About Us
Thanks for stopping by!
Why I Became a Travel Blogger
Welcome to Traveling with Purpose! I’m Nancy and I’ve been a travel blogger for over a decade. My husband, Terry is my all-time favorite travel partner, but we also travel with our adult children and other couples, and I love a fun girls’ trip. I hope what I share about our journeys will help you plan your trip and discover your next destination.
You’ll love it here if you’re a lifelong learner and curious explorer. I started as a travel blogger posting random personal and family stories that sometimes happened to be about travel. Then I decided to focus on “Traveling with Purpose” because Terry and I are travelers who love to learn and explore new places in a meaningful way. We’re not necessarily looking for the best nightclubs or beaches for sunbathing. We’re looking for ways to soak up the local culture and history and come away having learned more about the people and places we’ve visited.
How I Learned Trip Planning
I come from a long line of adventurous and organized women, so it’s in my DNA to be a trip planner and travel blogger. Over the years I’ve been paid to plan events and travel for a group of famous authors, trips, retreats for non-profits, and executives in an NBA organization. My career has been filled with detailed planning, research, and organization of all kinds, and I use those skills to help you take the guesswork out of your next vacation, holiday, or road trip.
Terry and I have explored a plethora of destinations over the years. We’ve visited 49 of the 50 states in the USA, so we have a wealth of experience to draw from. Recently we traveled from the East Coast in Virginia to the West Coast of Oregon, then on to Arizona on a 2 1/2 month cross-country road trip.
We also explored Europe several times and just came back from a 3-week road trip through small towns in New Mexico and Texas. I even braved a 4,000-mile solo road trip during the pandemic. It wasn’t really for fun, but it was quite an adventure. I can’t wait to help you with tips on planning for your next trip too.
A Few Words About Us
We are active adults, empty-nesters, Baby Boomers, recent retirees, and lifelong learners. We love creativity, the Arts, nature, history, astronomy, wildlife, culinary experiences, national parks (we’ve been to over 40 of them), architecture, road trips, music, protecting our planet, and meaningful travel.
Terry is an avid bibliophile and reader of plaques and historical markers. You’ll rarely see me without my camera (or phone camera) at the ready. Yep, I’m one of those people that takes pictures of my food and just about everything else…but hey, I never know what I’ll need as a travel blogger.
We have two adult children, no grandchildren, but nearly a dozen loveable grandcats, and one granddog. As a travel blogger, I love that I get to document our adventures and share what I’ve learned along the way.
Follow Me for the Latest:
What You’ll Love About Traveling with Purpose
I’m sure I can help you reach your travel goals, whether it’s a USA road trip or a hop across the pond to Europe. I love it when friends and family ask me to help with their trip planning. I love sharing what I’ve learned and hope that my tips and insights will help you overcome any hesitation and plan the best adventure possible.
While we like to splurge once in a while when we’re traveling, most of our excursions look for a balance in spending that helps us stay on a budget. We’re not misers though and we still like to treat ourselves to something special when the time is right. We don’t stay in hostels or eat ramen and beans out of a can (even though there’s nothing wrong with that). On the other extreme, we don’t fly in private jets and we’ve never paid $500+ a night for lodging since our budget doesn’t allow it. We’re probably a lot like you in being practical with our money and squeezing the most out of every dollar. I have some great tips for finding extra money for travel as well.
Always Looking for Unique Sites
Discovering unique family-run or historical accommodations that aren’t typical chain hotels is one of my favorite things to do as a travel blogger. I’ll let you know the hidden gems for places to eat and drink where the locals hang out. Do you enjoy quaint family-owned wineries and breweries? Maybe you like to visit independent art galleries, and search for local street art, or relax at music venues where you can directly support and enjoy local artists. These are the places I regularly share about. Let’s shop local and support and promote the nearby economies as much as possible in our explorations. This helps the little guy and the planet.
Historical and cultural destinations are also a big deal for Terry and me. As Winston Churchill once said, “Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it.” Because of that, we find it an important part of our travel experiences to learn about the history of a place and the people who live there.
As a travel blogger and founder of Traveling with Purpose, my goal is to help you connect with meaningful travel experiences and destinations while still honoring the planet and the communities you visit. I share travel inspiration to help you start dreaming, travel planning tips on how to get started and optimize your trip. I even share my top picks for the best travel booking resources and vital gear for travel. I’ll give you ideas for where to go, how to get there, and what you’ll find at the perfect destination for you and your travel buddies.
If you’d like to be the first to hear about my latest discoveries, up-to-the-moment travel discounts, and seasonal tips, sign up for my mailing list below. I don’t send out too many emails, so the ones that I send are packed with helpful information.
Welcome! I’m sure you’ll find something to love and learn here.
Follow Me:
Exploring Europe and the World
My Favorite International Travel Destinations
21 Countries Visited So Far
We started our adventures in Europe before I was a travel blogger with a trip to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina way back in 2010 when those places weren’t really known as tourist destinations. Terry is a musician and we traveled with another musician and his wife. We were truly traveling with purpose. Our goal was to share music with the folks they had come to know after the Bosnian War. It was truly transformational as we visited the war-torn cities and got to know and love the people in that region.
Later I had the chance to visit Germany for a 2-week business project with the company I worked for. I had an amazing weekend between work weeks exploring the countryside, celebrating Octoberfest, and strolling through ancient villages and castles with a couple of my colleagues. I’ve also made other volunteer-related trips with small groups of women to Turkey, Israel, and Jordan.
I started planning our trips to Europe just for fun around 2011. We wanted to learn more about our ancestry and the amazing countries in the region. Some of our favorites were France, Scotland, England, Ireland, Germany, Norway, and Amsterdam. I haven’t written about all of them, but I’m working on getting caught up, so sign up for my newsletter above and you’ll get announcements about new posts and more from behind the scenes.
We started in Europe as hesitant and shy travelers because of the language and cultural differences. But we quickly learned that if we approach our visits with a humble attitude of learning, respect, and curiosity we’ll almost always have a positive and meaningful experience. That’s why we love traveling with purpose.
Expert tips to make your trip amazing
How can I help with your next adventure?
Travel Inspiration
Travel inspiration can come from the most unexpected places. Get inspired here with quotes, images, stories, movies, and more.
Budget Travel Tips
If you’re on a tight budget or just trying to be practical with what you have, I can help you find ways to save money in your trip planning.