My Ireland Family Vacation! (BTS with my travel planner, Stephanie Chastain)

Apr 30

Written By Anna Rapp

Episode Summary:

Friends, I could not be more excited about today's episode. I have my beautiful friend Stephanie Chastain with me today. Stephanie is the owner of Infinite Ireland Travel Co. where she meticulously crafts meaningful Ireland itineraries around immersion, authenticity, and comfort. She is someone that I've been connected with in the online space for years now, and I've always admired her work and her travel expertise but I really wasn't in a season of being able to do a lot of traveling myself, so I never got to see her business from the inside. However, now that things have changed so much for me personally, I finally got the chance to work with Stephanie as I traveled to Ireland with my two children. She massively supported me in creating a kickass itinerary and my trip wouldn’t have been as amazing as it was without her. So we had a fun idea around her interviewing me so you can hear about my experience traveling internationally because I’ve received a lot of questions about that. But then I am going to interview her about her business in case you've been thinking about hiring a travel planner for Ireland or something related. I hope this is really fun for you to tune into!

Topics Discussed on Ireland:

Why Anna decided on Ireland rather than somewhere closer and what her specific decision points were
What Anna’s two little kids thought about traveling to Ireland and how Anna was able to travel moderately stress free as a single mama
The practices Stephanie uses to help her clients get the most out of each trip that she plans for them where she balances rest and immersing in the culture
The ways Anna naturally built a business she could take a break from and how she prepped to take 10 days away while she traveled in Ireland
A review of Anna’s trips and the things she loved the most
How Anna navigated driving in Ireland with driving on the opposite side, narrow roads, and more

Swipe through some of my favorite photos from our trip below!

Topics Discussed on Stephanie’s Work:

The importance of really knowing the traveler before planning a trip for the client and how Stephanie works differently from a traditional travel company
How Stephanie landed on this career (and why she chose Ireland) after just blogging about Ireland for fun
How Stephanie got to learn Ireland so well (and organically!) and network with so many local people and businesses
The organization practices that Stephanie uses to keep track of all of her partners, accommodations, vendors, etc throughout Ireland
The one city in Ireland that Stephanie would visit over and over
Stephanie’s advice for planning and saving for your first (or next) international trip

Episode Resources:

Connect with Stephanie:

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google | Stitcher

Anna Rapp (00:00:03):
Friends I am, could not be more excited about today's episode. I have my beautiful friend Stephanie with me today. And Stephanie is someone that I've been connected with in the online space for years now. And I've always admired her work, her travel expertise, but I really wasn't a season of not doing a lot of traveling myself, so I never got to see her business from the inside. And one of my favorite things is being able to see my friends and or community members businesses from the inside. And I got a chance to do that with Stephanie as I traveled to Ireland and as she supported me around creating a kick itinerary. So we had a fun idea around her interviewing me so you can hear about my experience traveling internationally. 'cause I'm meeting a lot of questions about that. And then I wanna interview her about her business in case you've been thinking about hiring a, you know, a travel planner for Ireland or something related. And just understanding how she works, how thi she thinks, I think will be really fun too.
Stephanie Chastain (00:01:05):
I'm so excited to chat with you, Anna.
Anna Rapp (00:01:07):
Yeah. Okay. So first tell, so people, if people have never met you, tell us like a little bit about who you are and what you do.
Stephanie Chastain (00:01:13):
Sure. So I'm Stephanie. I am the owner of Infinite Ireland Travel Company. It's pretty obvious we specialize in Ireland travel. And I'm really lucky I get to do what I love every single day. I mean, who doesn't love to talk about travel and traveling to maybe not just anywhere, but like their favorite place in the whole world. So I'm really, really lucky. I get to plan trips for people to go to Ireland in a authentic, connected way. And it's just so much fun.
Anna Rapp (00:01:47):
I love it so much. Okay. Well I have like a thousand questions to ask you in the second part, but why don't you just start and ask me any questions that are on your mind.
Stephanie Chastain (00:01:54):
Okay. So I, this is, I, I know I, I feel kind of selfish 'cause I love a post-trip recap, <laugh>, like, I love them. But be, but before we get into like all your loves and, and all of that good stuff, like, I wanna know what was the impetus? Like, you know, you, you are an amazing successful woman, you have two adorable children, and you're like, I wanna travel internationally by myself with them. Like, how did you come to that decision?
Anna Rapp (00:02:26):
That's such a great question because I think I'd had it in my mind for probably like three years now that I wanted to travel internationally with my kids. I really value my kids seeing other cultures, seeing other countries. It's why I am obsessed with teaching my kids Spanish, just because I think when you experience the world, it makes you more empathetic. Well-Rounded human. So I had that core value, but then I also had this part of me that was like, it does not sound fun at all to do this on my own. Like, I even booked plane tickets last year for somewhere and canceled them. And we went to Disneyland and said, because I was like, I don't have it in me yet, but this year I felt like I had it in me.
Stephanie Chastain (00:03:04):
What was the change? Like how, what did you like <laugh>? What was the thing that was like, okay, I I can do it now?
Anna Rapp (00:03:12):
I think I was, I, it feels like my kids are getting a little older, right? They're seven and nine. They were like six and eight when I booked it. And it, it felt like it was still scary, honestly, but it felt aligned. Versus last year it didn't quite feel aligned yet. Mm-Hmm. So it felt, I honestly didn't wanna do it, but it felt right. <Laugh>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:03:34):
Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> what's the saying? You know that's, it's, it's a stretchy goal. Like, you, you wanted to do it, you wanted to make it happen, but you had to like stretch to get there. I think that's, I think that's honest. That's real <laugh>. I think anybody from the outside looking in, seeing you like take two kids on their own, you know, across the pond, I mean, not just across the pond, across the states and then across the pond. I mean, that's a, yeah, that's impressive. Like, doesn't matter how it went, like you did it, like, period. That's pretty impressive. Okay. So then why Ireland? Like, why did you, how did you land on, I mean, of all the places you could potentially go, especially being, you know, in California you've got a lot of Spanish speaking countries nearby. Like why Ireland? How did you, how did you get there?
Anna Rapp (00:04:25):
That's such a great question. I actually think, well at this time I was like, okay, I wanna take my kids somewhere. This was like last year because I booked the trip pretty far in advance and I was really thinking about Banff Canada. I still really wanna go there to the national park. It's such like a three hour flight. And, but then the plane tickets to Ireland were cheaper than the ones to Banff Canada. And then Banff was gonna be super snowy and like, I was considering like five different places and I think I actually see, look at me just booking plane tickets and canceling them. I think I had booked it and my friend was like, Anna, like if you're just gonna do something, like do it big, like do it right. And I'm like, yeah. So I just bought the plane tickets like eight months before our trip.
Stephanie Chastain (00:05:07):
Ah, okay. So it was a like between like maybe cost and not necessarily the destination. It's interesting hearing that because you know, obviously I work with people who are like, I've wanted to go to Ireland for my whole life, you know, and that's a very common thing I hear. Which I mean re you know, there's a good reason for that. Like, a lot of people have Irish heritage and of course they've heard about it or whatever. But it's funny to hear that like it was Yeah.
Anna Rapp (00:05:40):
It
Stephanie Chastain (00:05:41):
Reason, it's reason. It's a reason. Well,
Anna Rapp (00:05:46):
And I, I, I had like top five places, right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. So I top five places. I was considering Italy, Ireland, Banff, two other places. I don't even know. But I, my daughter has, it's so funny 'cause even though she speaks a lot of Spanish, she was like, oh, Japan, we consider Japan. Mm-Hmm. And she's like, mom, I really am nervous about going somewhere where I don't speak the language, you know? And I'm like, we'll be fine. But I think I realized like Ireland and US culture is more similar than like, Ja Japanese culture. Mm-Hmm. Or like, so I was like, okay, if I'm going international for the first time, like why don't we just take baby steps? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. So Ireland just felt like a baby step.
Stephanie Chastain (00:06:23):
Yeah. Well that actually leads me to my next question or my next thought. How did your kids, like what did your kids think about this? Because this is, it's a big thing. Like, you know, did you announce it? Did you make like a, a big deal out of it? Or are you just like, Hey guys, we're gonna go to Ireland. Like, how did that come about?
Anna Rapp (00:06:42):
You know, I should have been more clever 'cause I, when I took them to Legoland last year, I like made this whole Lego puzzle and like, no Ireland, like I just told them.
Stephanie Chastain (00:06:51):
Were they excited? <Laugh>?
Anna Rapp (00:06:53):
They were, they, I think it's so funny, but like what we grow up with, like, I don't think they like, thought anything different. They were definitely excited about, they were very excited about the airplane. 'cause They've only been on an airplane like once before. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> super excited about the airplane and the idea of a big vacation. 'cause A lot of times, like as a single mom, when we have two week break for school, they go to like YMCA for the day. Right. And so I think they were just excited to get like family time.
Stephanie Chastain (00:07:22):
Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. Yeah. That's really special. Like, and I may imagine that was like, how long were you there?
Anna Rapp (00:07:31):
10. 10
Stephanie Chastain (00:07:32):
Days. 10 days. So 10 days of like complete focus Mommy time. I mean, yes. That must've been fabulous.
Anna Rapp (00:07:45):
It was so, it was really special. It was interesting. I was reflecting with my friend, like I didn't really get ready on the trip when I was there because like I was with them the whole time. So like for me, when my kids are in school is like, it sounds crazy, but like when I shower or when I take my time getting dressed. So like, I was kind of like scrubby the whole trip. But like, I didn't really care because we were, I was just like in mom mode and taking that in and we really enjoyed it. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:08:11):
<Affirmative>. Yeah. Yeah. <Laugh>. It is funny, there's something about vacationing with your kids that there's, I mean, there's a little bit of it actually not being a vacation for you, right? 'cause You're still, you've gotta be mom that entire time. Was that a challenge?
Anna Rapp (00:08:31):
I think I went in because I coach a lot of women around related topics. I think I was used to knowing that as a mom, vacations aren't really vacation, they're more of an adventure. Mm-Hmm. They're more from memory making. So I really went in with this mindset of like, this is an adventure. But I ironically, it actually ended up being very relaxing and restorative because I think I had low expectations and I really felt like we had so much downtime. Like while they were at the park and I was just like sitting on a bench for two hours or like, you know, they went to sleep and then I had like four hours in the evening, but I really didn't have a lot of work. Right. So I actually ended up being, and we rented a car so we didn't feel like we were in a hustle. Like it actually was a restful vacation at the end. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:09:15):
Yeah. That's amazing. That's, that's like, that's the goal, right? That's the way it should be.
Anna Rapp (00:09:23):
You did your job well, you crushed it. <Laugh>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:09:26):
No, no. But more of like, I'm so glad to hear that because that's, you know, I think a lot about this is, you know, general trip planning, but like a lot about trip planning that people don't think about is that white space. You know, you, you think about, I think about it in my life, like how am I creating this white space to like whatever it's self care or whatever it might be. But, and it the same goes for a trip, right? Like how do you create that space where either you can linger a little longer at a site that you, you know, really enjoyed or, you know, you can have some downtime where you can sit in a cafe and people watch or whatever it might be that, so you're not like go, go, go, go, go. But still have really full days full of really exciting things. But like, it becomes that that rest that you know, that big, you know, quote unquote vacation that maybe you, that you were hoping for. I'm, I'm glad to hear that. That's amazing.
Anna Rapp (00:10:25):
I really feel like it's because of like two things specifically that you did with our travel planning. Number one, when you reduced our itinerary, like I came to you with like four different cities or something, or five and I was already thinking, I was like being conservative, you know, <laugh>, but I think you like chopped it down to like three to four. And that really helped with the hustle. And then the other thing is this theory that you have around like oscillating traveling days with not traveling. And that was like when I was in Ireland, I'm like, oh, I get it. Like I get what she was saying because like for me, the nice thing, I didn't have to drive very far. Like I would drive like one or two hours, but still when you're traveling, like it's a travel day. And so to really have oscillating travel days and not having to travel was a huge game changer for that. Feeling relaxed. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:11:13):
<Affirmative>. Yeah, for sure. Those, those repositioning days where you're getting from one place to the other, but instead of like getting to that destination and having to explore that full destination that day, like enjoying the journey, like stopping along. There's a thatch cottage village here. Oh my gosh, let's, let's get out and take some pictures or whatever it is. You know, that's yeah. I think, I think that's for all travel planning. Like it doesn't, that's not Ireland specific. Although it's, it's an amazing trick no matter like where you go, like giving yourself that, that break. And so then you can really fully explore the destination, right? Like you picked a spot 'cause it sounded cool or there was something there you really wanted to see, but like, how awful is it if you get there at five, just everything closes up at six and then, oh, we gotta go the next morning to the next destination. Like, oh. And so being like such a downer. Right?
Anna Rapp (00:12:08):
Totally.
Stephanie Chastain (00:12:10):
Yeah. Okay. So you said something just a little bit earlier about you didn't have a lot to do in your business. I, I'm curious 'cause I'm, as a business owner who also travels, like how do you do it? Like how did you manage your business while being present while like doing all these amazing, wonderful things with your kids? Like how did, how did you set up your business for your trip?
Anna Rapp (00:12:39):
Yes. ILI was seeing way more questions about this than I expected. And I kind of think about, it's interesting for me because like I launched my business eight years ago when I was about to take a maternity leave. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. And so I think I just naturally have always thought about building a business that you can kind of take breaks from. Which is so interesting. 'cause I think when people think about like passive income or all these sexy things, I'm like, I think they just want that because they want a freedom-based business they can put on the back burner. But I think we forget that even as service providers done, like you can create that too. And one thing that I do is I think about like whenever I need to take a break from my business, I think of is it like phase A or phase B?
Anna Rapp (00:13:20):
Right? Phase A is like, you need to completely take off from your business. Like you are having a baby or you are having an emergency or something, or maybe you won't have internet. Phase B is just like business very light. And I think people forget this option. And I like this option, meaning when I take business really light, I don't have client calls, but I support my clients on email support. Takes me like 20 minutes a day. I will like chat with my team. I'll like still move. I was like dealing with like a legal issue. So I was still kind of like pushing that along. And it really only takes about 20 to 30 minutes a day of work, right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. And it's flexible work. And so I move my business back to, and I also let my clients know like, hey, normally I respond to you within 48 hours.
Anna Rapp (00:14:06):
It might be more delayed than that. But I, the reason I like that phase B is it doesn't take so much prep work when people plan to take a vacation and they want to have no contact with their business. It's like they're planning for the apocalypse and then they're having a plan for a vacation and plan to like completely pause their business and then they're announcing on social media like, I'm gonna be gone. And like, it's like this whole big situation instead of like, no, no one's gonna really notice 'cause they're bus like you're fine. Like just chill with it. Right. So I think I really put my business in like I have it set like for my Christmas holiday for a few times a year. I like go into B mode. And then the other nice thing is like when you get back to work and life, it's not such a like whiplash reaction. You're just like easing back in a little bit. So how I set up my schedule is I put all my client calls in three weeks out of the month anyway. So I have one week every month, either for travel or for just doing extra work of other type of sites, client calls. So I had already kind of had that week. That's the short of it.
Stephanie Chastain (00:15:12):
Ah, so it sounds like you didn't completely like step away from the business. You just managed what you like absolutely needed to and then kind of moved forward with your day, with your travel day as you had and
Anna Rapp (00:15:30):
Ignored my Exactly. Like I show up for my business like those 20 minutes and then I ignored it the rest of the day.
Stephanie Chastain (00:15:35):
Was that challenging for you? Is it like, do you have any, like, is that difficult for you to do?
Anna Rapp (00:15:42):
I mean, not really because I think I kind of do that. It's pretty similar to like what I do normally in my day except for obviously when I'm working. Normally it's longer 'cause I've gone on client calls. But I feel like I try to, my coach Lacey has this thing about open loops. It's a really great podcast episode. Basically this idea of like not reading emails until you can actually respond to them, right? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. Like, I just think energetically over time I've created better boundaries normally. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. So I think it makes it easier a little bit when I'm away to
Stephanie Chastain (00:16:15):
Yeah, that makes sense. Okay. Let me ask you before I ask you about your trip. 'cause I think this sets it up. Did you, did you think you got out of this experience what you wanted to get out of the experience?
Anna Rapp (00:16:34):
That's a great, I mean in yes. Like, short answer is yes, but I think I went into this <laugh> like I'm someone that's like all or nothing. So I was thinking at the start of the year, like I'm gonna go international three times this year. <Laugh>,
Anna Rapp (00:16:50):
I've never taken an international, I'm just like, all or nothing. Right. But I didn't book anything 'cause I kind of wanted to assess. And I think being away, I mean, we had a great time and I'm so glad we did it and forever memories. But I think I'm like, I think I'm like a once a year international travel person, right. Because when I got back home, one of my friends was like, you know, I'm thinking about you. I know it's hard to like get home after a vacation and like, you know, not be having, but I'm like, I'm so happy to be home. I love my food, I love my gym, I love my girlfriends. Like I just have such a little routine here in San Diego that like, I like it. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. And so I think like, I'm a once a year person
Stephanie Chastain (00:17:31):
That's, it's amazing. A I think like, I think that reentry piece for people can be super challenging. And I
Anna Rapp (00:17:39):
Had more than one person ask me about that. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>
Stephanie Chastain (00:17:41):
Like, for me, I can remember this was at a point in my life where I was not like in the best space. Like I was working, you know, in higher ed and I had to go back to my, you know, eight to like 8:00 PM you know, job kind of thing. And I remember being landing in the US and like bawling my eyes like I can't do it anymore. You know? And so sometimes being away, and I think partly because in that instance it was like really like your, you know, exit a or you know, time off a plan where you were, I was just completely out of it and it was just so amazing and wonderful and then, you know,
Anna Rapp (00:18:17):
Yeah, it is like that black and white experience, isn't it? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:18:21):
Yeah. I mean, and, and that had, that obviously in my life has, has changed dramatically as I have moved into a new world, into a new kind of career in my, in my in my world. So it, so that's not an issue really for me anymore. 'cause I a I always know like I'm gonna be back into Ireland, you know, very soon. But also like, but I can, I can really, I can really feel for those people who have that like, you know, that reaction because it, it can be really hard. So it's, I, you can correct me if I'm wrong, but I think what I'm hearing from you is actually because you've created boundaries kind of from the get go about your business and about your kind of personal business life and, and that, that reentry piece maybe wasn't as difficult as
Anna Rapp (00:19:08):
I don't, it it may be, it might be because like I have done a good job of creating my dream life. But it also might just be because like, I don't know, maybe my personality. Yeah, you're
Stephanie Chastain (00:19:16):
Home. Any, anybody?
Anna Rapp (00:19:17):
Maybe I'm like a creature of habit or something, which is bizarre. 'cause Like I'm an Enneagram seven. Like, I am someone that historically like, like, doesn't like change or routine, but like, somehow I've turned into this creature of like, I love drinking my hot tea every morning. I love my yoga class. Like, I love, like just my little routine over here. <Laugh>. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:19:36):
Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. No, I, I've be, I think I've, I've moved in that direction myself. Like, there is something nice about being in your own bed, like when you're back from
Anna Rapp (00:19:45):
When I laid into my sheets <laugh>, I was like,
Stephanie Chastain (00:19:48):
Jesus. Like
Anna Rapp (00:19:49):
This is like, I just, I just love my sheets. I love my ha my little tiny house. Like, I just really do like it here. Yeah.
Stephanie Chastain (00:19:58):
And that's, that's a sign of a good life. That's a good, that's a great thing actually. Yeah.
Anna Rapp (00:20:03):
<Laugh>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:20:04):
Okay. Okay. So tell me about your trip. So how about first? I mean, I'm sure people don't, not everybody knows a ton about Ireland. It's a small country, but actually it's very hard to like do the whole thing in 10 days, which, and a lot of people initially kind of think that they want to do. I wouldn't recommend it, but that's a whole other podcast. So tell me kind of as a rough guideline, like where did you go on your trip? Like kind of a, give me like a, if I was a little car, moving about a map, you know, in Ireland, where did you roughly go?
Anna Rapp (00:20:38):
Okay. And that's one thing I did right when I booked the trip is I printed out a Google map of Ireland and I plotted out our trip and I told my kids, this is the city we're going to. And so they knew the whole time. Probably they remember better than me, but we landed in Dublin. But I knew right away I'd been to Dublin in college and I just wanted to be in the countryside more. So we went right from Dublin, we took a train over to Galloway. You'll have to correct me on
Stephanie Chastain (00:21:05):
These Goway. Yeah. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. Good guy. Goway. Yep, you're fine. Oh my goodness. Irish pronunciations place names, people names even. I still very much get them wrong. They're, they're so gracious about it. Don't ever feel funny about <laugh>. There's like a vowel in every other letter of a word. So it's, it's fine.
Anna Rapp (00:21:23):
So we took the train to Galway and then from Galway is where we got our car, which I was so nervous about driving in Ireland on the left side, I thought, I was like, is this the worst decision of my life? I wasn't sure. But, and then from there we did some cities down and ended up in Killarney. Is that how you say it? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. Yep.
Stephanie Chastain (00:21:41):
Yep.
Anna Rapp (00:21:41):
And then from Kani, we took the train back and stayed near Dublin. That was our little loop.
Stephanie Chastain (00:21:48):
Okay. A little loop. What were your favorite things? What did you love?
Anna Rapp (00:21:53):
Oh my goodness.
Stephanie Chastain (00:21:54):
It
Anna Rapp (00:21:54):
Was honestly amazing. Like, I'll start with my favorite memory and then I can share all the other ones. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> or no, what should I start with?
Stephanie Chastain (00:22:02):
No, yeah, go ahead. Go ahead. Do your favorite. Do your favorite.
Anna Rapp (00:22:06):
My favorite memory was driving down, I think it was, oh, is it dingle or Dulan? Yeah, that's like Dolan,
Stephanie Chastain (00:22:16):
The from Galway. I think you went the first. No, no, no. Dingle. Oh yeah. Dle
Anna Rapp (00:22:20):
All the way on the edge.
Stephanie Chastain (00:22:22):
Yes. Mm-Hmm.
Anna Rapp (00:22:22):
<Affirmative>. Okay. So towards the end we were like driving out to Dingle, this little town and I'm driving and like, there's these just beau I was so shocked about like the beautiful green pastures and just like obsessed with these green pastures, right? And as we were driving down, like we get to the water and you can see the ocean, but not just the ocean. But then there's the mountains in the background. And then on the side there's the cliffs. And I'm like, my jaw dropped to see like the sheepy. Like for me, I love ocean and I live by ocean, but to see like ocean and mountains and rocky cliffs and the pasture like wow. Like my brain exploded. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:23:01):
<Affirmative>. It's gorgeous, isn't it? Like, just gorgeous.
Anna Rapp (00:23:07):
Yeah. So that was like, that was one of the highlights because I think there are just moments where like your ma like you get so in routine and habit that you forget that other things exist. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. And so it never even crossed my mind that that could exist. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:23:21):
<Affirmative>. You were there in lambing season. Were there little baby lambs like around in the
Anna Rapp (00:23:27):
Past season? No, we didn't see any baby lambs.
Stephanie Chastain (00:23:29):
Oh, okay. I would next time, next time,
Anna Rapp (00:23:31):
Next time. <Laugh>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:23:34):
So your favorite was the scenery you love? Like particularly dingle, which is like among my most favorite places as well. I mean, oh. As well as a love on other people's, but it's gorgeous. Gorgeous.
Anna Rapp (00:23:46):
Just stunning. That was for me personally, like selfishly, like if my kids weren't there, like, that was my personal highlight. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:23:53):
<Affirmative>. What else? What did your kids love? What was their favorite?
Anna Rapp (00:23:58):
They, when I asked them what their favorite is, they say, well, so when we went to tour Trim Castle, which he recommended right outside of Dublin, which that was my favorite castle we saw of all the castles, because on the inside it's like light and bright and open like <laugh>, some of the other castles. I'm like, am I gonna get trapped down here forever? <Laugh> like, like can I go out alive? Right. Yeah. But just light and bright and open and beautiful castle. And at the castle, the tour guide gave them each a little chocolate, an Easter chocolate. And so they remember things like that, like the tour guide, giving them a chocolate, or there's this pizza place that we ate at in Dublin that they really cater to kids and they like treat them like royalty and are just sweet to them. And so my kids remember that pizza and talk about how good that pizza was. So I think like they just remember when people were like sweet to them. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:24:55):
<Affirmative>. Yeah. Isn't it funny how, and I always, this is probably funny coming from somebody who's like, you know, the ultimate planner, but like the best moments tend to be the ones that you don't plan. Like Yeah. That
Anna Rapp (00:25:13):
You
Stephanie Chastain (00:25:13):
Didn't plan for that they, they happened organically because you were either there at the right place or at the right time. But I mean, I think Ireland, I mean you could tell me if you had a different experience, but generally speaking the Irish people are like amazing. They're just, hospitality is in their bones. And so it's very easy to fall in love with not only the place but the people.
Anna Rapp (00:25:43):
Yes. Yeah. No, we had a great time. And like you said, like just those everyday things. Another one of my favorite memories that I shared a reel on was when we were in Galloway, we exited out of our hotel because my kids were like kind of quarreling in the hotel room. And so whenever that happens at home, I'm just like, let's get outta the house and go for a walk. Like my default is like, let's put on a podcast, let's go out for a walk. Like just, this isn't working. So I do the same thing in Ireland, right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. I'm like, just put on your shoes, get out of the hotel. So we walk out and there's all these people walking in one direction and I'm like, let's follow them, why not? Right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. But then like they keep going and it was like a good like 10 minutes, like continuing to walk and I'm like, is this a music event?
Anna Rapp (00:26:24):
Are they walking to the town center? Anyway, we get to a sporting event and I'm like, what sporting event is this? So like, I asked the guy at the ticket counter like, are kids allowed or whatever? And he was like, yes, but don't worry, I'll only charge you for one or something. And I'm like, well that I didn't, that's okay. Whatever, you know. So, dunno why he thought, I thought maybe thought it was, it was like $30, but 30 euros. But he was like, don't worry, I'll only charge you for one. I'm like, okay, whatever you need to do. Right? So we go into this rugby game and it just was an amazing time. It was like mostly just like the locals, right? But I told on my Rio, I said like this one mom, like, I was just standing next to her and she was like, I think she could tell I wasn't from there because like, my kids are blonde. And ironically I don't think there's a lot of blondes in Ireland because people were always asking if my kids were twins.
Stephanie Chastain (00:27:13):
Hmm.
Anna Rapp (00:27:14):
I don't know why. They were like, are they twins? I'm like, no, they're not. They anyway, just the sweetest mom. She was like, told my kids to like go play with their kids on like the side fields. And she's like, they'll be fine. I'm like, okay. I'm
Stephanie Chastain (00:27:25):
Like, I'll swear crazy.
Anna Rapp (00:27:27):
And then she like bought me a drink and just was like chatting me up and like, it was just so, it was lovely, a lovely night of like, I think because I didn't have the expectation on like tourism, like we had to see 900 things. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. We just had some really great life moments playing on really cool playgrounds. Like Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> going to that rugby game and just letting my kids chill. Like it was really fun. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:27:52):
That is like one of my favorite, most favorite things to do with kids or like to tell parents to do with kids. It's like, take your kids to the playground. Like, yeah. Not only for you, it's interesting that happened at a rugby game, but oftentimes like, 'cause my husband and I, we have, you know, two little boys and we spend a lot of times at a lot of time at parks, you know, our playgrounds all over Ireland. And the most fun conversations happen at the playground. Like, 'cause parents are standing around, you know, talking with each other and you know, you find out so much, not only about, you know, what's going on in kind of like kid world in, in another place, but also, you know, tips and things. Like people, they're curious like, why are you here? What are you doing? And then they're happy to like give you, well you should go to dinner here tonight. Or so-and-so's playing music there in the pub and or whatever it might be. And like, it's that again, it's that white space, it's that time to like have those, those conversations. That's amazing that you had, you had that like a instinct just to like, go with the flow and just do it, but what an outcome. That's, that's so fun.
Anna Rapp (00:29:05):
It was more just survival, right? It was more just like, get outta
Stephanie Chastain (00:29:09):
Yeah, I'm done. Let's go. Yeah.
Anna Rapp (00:29:12):
But I do think it was like, and that's why I'm so grateful, like a lot of planning went into this trip, right? Like you really helped me identify the cities that we're going to. And then ahead of time I really booked a lot of like our main things like biking on the air and islands or like, I really, of our cities, what I needed to book ahead. I really booked it probably a little last minute, but it was like a few months ahead. Got all our hotels nailed. And so I feel like the, and I think about this in business too. The things that need to be cemented, cement those, right? And then I think it gave some of the things that were a little bit more wiggle, roomy was like, I would look up, okay, where are we driving tomorrow? We could go to these three places. Which two do we want to go to? I kind of like made a little like Google map cheat sheet since I was driving solo. So I already had my little link set up ahead of time. But I do think it was such a balance of like cementing in the things we wanted to do, but between that just like really following our intuition. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>
Stephanie Chastain (00:30:12):
How was driving solo on the left?
Anna Rapp (00:30:15):
Oh my god. I remember texting you before and being like, I am so nervous. Is this the worst decision I've ever done? Because I remember realizing like, ugh. 'cause Ireland isn't like Japan where you're gonna have a ton of public transportation. Right? Right. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. And so I didn't realize that till after I bought the plane ticket. And I was like, why did I, but anyway, I was like, okay, I I am gonna do this, you know? And then I was like, is this a bad decision? I don't know. Pros and cons. The best thing you did was you gave me that link to that YouTube driving instructor. What's his name?
Stephanie Chastain (00:30:46):
I don't remember which one I sent you. There's a couple. Was it well, I can,
Anna Rapp (00:30:51):
Who knows? I
Stephanie Chastain (00:30:52):
Don't, I have a couple and I don't remember which one I sent you, but anyways, you can look 'em up. There's there's quite a few, but it's actually driving instructors. If you go onto YouTube and search driving on the left in Ireland, you'll have a lot of people that will be just like filming themselves or their, whoever else in the car. And it's typically a lot of expletives. I'm like, oh my gosh. And you know, that kind of thing. You, you wanna look for the one that's, you know, official driving instructor Ireland, and then you'll find him.
Anna Rapp (00:31:18):
Yes. The one you sent me was so good and so basically for a
Stephanie Chastain (00:31:21):
Month, D Dane tank, that was it. I think I sent you Dane.
Anna Rapp (00:31:24):
Yeah, that sounds, that sounds right. And he, I think he is mostly is making these videos for Irish drivers, Irish adolescence, learning how to drive. And for me it was just so nice. And here's the thing, granted, I live in San Diego, so I drive in a very big city. I parallel park. Our freeways are like 10 lanes wild, right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> like, so I think that helped a little bit. But so watching a lot of videos with point of view being on the left, learning about roundabouts, reading all the street signs. Like I really studied and I included my kids, I made them watch the videos too and learn the signs. Love that. And so it was so beautiful. My daughter made me this little note that said let me see if I can say it right. Wide, right. No white tight. Right. Which is it?
Stephanie Chastain (00:32:11):
I'm not sure which one you're going for. <Laugh>,
Anna Rapp (00:32:14):
Just to remind you Wide, right? It's wide right tight left. Yes. When you turn.
Stephanie Chastain (00:32:19):
Yes. Yes.
Anna Rapp (00:32:21):
So they, so they would, they would like made me little notes and they would remind, so it was like really like a family. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> affair. And after like the first hour, it was so easy, honestly, it was great. And I didn't feel like any, like the first few days we had to catch the bus, we had to catch the train. So it was just nice to not have to catch anything anymore. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:32:40):
<Affirmative>. Yeah. I, I think, I think it is daunting, right? Like that initial fear of like, okay, I'm gonna be a, not only driving on the left, but b you know, for you you were driving solo on the left. Love your kids though. Like that's amazing. Yes,
Anna Rapp (00:32:59):
<Laugh> they were, they were in it. They
Stephanie Chastain (00:33:00):
Were in it, they were in it. And like, but, but also then you've got the, the road structures are very different than they are Yes. Here in the us I mean, very small roads, some roads that are like, you know,
Anna Rapp (00:33:12):
So small
Stephanie Chastain (00:33:13):
One lane, like they would be one lane roads like, like
Anna Rapp (00:33:17):
Not even one lane,
Stephanie Chastain (00:33:18):
Not even, it would be like a, you know, back farm road or something. You know, here. But they are two lanes and there absolutely could be oncoming traffic and you just have to pull over and navigate. So that's, that's intimidating. Like, it, it, and
Anna Rapp (00:33:32):
Nothing's a grid. Like here in San Diego, everything is like a square. Like no road is like, there's the reason there's no four-way stop is because there's no corners. Like everything is like roundy and turny. Like there's no straight roads.
Stephanie Chastain (00:33:48):
None, none whatsoever. Yeah, you're right, you're right. But you survived and you did it. And, and that's, I love to hear you say that actually, not even that it was easy. I mean, I'm glad it was easy for you, but like that it was a good decision that like,
Anna Rapp (00:34:02):
It was the best part of the trip. Like, driving in the Irish countryside, just me and the kids knowing we can stop like best. It was like my favorite memories were in the car. Aw,
Stephanie Chastain (00:34:13):
That's aw, that's lovely. Alright, so let's talk about like, maybe not necessarily what you didn't like, although maybe you have some of those things. But like, what would you change? Like what, what would you do differently or maybe even for your next trip, like Japan? Like what would be, how would you,
Anna Rapp (00:34:30):
Oh my goodness.
Stephanie Chastain (00:34:31):
How would you change it up?
Anna Rapp (00:34:34):
I don't even know. I think I'm just still like writing the bliss from this trip because like, it was so good. Like, I was looking back on some photos before we hopped on this call and I was like, oh, we went to that like beautiful tea house, right? Mm-Hmm. And we got to see that waterfall and we got to hike the cliffs of more. And like, we got to go to the national park. Like, I'm shocked at how much you fit in for us, for how chill it felt like it honestly felt, I think it's because as a mom we're used to doing 900 things in one day. Like Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>, we know what it's like to like, get the kids in school, go to yoga class, answer nine client emails, go, go to this, get them in bed, pack the ba. Like, so honestly, for like, this felt super slow.
Anna Rapp (00:35:19):
Mm. <Laugh> and relaxed, but we did a lot. But there was really like one thing a day. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>, right? And so I'm just so in awe, Stephanie of like, and I could not thank you enough. I just feel like you gave us the like, the lifetime gift of like, I know I need to ask you questions too, of like an immaculate trip. And for me it was like effortless and easy, but that's only because of your expert. It's like anything seems like that way, right? It seems like, oh, that was so easy, but the reason it was so easy is because of your literal decade of experience knowing Ireland. And so I just cannot speak highly enough about hiring you and working with you because I feel like I got the ease of like, oh yeah, it was just like an overnight success as a business, but like, it's overnight travel, Ireland trip. But because of all your knowledge, all of your connections, you know, the beautiful kind driver you connected us with. Like what a gift you gave us.
Stephanie Chastain (00:36:12):
Aw, I'm so glad. That's glad. I mean, that's, that's the goal, right? Like if you create a business, it's not just that, you know, you wanna be successful and you know, have you know, a, a successful business in, in whatever your, you know, goals are for the business, but like the outcome for the travelers looks easy, seamless looks
Anna Rapp (00:36:35):
Easy. Right.
Stephanie Chastain (00:36:36):
You know, like, but it's
Anna Rapp (00:36:37):
Not, it's like think and maybe this can, can I ask you some questions? Yeah,
Stephanie Chastain (00:36:41):
Yeah, of course, of course. Yeah.
Anna Rapp (00:36:42):
Like, what do you like for me on my end, right? Like, you gave me this beautiful, really smooth, clean itinerary with like the right contacts and the right things to see, right? And really simplified a lot of decision fatigue, right? Mm-Hmm. Because there's like 9 billion things you could see, but you're like, Anna, just go see this one thing, right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. But tell me a little bit about behind the scenes, like what goes into creating some a product like that that seems so easy and seamless. Like you, can you unpack that for us?
Stephanie Chastain (00:37:10):
Yeah. I, I think there's a couple of things. The first thing is a knowing your destination, particularly for travel, right? Like knowing your destination in and out. Like I often think that what we do is matchmaking, you know, is like, you know, connecting the right experience, the right partner, the right contact, the right person with whatever that client profile is. So, and, and so that, so knowing the destination and knowing what, what's available, like having the, that like Rolodex so to speak. But then like, so that's kind of part A, but I think more important even is getting to know the traveler. Like mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. I've, I mean, Anna, we've been in each other's worlds for like, you
Anna Rapp (00:37:57):
Know me, right?
Stephanie Chastain (00:37:58):
Yeah. Like, for, for a really long time. And, and I think, I think part of that is, is so I I, you know, kind of had a leg up even before, you know, we even started talking specifically about this trip, but like, part of what we do is, you know, having a, not just a discovery call. Like I will do a discovery call for a half an hour with someone just to like, kind of get to know them a little bit. And then so they can get to know us and see how we work. 'cause We work very differently than kind of like a traditional travel agent or a travel company. And then, and then I get back on the phone with them. It's not just like a, oh, you wanna go to Ireland? Okay, you need to see these six sites, and that's, here's your trip and like a package and that's it.
Stephanie Chastain (00:38:42):
Instead, it's, okay, you wanna work with us? Fantastic. We're gonna hop back on the phone for 90 minutes and we're gonna hash out your itinerary together and you're gonna get to a and a all along the way. And, you know, and before, before we even do that, I'm gonna barrage you with like 900 questions about like, what would make this trip meaningful? Who's gonna be there? What are their hobbies? What are they interested in? Like, what would make that very, that, you know, trip, not just a trip, but like a life memory. You know, we want the experience to be a life memory. So it's getting to know the person, the travelers, and then connecting them with the right experiences that, that make the most sense for them. So I think it's twofold.
Anna Rapp (00:39:30):
I love it and just makes sense. I think for any business, I think that's, as heart-centered entrepreneurs, like our expertise is like, we're really personalizing, we're like caring about that person and making it custom, right? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>, I would love to know like why Ireland, like when did maybe, like when did you first send your first client to Ireland and when did your passion for Ireland start?
Stephanie Chastain (00:39:52):
Oh my goodness. Okay. Shortish version. So my husband and I traveled to Ireland for a honeymoon 2006. I was like 23, 3, 4 years old, like young in, in my like now my almost 41 version of myself, <laugh> like we got married and I had not traveled internationally before. And so I was like, we're doing something. I didn't care where it was like, I was actually kinda like you. It was like, sure, Ireland sounds great, sounds relatively easy, English speaking. I kind of dipped my toe into the water and then see, you know, maybe it will go elsewhere, which I've been very blessed to have gotten to go to a lot of different places since then. But Ireland, that first trip, it captured my heart. Like it captured my heart. It just, I loved it. And my husband and I, he fell in love with it too.
Stephanie Chastain (00:40:43):
We went back and we went back and around 2012 travel blogs were all the rage. And so I was like, I like to write, I'll, you know, I'll write about our trips to Ireland. And and I was in higher education. I worked in student affairs and, and I loved being in higher education. I loved working with students. I loved one-on-one work. But, you know, I, and I, and I like slowly transitioned into study abroad <laugh>. So like, I moved myself from student affairs. I went into study abroad and then I started this travel blog. And so, but kind of like slowly shifted my whole life around travel. But it wasn't until 2015 when a woman emailed me, like my blog was getting, you know, some good traffic, but I wasn't really like, it was just a blog. I wasn't, you know, I wasn't really doing anything with it.
Stephanie Chastain (00:41:38):
And a woman emailed me and she was like, can I just pay to get on the phone with you? Like, oh, oh, this is a business. It's a business, okay. And so I met with her. We had a great, we had a great conversation and I was like, I wonder if anybody else would wanna chat with me. And so I threw up a sales page on the website. It was consultations. I think I started with like 30 minute consultations. And it, lo and behold, lots of people actually wanted <laugh> to talk with me. And then it snowballed from there. We, we went from just doing, you know, 30 minute coaching to you know, full on custom itinerary design. And then the pandemic happened, which kind of put a stop to all travel. And at that time I kind of, my husband and I, we had a heart to heart and it was you know, what am I doing with this?
Stephanie Chastain (00:42:36):
Is this my, my kiddos were growing up and you know, going gonna be in school. And I was like, you know, I think I want, if I'm gonna do this, I'm really going to do this. And so we rebranded, we started a full travel planning and service management service. And it has just ballooned from there. I mean, we, it, I would've ne if you would've told me I was doing this like 10 years ago, I would've laughed at you. I would've thought you've been absolutely crazy. But it has been the most wonderful, wonderful journey, really.
Anna Rapp (00:43:23):
I lo I just love that story so much and almost how you I actually started off blogging too back in the day, and I just think like, what a fun era of like, again, like it was different than social media, but like same concept of like, I just wanna write about this. I just wanna share about this thing that matters to me. Right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> is so funny. 'cause Our driver that you recommended actually who picked us up from the airport would not shut up about you <laugh>. He was just like, and he's Irish, but he's like, I'm always asking Stephanie for recommendations because she knows Ireland better than I do. You know, how did you get to a place of knowing Ireland so well and networking with local Irish people, et cetera? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:44:05):
Yeah. That, that's a really good question. And it, it's really funny because, because I came up into this industry so organically as, as a consumer, as a traveler. Like, I did not come into this as a travel agent or a travel company. And so I didn't know how all of that worked. I just knew that I loved staying at this b and b and everybody else that, you know, had kind of a similar profile, like should stay there <laugh> like. And so it was more for me about connecting and learning from people who were doing things that I thought were unique and fun and really local and authentic. And so so I've created a system in which it could, because once you get into it, when these small local companies, it's a very, actually, very small ecosystem in Ireland. And so once you get to know, you know, Dave the driver guide, and he is like, oh, you have to talk to so and so.
Stephanie Chastain (00:45:10):
And then, so that's snowballs to then another contact. And then, you know, for me, I'm, I'm based in the us but <laugh> Zoom has been wonderful. I have so many Zoom meetings with, you know, partners and, and people in Ireland that, you know, we, I've been able to develop really true relationships with people. And so it's just happened over time. I mean, it really has just the relationships have grown. I don't oftentimes I, I will say like my partner, but oftentimes it's like my friend, like my friend, like, I'm introducing my friends to my friends. Like, that's what it feels like. And it's so it's really, I can't say that there's a secret sauce or anything, but it's, it's really using the network that I initially had just as, as a traveler. And then now, you know, as a professional, putting my professional hat on and saying, this is who we are.
Stephanie Chastain (00:46:04):
This is what we do, these are the people that we serve. Do you think this might be a good match? And then really, truly meeting with those people, going to Ireland, I'm, I'm very lucky to get to travel to Ireland often, not only, you know, as a, you know, professional, but with my family. Like, we will still go there and we vacation. And when I vacation, like, unless it's I'm visiting, you know, friends and, and stuff, it, it's like people don't know who I am. And so I'm, I'm still getting that bubbly feeling that, you know, those kind of firsthand experiences. And so it's really fun for me to pass those experiences on to others.
Anna Rapp (00:46:44):
I love that so much. And really, like you are someone that so naturally builds relationships and connections. You're just like, easy to talk to, right? So I think the cool thing when you hire a travel planner is that you're getting all of their relationships, all of their, like, that's really what makes the difference. And like, some of that just takes time. But like for me, I got to like steal your time, right? <Laugh>, and like, like when you told me like to do Ollie's Cliffs of More hike, right? Like whoever, I can't remember his name, but the young guy, he's like a young college kid, probably like 22, that like, and no one else showed up that day because it was super rainy, but it was just me and my kids and they still did it. And we got like, so muddy, but it was like an amazing hike.
Anna Rapp (00:47:27):
And there's no way I would've done that with my kids by myself. But because we had that like 22-year-old college guy, and not only did he guide us and educate us of like, you know, what was what, but he was also like super helpful with the kids. Like when my daughter was starting to complain about the mud, he's like, come on, you can do it. You're doing a great job. You know, like, so I just think like it is so useful to have, and I never would've accessed that if you wouldn't have given me that contact, right? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>, how do you manage keeping track of all the contacts and relationships, professional and or otherwise that you come across?
Stephanie Chastain (00:48:04):
You should see my spreadsheets,
Anna Rapp (00:48:06):
<Laugh>. I know you have a spreadsheet. I know, I know because you're so organized.
Stephanie Chastain (00:48:11):
Yeah. so no, I do. So there are, you know, by every county in Ireland, I have a spreadsheet, and for every, in each county is accommodations. It's, you know, driver guides, it's experiences, it's amazing food. This is a place for traditional Irish music. Yeah. And, and what's really nice, because I work with so many people, you know, I do, I do these like recap calls with, with everybody. And so I will often, I will actually often get more than I yes. Expect when we have those recap calls because people discover things for me and they wanna share. They're excited about their experiences, so they wanna share what they find. And that just, you know, adds to my list of like, you know, so-and-so had a great experience here and maybe I'll head, head there on my next trip, check it out, you know, and, and so it's ever growing.
Stephanie Chastain (00:49:05):
I mean, that list will never be like stagnant. There's always something being added. And it's also then those are the places that I reach out to and I can say, Hey, you know, so and so client just stayed here. They had an amazing experience, you know, here's who I am. This is what I do. I would love to send more people your way. Maybe we can connect, you know, on Zoom or next time in Ireland. And, and so from there then, you know, the, the relationship builds. And it's, I mean, people love, people who love what they do in Ireland are easy to connect with because they wanna share their backyard with people. They want to share that experience with people. And so it makes, I mean, that it's like the best possible scenario, right? Like, it just makes for everybody, it, it makes the the experience better. And, and then you become, you know, the one, like the, the three people on even a public tour that not everybody knows about, right? Like, and you feel like you get just like your own little slice of, of Ireland, that's like your own thing, just because it's not the mass. You know, you could have, you know, only gone to the main cliffs of Moore Visitor Center and been one of hundreds if not thousands of people there. Or you could have seen the cliffs that 99% of the people in Ireland did not see
Anna Rapp (00:50:32):
You know, and, and get like nice and muddy and talk to like a young Irish boy that like, we got to like, just like understand like how he thinks and how, you know, his brain works and just get to know someone local too. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:50:45):
<Affirmative>. Yeah. I mean, and that's the, that's the thing typically people remember, right? Is like, the people like, oh my gosh, we had the best conversation with so and so we talked about, you know, anything American politics, you might wanna stay away from both, like, you know, but honestly, Irish love to talk about, like, they do
Anna Rapp (00:51:02):
Like five different people. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>. And they were like, everyone would say like, Ireland isn't very political, but
Stephanie Chastain (00:51:09):
<Laugh>. And then they would
Anna Rapp (00:51:09):
Just dive in like fi like
Stephanie Chastain (00:51:11):
<Crosstalk> have, they have their opinion
Anna Rapp (00:51:12):
The lady at the rugby game, the lady at, on the train, like everyone wanted to talk about politics, which is just so interesting to me. <Affirmative>. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (00:51:21):
<Affirmative>. Yep. It's, it is, well, because you, you don't realize it, but us politics and, and has such a huge impact on the rest of the world. And so, yes. I remember thinking that the first time I went to Ireland, you know, I was shocked about how much what was going on in the US was in the Irish news. Like, we would like come in from our day before we go out to dinner and we would, my husband would like flip on the news and watch it, which was so interesting. But it was oftentimes there were, you know, at least one or two segments about what was going on in the us whether politically or otherwise. And it all, it, it's really surprised me. But then over time, because I've had those kind of conversations with people, like, you realize like, oh wow, what we do really impacts these small, I mean the whole rest of the world really. But, you know, it's these small countries that rely on the, the, the, the, the rest of the world, you know? So it's just, it's just interesting.
Anna Rapp (00:52:21):
So interesting. Okay. Tell me what, I mean, I could like interview for a whole nother like seven hours <laugh>, but tell me, I have like one more question. Tell me what, like, when it comes to owning a business that is a travel agency, like what do you feel like you do different when it co when it comes to travel?
Stephanie Chastain (00:52:42):
I think what we do different is connecting. Like, it's connecting. It's the connection. Like, like I said before, you know, we don't a lot of travel agents and I actually, I have a lot of travel agent friends. There are some amazing travel agents out there, like amazing. And so this is not, it's just different. And so I wanna make sure I preface that first. But a lot of travel agents you know, have never traveled to Ireland. Like, they, they are working with partners, hopefully on the ground. Hopefully they're working with local partners. But oftentimes they don't have that local knowledge, that expertise. They can't give you like this restaurant, like you, like, oh my goodness, you have kids, you need to, to eat here. And I think that local knowledge is, that's, that's the thing that like no matter who you're working with, you wanna ask them, when was the last time you went there?
Stephanie Chastain (00:53:42):
Like, can you gimme, can you give me a specific example of anything? Like give me, give me one hotel that you love and why you love it. Like gi ask them a nitty gritty detail so that you get a, a taste or a sense of what they know like or who they know. And so I think what we do or what we excel at is connecting our travelers with the right places, the right boutique, B and b, the right, you know you know, experience or guide or, or what it might, whatever it might be. Because, you know, 'cause we're not packaging it up. It's, it's, it's, you get to yay. And they, all along the way, we're not working off a commission. So, you know, you pay us a fee and, and it's a daily fee and, but I guarantee you what you get out from our daily fee is bar none better than what you're gonna get from a mass produced package of here are the six main sites in these seven, you know, or eight locations across Ireland in seven days. Yes or no, you know, like for me that makes me feel a little, you know, like, so I think the big thing that I always like to to, to make sure people feel is that they've been seen and then that like, they're gonna get the experience that they want out of hard earned dollars time. I mean, all of the things that you sacrifice when you, when you travel.
Anna Rapp (00:55:19):
I love that so much. What comes up for me is just how you're saying, like, it, it's true like when you hire a travel agent or any service provider, number one, hiring someone that loves what they do, right? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>, like is obsessed with their country, right? Is like, loves what they do and then also has really like specialized there, right? Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> and cares about relationship, cares about that personalization piece.
Stephanie Chastain (00:55:42):
Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. Yeah. Yeah. And, and it doesn't necessarily have to be that to be a destination specialist, although I've got such an amazing small network of people that do all sorts of other places around the world. But it, it does mean like making sure that they are connected with the right people who can connect you, right? Like, so just making sure that, that they do have that at least, and that at least first initial contact of like, I know I'm gonna get something unique, different special yeah. And, and it's worth it. I think it's worth it. I mean, travel is, it can be truly life changing if you, if you let it.
Anna Rapp (00:56:20):
I love that. Okay. Sorry, 1, 1, 1 last question and then I'll let go. <Laugh>, go. Tell me if you, this is gonna be a hard question. Are you ready for it?
Stephanie Chastain (00:56:26):
I'm, I'm ready. I'm ready.
Anna Rapp (00:56:28):
<Laugh>, if you could only go back to one place in <laugh>, one place in Ireland for the rest of your life. One city. One city and the rest of Ireland was demolished. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> which city would you visit again and again and again?
Stephanie Chastain (00:56:46):
<Laugh>. Oh my gosh.
Anna Rapp (00:56:48):
I know
Stephanie Chastain (00:56:49):
<Laugh>. That's mean. I know it's mean. Oh, okay. Okay.
Anna Rapp (00:56:54):
So you, you have a runner up. You can have a
Stephanie Chastain (00:56:55):
Runner. All, all right. All right. So I think <laugh>, oh, if I were to pick,
Anna Rapp (00:57:04):
Take your time.
Stephanie Chastain (00:57:05):
<Laugh>. If I were to pick one city and, and in Ireland to, honestly, I think I wouldn't pick a city, I would pick like a town in the countryside because I believe, while I love Dublin and Galway and, and all of that stuff, I think the magic of Ireland often is in the countryside. And so I probably would pick a place like Dingle, we talked about Dingle or Okay. Dingle's my first, 'cause it has everything. It's got the charming town and like the gorgeous scenery and the beautiful walks. And I picked Dingle the second runner up, I think I would go up to Donal. So Don Donal is in the north west corner, not in the republic still of Ireland. But it's near an area that's wild and rugged and beautiful and far less visited. So that would be my, my runner up.
Anna Rapp (00:58:09):
I love it. Do you have pictures that I can put in the show notes of one or the other of those?
Stephanie Chastain (00:58:12):
Of course I do, yes.
Anna Rapp (00:58:14):
Okay. <laugh>. Okay. We'll put Stephanie's pictures in the show notes. But do you have any parting words for our listeners if they are thinking about either traveling to Ireland and or just being brave and traveling in general?
Stephanie Chastain (00:58:27):
I would say I, and I don't like the the just go mentality. I mean like, because it's, it's, it can be a lot harder than just go, but take the baby step to working towards going. So if it's like, I don't have the money for that. Okay, you don't have the money for that right now, but maybe you do in five years. What do I need to save every year in order to make it happen in five years, 10 years even? It doesn't have to be right away. But if you have that in your heart, if you have that dream that you wanna do it, like take that baby step and, and, and, and make the decision. Be intentional. Make the decision to make it a priority, and then enjoy every moment when you do.
Anna Rapp (00:59:11):
What good advice. I, I love that advice so much about the baby steps. One of my baby steps was just like talking to people about it. So like, I, I messaged you when I was thinking about it. There's also, one of my friends has a friend who travels a lot internationally with her kids. So I was like, I'm just gonna chat with you on the phone for 30 minutes. Right? And I just started talking to people about it. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> because it just felt so foreign to me. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>.
Stephanie Chastain (00:59:35):
Yeah. I mean, maybe it's not a financial hiccup, maybe it's a, you know, I'm just nervous to do it or you know, I've got kids and I've, or I've got this challenge. Maybe it's a food allergies is a big thing, you know, like there's lots of things that could potentially stop people from making that next decision that, that, that that choice. And so figure out what it is that's potentially stopping you and then take that baby step of figuring out, having a conversation is, is, you know, a great a great way. Talk to people who've done it before. You know, look Facebook groups, oh my gosh, search Google. You can be, I'm in like 800 travel Facebook groups. If you wanna do like, just get in one or two of them. Start reading, start seeing what people are, are talking about and, and, you know, begin getting that knowledge and then it maybe won't seem so, so daunting.
Anna Rapp (01:00:32):
It's interesting you mentioned that. I forgot that I actually you know, eight months ago joined a Facebook group called Families Who Travel. I'll link it in the show notes, but that was actually really imperative for me too, of normalizing like, oh, same thing like when you're trying to start a business and you really want examples of other people that are in integrity. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative> like for me it was like, I just don't know a lot of people with kids that are traveling personally. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. So for me, that group was super expansive to see like, there are other parents, single parents out there traveling with their kids. And again, yeah, that Facebook group was really game changing for me. Mm-Hmm.
Stephanie Chastain (01:01:06):
<Affirmative>. Yeah. And I think that's it. You, like, you start to step your toe into that world and that world doesn't seem so scary anymore.
Anna Rapp (01:01:15):
So
Stephanie Chastain (01:01:15):
Yes. Yeah.
Anna Rapp (01:01:16):
Yes. I love it. Okay. If people wanna connect with you, Stephanie, tell them how to do that. Also talk about your blog, because I read at least 10 of your blog posts as I was prepping for my trip. I downloaded your itinerary that was printed out two different times and I use that not itinerary travel checklist
Stephanie Chastain (01:01:34):
For packing.
Anna Rapp (01:01:35):
Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>, I use your packing checklist, obviously I use the itinerary you designed for me. I'm obsessed with all your work. So tell us how to access it all.
Stephanie Chastain (01:01:43):
Yes. So thank you. Yeah. So I am@infiniteireland.com and or Ireland travel coach on Instagram. And so the best way to kind of get in my world is to download our packing list. So that packing list is kind of all over the site on the blog posts and I, you know, on the homepage. So grab that and that'll get you into the newsletter, which has, you know, a little drip feed of, of all my favorite tips and things. And I think that is, you know, the best way to kind of, again, dip your toe into, you know, either traveling, you know, to Ireland or elsewhere. There's, if you want, you know, I've got, again, if, if anybody wants a recommendation for somewhere else in the world, like send me a DM and I will hopefully send you to someone who does what I do for another country. I'd be happy to share that. And yeah, I'd love, I mean, if there's, if there's anything that, that I would say, you know, is just take that next step and then, you know, if it's Ireland, oh my gosh, I'd love to chat with you. Like, as, as you could tell this, this could go on for a very long time. But also <laugh>, like I can talk about Ireland forever. So if you wanna, if you wanna talk about Ireland with me, I would love to, love to help.
Anna Rapp (01:03:04):
I love that so much. We'll make sure all your stuff is in the show notes. And Stephanie, I just wanna thank you from the bottom of my heart. I just feel like truly it was a trip that went better than expected. I'll share my photos in the, in the podcast show notes too, but just, I know it was because of your love and your expertise and your connections and like a decade, like I, I got to borrow a decade of your Ireland passion and knowledge. And so thank you for giving that to me, my babies. Oh,
Stephanie Chastain (01:03:31):
You are so welcome.
Anna Rapp (01:03:34):
Hope you have a great Tuesday and message us on Instagram. If you have any questions after this, we'd love to hear from you.

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Anna Rapp