Like so many fathers, I carried my baby daughter on my shoulders or led her by her little hand when she did not know the way. When Elizabeth became a teenager, I was fortunate as a high school teacher that I could take her to Europe numerous times on student tours that I helped organize. That wetted her appetite for travel.
She is now the founder and head of Cairn Travels, which has logged thousands of miles traveling to such disparate places as Egypt, Morocco, Vietnam, Iceland and Western Europe. Her ability to book five star hotels and restaurants at affordable prices appeals to a wide clientele, many of whom are repeat guests.
Now at age 82, I am one of those repeat guests and figuratively speaking I am on her shoulders or holding her hand as she directs and leads these wonderful tours. Can a father ask for anything else? I think not.
The hotels are AMAZING. Cairn Travels has great taste and everything was perfect! Our family had more than a five star time.
– Jette Youngblood
Elizabeth helped us set up a vacation for ten family members from three generations — it was fabulous! She listened thoughtfully to what we were looking for, came back with several options, helped me think them through, refine our priorities, and end up with the perfect trip. We are still reveling in the memories. Our goal was a no stress, beach week that would be enjoyed by various age groups traveling from multiple states. She addressed big-picture issues like safe international travel under COVID conditions and comfortable transportation between locations, and small details, like how to exchange money and where to have a festive dinner on our last night. She provided wise counsel when I was having a challenging time with COVID concerns and checked in with us during our adventure!
–Diane Baker & Dr. Francis Collins
Elizabeth has helped me be a better global citizen. I am so grateful to have her hold my hand as I step out. Thank you a million times!
– Margee Herring
While we had parts of our trip to Guatemala sketched out in our heads, Elizabeth of Cairn Travels did an excellent job of honing in the details and making things easy and seamless for us. There are a lot details to consider when traveling to a developing country, particularly during a global pandemic, and Cairn Travels was instrumental to making our trip a success. Without question, Cairn Travels will play a role in all of our major trips going forward!
–Walker & Allison Abney
Cairn Travels took a lot of research and anxiousness out of planning our trip and it delivered right on the spot!
– David Oehler
View from our room In Prague
– Sarah Stone
Fantastic trip to Sarasota due to Elizabeth’s hard work! She made my dream reality. Neither one of us had ever been to Sarasota so a remarkable feat to get it right. From the beginning, she listens carefully to what you are saying, asks questions to clarify what you want, and continually works with you during the process. Despite my extensive personal research and thinking about the trip, she had sources most travelers don’t have and clout to reduce costs and get more favorable terms. Picking flights, taxis and hotels is important, and she knows what to do and who to choose. My trip was different from the usual, because it had two purposes: possible relocation and pure pleasure at the beach and in the city. That’s hard to reconcile because those purposes clash, but she managed it perfectly. She stayed in touch throughout the trip and even after. She cares; you are not just another difficult client. She went above and beyond what anyone can expect from an agent. When things went sideways (and they always do), she was ready with help and answers. In today’s barely post-Covid world, airlines change flights times and seating, hotels constantly change terms, and destinations open and close without notice. Hard to believe, but large corporations can have dysfunctional moments and screw things up. This didn’t happen often, but when it did, she was ready to step in and put things back on track. Something went wrong, she fixed it. I thought travel agents like Elizabeth had disappeared back into the 20th century, but she proved the opposite and more, that they can be even better than those of yesteryear.
– Mike Progus
Having a traveler for a travel agent is priceless! Elizabeth helped us set up an amazing itinerary from start to finish after listening to what we wanted to gain from the experience. Elizabeth’s expertise was also invaluable in saving time and money which not only took the stressors away from setting up the trip but also made everything simplified while we were on the trip. I am thankful that we used Cairn Travels and am looking forward to doing it again in the future. THANK YOU!
–Steve Jenson
Cairn Travels found us this hidden gem high up in the forest of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Elizabeth organized our travels to and from St. John, arranged our provisions, and handled every need along the way. It was such an easy and wonderful trip!
–Taylor Smack
We have been having an unforgettable experience! Riding horses and going to the waterfall today was amazing.
-Boris Torres
We recently returned from a wonderful, escorted trip to the Dordogne region of France with Cairn Travels! Every aspect of the trip was meticulously planned to offer unique experiences, spanning the spectrum from “off the beaten path” roadways, picturesque villages and countryside, charming accommodations, to quaint cafes and Michelin 5* restaurants. Elizabeth Rogers puts her heart and soul into what she does to make the travel experience as diverse and enjoyable as possible. She listens to what her clients are interested in seeing and doing, adjusting her itinerary, when possible, to make a plan even better. Whatever your destination may be, we are confident that Elizabeth will use her cadre of resources to make your trip one of the best ever!
-Mary & Louis Basten
After decades of traveling all over the world, I had pretty high expectations for the trip that Elizabeth put together in the fall of 2021. Our itinerary included absolutely stunning small towns in southern France. But more fantastic than the art and architecture and history was the wonderful camaraderie among the group. I highly recommend Cairn travel for anyone who’s looking for a unique experience that is casual, yet elegant, and fun, but not too fast paced. I’m about to embark on my second trip with Elizabeth, and I’m super excited about my third trip to Vietnam in the spring of 2023!
– Laura Marlow
As an adult well into midlife, I find it is unusual to have events in life exceed my expectations. When it comes to planning vacations, I have read that the anticipation of a vacation can be more exciting than the actual experience. Allow me to talk about my experience with Cairn Travels. I have wanted to go to Morocco for as long as I can remember having understood it as a concept. When I heard that Cairn Travels was planning a guided tour of Morocco, I jumped at the opportunity to go. The hotel where we stayed was beautiful, clean, superbly staffed, and everything I could have wanted and more. Elizabeth’s attention to detail astounds me: she hired wonderful guides that educated us and were personable. We learned the history of the country and the processes of some of the major exports of the country. We laughed and enjoyed great food, wonderful shopping, and beautiful gardens. I think the part I enjoyed the most was having a structured itinerary that allowed free time to have my own experiences. It was a magical and amazing trip that gave me moments of unmitigated joy. If you want to take a trip of a lifetime, go on vacation with Cairn Travels!
-Miriam Oehrlein
My husband and I typically plan our own trips abroad so we were hesitant to let someone else do it for us. At some point, we realized that we weren’t putting trips on the calendar because we just didn’t have the time to do the research and plan them! Elizabeth of Cairn Travels was a dream guide during our recent trip to Morocco. We throughly enjoyed experiencing a new part of the world without the stress and hassle. There was a general itinerary with fantastic scheduled group trips but we were always welcome to strike out on our own if desired. We were extremely satisfied with our travel experience and can’t wait for Elizabeth to plan another trip for us!
-Nadine Antonelli
-video with Anne Moore
I enjoyed the group of travelers and the unique lodging in Marrakech. The Riad was great! Elizabeth’s planning and attention to details made the trip both a pleasure and memorable experience. The combination of active tours and independent time was a great way to discover the city and region. Looking forward to traveling with Cairn Travels again.
-Betty Richard
I have to send a huge shout out, thank you 
! Spending a week in Morocco was the absolute best. Cairn Travels put together the most fabulous week. Thank you! Cheers to the next adventure together.
– Vicki Leavitt
Having taken three of Elizabeth’s trips I can easily tell you that each one has been an absolute joy. The guided trips are well thought out, curated adventures allowing you to experience not just the sights, but the history and culture of a place. In Morocco, we visited not only the city of Marrakesh but also the Atlas Mountains where we found a saffron farm, a cooperative where Argan oil is made, and the seaside town of Essaouria too. These are not one-note trips – if you are on a guided trip with Cairn Travels, you will spread out and see varied landscapes of the destination. France too – we landed in Toulouse, and toured the Dordogne River Valley, the countryside of villages, and enjoyed the regional cuisine. We just returned from a trip to Vietnam where we landed in Hanoi and stayed in a lovely hotel in the Old Quarter and from there we spread out to Mai Chau and Moc Chau, and to Ha Long Bay on an overnight Indochina Junk boat cruise – it was amazing! The accommodations are always 5-star, and the dinners that are included are always well researched and fabulous. And she somehow does this at such an affordable price – I don’t know that secret, but we enjoy it and will go again.
– Belinda & Mark Keller
My husband and I needed help planning a 25th anniversary trip to Italy. Neither of us have ever been to Europe, and Elizabeth took the anxiety and hours of research out of the equation. Her choices in hotels are fun and personal, and she offers great suggestions of things to do. As a surprise, I asked Elizabeth to set up an opportunity for my husband to hit tennis on European red clay for the first time, and she found us a great tennis club. I can’t wait to plan our next adventure with her!
-Jackie Shelley
The group trip to Turkey was the most fantastic experience that I’ve been on in a long time. I hope to travel with you again someday. Thank you for all the moments, the memories, the belly laughs, and most importantly your kindness, and now your friendship.
–Tamara Fosdick
We just joined Cairn travels for to fulfill a lifetime dream of a trip to Turkey. What an experience! Cairn handled all the details for an incredible trip. Wonderful hotels, great tour guides, a balloon ride in Cappadocia and even a dinner cruise on a private boat on the scenic Bosphorus. We recommend Cairn Travels!
– CeCe Snow & Mike Schultz
I wanted to express my heartfelt thanks for choosing our hotel for your stay. Having you and your lovely group of friends with us was truly a pleasure. Your peaceful and positive energy was a breath of fresh air, and it resonated with our staff. We genuinely appreciated your presence, and it made your stay all the more enjoyable for us. We’re thrilled to hear that you had a great time, and we can’t wait to welcome you back in your future tours.
Wishing you safe and wonderful travels until we meet again.
– Cappadoccia hotel
Every Turkish rug has a story- each starts with a vision – a design – followed by carefully selected threads woven by a master into something beautiful and treasured for a lifetime – Consider Elizabeth, of Cairn Travels, the designer and master weaver who crafted our incredible Turkish “rug” brought to life by our illustrious group – the “threads” – colorful and connected, and most eager to become part of this treasure. From magical Cappadocia to the mosques and mystique of Istanbul – we were carried on our magic carpet carefully curated and crafted to ensure we experienced the best of both destinations with enough space to allow for the unexpected Turkish delights. Thank you Elizabeth for an incredible adventure! I can’t wait to reconnect our threads and weave our next adventure!!
–Liz Gillespie, and Sister Nancy Malone
My father and I played a round of golf at Spy Glass, which is one of the courses associated with Pebble Beach. It was a trip I’ll never forget. The experience was one of a kind, the views were incredible, and the course is iconic. We had lots of fun and after our round of golf, we ate dinner at the famous 18th hole on Pebble Beach. It was a really fun day and I’ll remember it forever!
–Ben Flynt
We took the trip of a lifetime in September 2023! Elizabeth found us the most wonderful accommodations and organized flights and excursions over our ten days of travel. Her expertise allowed us to dream, anticipate, and then relax and enjoy the magic of Greece and Italy. We cannot recommend her enough!
–John & Liesl Massey
Thank you once again, Elizabeth, for your skill, care, patience, and humor putting this experience together for all of us. It has been delightful and memorable for everyone and we, me especially, are indebted to you!
-Diane Baker and Dr. Francis Collins
Cairn Travels planned the best family trip for us to Nosara, Costa Rica. The hotel was beautiful and the excursions were so fun. We really enjoyed not stressing the little details leading up to the trip and knowing that everything was taken care of. We highly recommend Elizabeth and Cairn Travels for future excursions!
-Catherine & Nick Balding
This is exactly what I had in mind when I said I wanted to go to Europe.
-Tripp Lanier
What an amazing trip! Everything was absolutely perfect. Thanks so much for all your help. We loved everthing that we experienced. The hotel couldn’t have been better and the flight was amazing. The people in Dubai are amazing, very friendly, and of all the great things we experienced, I think one of the lasting memory will be the people. I am so grateful that my boys and wife have a different perspective of the people of the Middle East and how much different it is than what we see on the news.
-Travis & Amber Cox
Cairn Travels was just what we were looking for to plan a stress free vacation. Elizabeth did a great job putting together a well planned itinerary for Croatia and Budapest. She even was able to get a day at Plitvice Lakes National Park, which was a highlight. All the hotels were exquisite. Kim and I enjoyed the group gatherings but had as much alone time as we wanted! It was a great vacation!
-Claire Anderson & Kim Tarr
I thoroughly enjoyed my travels with Elizabeth and Cairn Travels. I had never been on a group tour and was a little apprehensive. My concerns were completely unfounded. I enjoyed having the itinerary planned, especially the transportation to and from the airport and from place to place. The tour schedule allowed time to wander alone, gather with the group, or nap in the room. Somehow, Elizabeth managed to be cheerful and enthusiastic continuously while herding eighteen people around new territories and even when she quickly handled a room change for my roommate and me. I’m ready for the next trip!
-Cindy Dollar
Our rafting trip in the Grand Canyon was so fun! The wagon we slept in was adorable (even had a small A/C), and they gave us all the info we needed about itinerary after we arrived at the ranch and provided us insight into how their ranch works (It’s 100% grass-fed cattle). The helicopter ride into the canyon was worth the price itself. One of the moms on the trip started sobbing uncontrollably on the helicopter because it was so beautiful. I think it’s incredibly smart of them to have a guide (who’s very maternal) meet everyone at the airport, fly with them to the ranch, help them settle into the ranch and answer any questions and ease anxieties, then go on the rafting trip with everyone. She was kind of the North Star for everyone. I was super impressed with the boat captains. The older, more-experienced, captain had such a calm and soothing way about leading the trip. You could tell he was teaching the younger captain and the boat hands without being mean or condescending. All of the crew was 100% approachable. The rapids were fun, no one fell in, and they let us stop to jump off a cliff into the river and climb a waterfall. We slept on cots next to the river one night, and it was beautiful. I highly recommend, and we’re not camping people. I think the 3 day trip was the perfect amount of time.
-Jackie Shelley
Cairn Travels created an AMAZING vacation for our family. It truly would not have been the incredible trip that it was without Elizabeth’s planning. She is so good at what she does. We will be using Cairn Travels next time we leave the country!
-Katie Booth
A special note of gratitude for planning a fantastic itinerary, making everything so simple, being easy going, and welcoming. I was excited about the trip but very nervous to travel with a bunch of strangers. I came back filled with excitement for my next trip with you. You’re so easy to talk to, thoughtful, kind, and I felt very safe!
-Emily Busse
I had Elizabeth plan my trip and it was the best trip I’ve ever had! She took care of everything, I only needed to show up at the airport on time. Traveling solo I was I bit apprehensive but she handled every detail. When I landed in Marrakech there was a driver waiting for me to take me to the Riad. She had planned some great tours and I was able to add to my itinerary on the fly. I had a great tour of Marrakech and an amazing excursion to the Atlas Mountains where I was immersed in the local culture. It was an amazing experience. After my stay in Marrakech I was off to Taghazout, transportation was already taken care of. I enjoyed 5 days of amazing surf and adventures with Surf Maroc. Our guide was very knowledgeable and put us on some fun and challenging waves. The community meals were a nice experience and I made some great friendships. I can honestly say this was the best trip I’ve ever been on and Morocco will always be special to me. Elizabeth created an itinerary that was perfect for me and I am ready to plan my next trip with her.
-Josh Jones
–Kathleen Stebbins
-Doug & Zoe Messina in Spain
Thanks for another fabulous adventure. So beautiful, great accommodations, food, sights, people….it was just brilliant! You work so hard and it shows.
-Justine Van Wie
-Maggie & Paul Pittman
-Karen & Ed Craft
Everything was unbelievably perfect! The travel, the hotels, your recommendations and grasping the concept of what we really wanted to accomplish. Thanks for all your help!
-Hoke Flynt
Everything was incredible. I’m sure your ears were burning because I think we toasted you at least a dozen times! All was fabulous and your planning was impeccable! We are already asking each other “Ok, what are we going to ask Elizabeth to do next?” Can’t wait for our next adventure! Thank you again for everything. You’re the best.
-Woody & Tammie White
As someone who takes a lot of trips. This felt like a true vacation, it was amazing to not have to plan almost anything for myself . Every detail was seamlessly planned while still allowing for flexibility to explore. I would recommend Cairn Travels to anyone.
-Ashely Murphy
I have never felt so relaxed on an overseas trip. Elizabeth so thoughtfully planned the itinerary that I was free to truly enjoy the experience. She nails every detail from exquisite dining, lovely hotels and amazing excursions. I can’t wait to travel with her again!
-Amy Andrews
Cairn Travels 