at Hyatt Regency Hotels. The points formula for hotels is still a winning strategy.
[What’s in store for air travelers in 2025? Flights, fares, seats and loyalty plans continue to change]
In between these great trips, we visited the far reaches of Europe, a bit of Africa, Hawaii, many places in Mexico – and many places throughout the United States and Canada.
Is it worth it to travel? I think so. When you travel, you are likely to meet people who speak different languages ​​and eat different foods. People may not be like you – and they may worship differently than you. Maybe they have different customs and celebrate different holidays.
Over the years, as I experience all these changes and differences, it’s hard not to notice the striking similarities we all share: smiles and warm greetings. Genuine interest and curiosity about where the other person is coming from. What about their family? Maybe you’ll share food with people you’ve met recently (be careful with that hot sauce).
I know Rick Steves still travels to Europe – and has tons of great tips and tricks for almost any country.
I, too, am looking forward to traveling further afield, seeing family members and friends across the miles. I hope travelers can learn some successful strategies from the mistakes I’ve made. I also hope that you can inspire other travelers with your stories of friends and experiences around the world.
#lessons #lifelong #traveler