Sarah Phelps

I honestly don’t know how I ever traveled without Sarah! She booked our hotels for our honeymoon (three different countries) and organized the details into an app we used throughout the trip, it made everything so easy and seamless. From start to finish, she nailed it.

Her recommendations were spot-on (the hotel she suggested in Helsinki was especially phenomenal, we got an upgrade and a $100 credit just for booking through her!). It truly felt like we were being treated like royalty the entire time.

Sarah is incredibly smart, responsive, and super organized, not to mention one of the most well-traveled and knowledgeable people I’ve ever met. I can’t imagine ever booking a hotel on my own again. She’s by far the best travel agent I’ve ever worked with.

I highly recommend Sarah Phelps as a travel consultant. I was planning a family trip to Japan but did not have much time in my day to research hotels etc. It was incredibly helpful to have Sarah’s expertise across the board, from mapping out a basic itinerary, to hotels, activities, and navigating practical details such as transportation. She took the time to have a discovery call with me about our interests and priorities, and was able to offer suggestions immediately to help shape the trip. She was essential in booking hotels, providing an initial range of suggestions that matched our needs for comfort, location, and price. She would have gotten other quotes if we had needed more options. Sarah also helped find and book fun activities for us, such as a private bike tour in Kyoto that I would not have known about otherwise. She was very responsive and easy to contact. If you’re looking for expert help with your next trip to Japan - or anywhere else! - get in touch with Sarah. She knows her stuff and made the whole planning process smooth, personal, and actually fun. You can tell she really cares about making your trip amazing from start to finish.

Sarah made our Japan trip so easy and fun. The hotels were beautiful and in great locations, with perks like free breakfast and $100 room credit. She set us up with airport pickups, booked our trains, helped us plan special day trips, and suggested places we never would have found on our own (like an amazing local onsen town that ended up being one of the highlights of the trip). Everything went smoothly and we were able to relax and enjoy.

Sarah is AMAZING. She makes dreams happen. We came to her with a crazy idea to vacation in Guatemala so we could see the ancient Mayan ruins in Tikal. But we were lost on how to make that happen. She took that idea, and put together an unforgettable, adventurous (and safe) 9-day vacation that would best be described as “Indiana Jones meets Bridget Jones” that I still cannot believe we pulled off. She utilized her local contacts to secure trustworthy and knowledgeable drivers and guides for us at each location that we would never have secured on our own. She found us great food and great lodging. It made us feel so much more at ease when we were traveling to know she had made these arrangements.

We spent time in Guatemala City at the beginning and end of our trip. Our hotel was great- rooms were spacious and comfortable, it had an amazing breakfast, as well as a roof bar and swimming pool). Of course Sarah found the BEST cafe and bakery 2 blocks from our hotel. Transportation in the city was easy and safe via Uber. Sarah gave us a bunch of recommendations of stuff to see- we barely scratched the surface.

She then arranged for us to fly north to the jungle, where the Mayan ruins of Tikal are located. She booked us at the Lodge in the heart of the Tikal ruins. We stayed in a cabin IN THE JUNGLE. It was so cool. It also had a good restaurant and bar (get the refreshing mocktails/cocktails- it helps after a day hiking in the jungle). She arranged for a series of private tours of the Mayan ruins. Our guide was a Mayan descendent whose family had lived there for many generations. He was deeply knowledgeable, and gave us so much of the history and culture of the area. In addition to a wonderful daytime tour (unlike at Chichen Itza, you can actually climb the ruins at Tikal), he took us into the ruins for a spectacular sunset tour. Watching the sun set over the jungle from the top of a 900 year old pyramid was unforgettable. That night, the guide led us back on an ancient path through the jungle that was unknown to other guides- it was his little secret.

After Tikal, Sarah arranged for a trustworthy and friendly driver to take us to Antigua, a charming and safe colonial city, and secured us a beautiful house in the heart of the city. While there, Sarah arranged a visit to a coffee plantation, a strenuous hike up an active volcano named Pacaya (they provide horses for those who can’t make the hike on foot), and a delightful private cacao tasting. Antigua is a haven for expats from all over the world, and the food is excellent. She booked us at several wonderful restaurants, and of course again found the best cafe in town. One of her bookings was at a Belgian-Italian restaurant (the husband was Italian, the wife was belgian). It sounds like a bad idea, but of course it worked and was one of our favorite meals. Our best meal was at the famous restaurant at the Hotel Casa Santa Domingo. You must go there! Make sure to tour the ruins (it is an active archeological site) in the hotel before or after you eat.

Our final destination was Lake Atitlan, a beautiful volcanic lake in the Guatemalan highlands. She arranged for a driver to take us there, arranged for us to stay in a beautiful lakefront house with its own dock and kayaks, and arranged for a private boat and guide to take us to several of the more than dozen small Mayan villages surrounding the lake. A highlight for me was a visit Sarah arranged to one of the villages that had a women’s weaving collective. They were amazing people, who showed me the ancient local process of weaving (including taking raw cotton and pulling it and turning it into thread). the handmade goods they created were incredible; needless to say I came back with several items for my family. The vacation was unforgettable. Really the only mistake we made was the one night that we DIDN'T listen to Sarah, and decided to find a restaurant on our own (we thought we were so cool). It was bad.

I cannot recommend Sarah enough. She made this moment happen for us. No way I’m on top of a Mayan pyramid at sunset without her arranging it. Her strength is that she she connects with people. ALL PEOPLE. EVERYWHERE. This is a huge advantage when travel planning, as she is able to figure out what you want, and then able to make that happen in a way that’s better than you imagined with all of the contacts she’s made (and all the languages she speaks). It’s like a superpower. Use her, do not give it a second thought.

Sarah was great. She was able to work on a very tight timeline, was a very clear communicator, and located really lovely hotels for us in Tokyo. Thanks to her, one of our hotels upgraded us from a standard room to a nicer room with a view of Tokyo tower - something that really elevated our whole experience.