Confessions of an accountant turned travel advisor & entrepreneur.

When I start thinking about the why of my new business, I can’t help but be reminded of all the twists, turns, and events that led me to this change in careers. Most of the time, these things don’t happen in an instant, right? More often, it’s the culmination of decisions, significant and insignificant, made on a daily basis which determine our paths and ultimately link up to where we are now. It boggles my mind to think about how different my ‘now’ might look like if I had made a few different decisions. This rings so true for me because I would have NEVER guessed that a decision to relocate across the world to New Zealand in 2017 would then kick off a series of decisions which would ultimately lead to a long career break, traveling around the world for nine months, and then eventually starting a boutique travel advisory, Abbay’s Escapes.

THE CONFESSION

I talk more about my decision to move to New Zealand in my previous blog post here, so I’ll fast forward to what happened next. In 2018, wanderlust had gotten the best of my fiancé and me, so we decided to take a break from our corporate jobs to slow down and see the world. We left New Zealand with no return date or ticket - but each with a heavy bag and a massive smile. I had every intention of returning to my life as a CPA and progressing in my professional career. After all, accounting was what I had given my life to for 6+ years - not only do I love good Excel tricks and accounting memes, but also, I loved serving my clients and some of my best friends were my former colleagues and fellow accountants. However, as I eased into being a full-time traveler, my worries became amazingly few. I quickly forgot about emails and deadlines (and I had never heard of Covid-19 which helped). The world felt wide open, and this is when I began dreaming about the notion of a new career. I’ve realized that travel can be powerful this way. Travel allows us to disconnect from our ‘normal’ and reconnect not only with ourselves and our inner-dreamers but also with others through shared experiences and learning. This is what happened on the big trip…

I made friends.
Sometimes our itineraries were highly detailed, and sometimes they were wide open, giving us room to change our minds or plans within short notice. Our travel style was equally as varied - from luxury boutique hotels to rural home-stays and camping. This allowed us to meet all sorts of people from locals to travelers from all over the world, some of who became new friends and we still keep in touch with today.

I learned.
I was constantly learning – about the places we visited, the people who live there, about other travelers who had also chosen to visit that destination, and, in turn, more about myself. I’ve found that traveling broadens my horizons ,allowing me appreciate things I may have always taken for granted, whether that’s opportunity, access to education, or the ability to travel. It’s also allowed me to gain new perspective and reevaluate my own points of view.

Finally, I knew I wanted to do what I loved.
I returned home reinvigorated by my experiences, and I knew I wanted to help others travel – by helping them create memorable experiences and discover new things along the way. Although we don’t have to go far, and we certainly don’t have to travel nine months to accomplish this, but I do believe that taking some time to disconnect (by traveling or getting outside of our homes if and when we can) can be good for us in the same way that exercise and healthy food is. This is what fuels my passion to help others travel. Cue the birth of Abbay’s Escapes!

THE WHO AND HOW OF ABBAY’S ESCAPES

When I knew this was what I wanted to do, I knew I needed to have excellent relationships with travel experts around the world - experts with the best resources, and most importantly, experts who I could trust to send my family and closest friends on trips with. Researching how to build these relationships is what brought me to Brownell Travel in Birmingham, Alabama.

Who is Brownell?
Brownell, the oldest travel agency in North America, is also a host travel agency, meaning that I affiliate with them to leverage their well-established relationships across the travel industry. I chose to work with Brownell because of their outstanding reputation, not only in Alabama or the southeastern corner of the USA, but also in the global industry. They have the highest standards not only for the hoteliers and tour operators they choose to work with but also for the travel advisors they accept (that’s me!) –  they accept less than 5% of interested travel advisors into their hosting program per year. My affiliation with Brownell helps me to multiply my deep relationships across the industry and the world for the benefit of my clients. (It also means extra perks and amenities for my clients which is bonus!)

How it works.
I can help you plan a special trip or find the perfect hotel, I can inspire you to visit places you may never have considered or thought were out of reach, but most importantly, in the here and now, I can provide you with the resources and knowledge you’ll need to make informed travel decisions about next trip amidst a new (albeit more hygienic) travel landscape.

In the meantime, I’ll be here. I’ll be dreaming about travel, and I’ll be ready to help when the time is right and when you are ready (possibly more than ever!) to experience the power of travel again. Come dream with us.