Fora Advisor Hannah Corderman on Living Your Best Life, and Planning the Best Vacations

Fora Advisor Hannah Corderman in Bali

Bucket-list travel is all about mindset. A true bucket-list trip need not be fancy or exotic or absurdly expensive; instead, it requires radical presence, a seize-the-moment disposition.

For Fora Advisor Hannah Corderman, the bucket-list mindset is especially important, and extends beyond the stellar trips she curates for her clients (and herself!). 

Read on to learn Hannah’s story, why she’s such a light in Fora’s community and how we can all benefit from following her example.

How Hannah defines bucket-list travel

Hannah at Humantay Lake, in Peru

Travel is deeply personal, and the best travel advisors (like Hannah) tailor each trip to a client’s unique needs and preferences. 

“I resonated with the belief that booking travel extends beyond a mere transaction,” Hannah said of what initially attracted her to Fora. “For me, it's about cultivating meaningful connections.” 

To Hannah, this personalization and care are also what help turn a good trip into a great one — and one that’s bucket-list-worthy. 

“It's not a one-size-fits-all concept,” she said. “Rather, it's a reflection of individual desires and dreams. What captivates me even more is the fluidity embedded in the idea.”

Hannah’s own definition of bucket-list travel has evolved over the years. What she initially treated as a sort of “checklist” is now something more immersive and personally impactful.

“Bucket-list travel, for me, now transcends the act of visiting a place. It has become a quest for experiences that are not just visually appealing but profoundly moving and extraordinary,” she said. “It's a collection of moments. Each bucket-list trip is chosen for its potential to leave a lasting impact and contribute to a deeper, more meaningful connection with the world.”

How an unexpected diagnosis made Hannah prioritize making the most of every moment

Hannah in Bosnia

Hannah has always loved travel, but she really started leaning into making the most of her adventures when her life suddenly changed. In 2011, when Hannah was just 17, she was diagnosed with Usher syndrome, “an exceptionally rare disease leading to deafness and blindness without any known treatment or cure,” Hannah explained. 

Usher syndrome is a genetic disease, and because there’s no known cure, those living with the condition are forced to adapt to a new reality. But Hannah more than adapted. Instead, she decided to thrive.

“Rather than dwelling in sadness, I made it my personal mission to maximize the time I had left with my vision and hearing,” she said. “This decision sparked my interest in pursuing bucket-list travel experiences, reflecting my commitment to embracing life fully and making the most of every moment.”

As a travel advisor, Hannah is dedicated to helping others make the most of every moment, too. She is a planning aficionado, of course, and goes above and beyond when designing a trip for her clients. She first takes the time to really understand a client, their style and what they’re looking for. From there, she’ll craft a completely personalized itinerary, and work “to create a seamless and memorable journey tailored to each client,” one that “aligns with their vision.”

“Living with Usher syndrome has cultivated my sincere appreciation for the value of time,” Hannah said. “Acknowledging that my clients entrust me with their time, it is my mission to curate trips that enable them to make the most of every moment.”

How Fora helps advisors like Hannah level up their travel advising

Hannah in Bali

Fora, too, values our advisors’ time, which is why we’ve designed our business around making travel advising as seamless, convenient and fun as possible. One of the benefits of being a Fora Advisor is the access you get to our global network of travel partners. (It always comes back to relationships.)

“In my efforts to help my clients make the most of their trips, I leverage the invaluable relationships established by Fora with travel partners around the world,” Hannah said. “Fora’s network has truly proven to be a game-changer for my clients, allowing them to unlock exclusive benefits and extraordinary travel opportunities.”

Thanks to our partnerships, Fora Advisors and their clients are treated like VIPs. Translation: they’re better able to really enjoy that bucket-list travel experience, because connections matter. When you can put a face to the name, as our partnerships allow advisors to do, the world opens up.

Hannah has also found Fora’s travel-agent training program to be a valuable asset to her trip-planning prowess. (See more about how to become a travel agent.)

“Since I have not personally traveled to every destination that my clients wish to visit (I’m actively working on it, though!), I appreciate having access to Fora-designed destination trainings and a community of advisors to lean on for reliable insights and firsthand recommendations.”

And while a vibrant community of fellow travel experts certainly helps the planning process, in the travel industry, antiquated technology has always been the rate-limiting factor. But we’ve solved for that, and continue to iterate and improve. (Fora’s engineering team seems to grow by the day.)

“Fora has also made planning and booking trips easier for me with their recent rollout of an advisor booking platform,” Hannah said. “This platform not only provides real-time hotel availability and rates but also offers guidance on securing VIP perks for our clients, reiterating Fora’s commitment to enhancing the advisor-client experience.”

Designing — and enjoying — the perfect vacation

Hannah in Portugal

What does crafting a bucket-list trip look like? For Hannah, unstructured time is essential.

“Crafting detailed itineraries helps me make the most out of a trip, but one thing I always make sure to do is leave unfilled time, dedicated solely to spontaneous exploration,” she said. “When I am in a new place, I love to spend a few hours simply wandering. Part of the allure of travel lies in unexpected discoveries, and I find that leaving room for unplanned adventures can lead to some of the most memorable adventures of all.”

One of Hannah’s most memorable adventures was a solo trip she took to Croatia. 

“First of all, Croatia is stunning, so that made it quite memorable,” she said. “What made the trip so impactful, though, was the journey.”

Hannah spent a week visiting various islands — and all as her vision deteriorated. But her condition only rendered the whole experience more profound, she said.

“Maneuvering through historic towns, navigating uneven cobblestone streets and delicately weaving through tables in dimly lit restaurants transcended the typical tourist experience and became a series of many personal triumphs,” she shared. “As I explored the islands, I pushed myself beyond my comfort zone, and the trip became an unexpected lesson in adaptability and resilience.”

Hannah seems to have the extraordinary ability to go beyond mere adaptability, however. Once again, she chose to thrive. 

“Not only did I return to the States with an overwhelming appreciation for the beauty of Croatia,” she said, “but I also brought back a newfound confidence in my ability to overcome adversity, along with a determination to never let Usher syndrome stop me from traveling the world.”

Hannah certainly walks the walk. (In the beginning phases of our correspondence for this piece, she took advantage of some incredible flight deals and ventured off to Iceland for a last-minute weekend getaway.) Anyone would be immensely lucky to have Hannah as a travel advisor, and Fora is immensely lucky she joined our community. She brings a radiant joy to the Fora fam, and her positive demeanor, passion and live-in-the-moment philosophy are powerful reminders of why we all fell in love with travel in the first place. Plus, she inspires us to make the most of each day — let alone each trip. 

What’s her favorite part of Fora? It’s hard to choose just one, she said, but something came to mind.

“If I were to pinpoint one favorite, it would be the indescribable feeling when a client recounts their trip experience to me,” she said. “The knowledge that I played a direct role in making their bucket-list dream a reality fuels my commitment to this profession.”

If you're interested in funding research for a cure to Usher syndrome, please check out the Usher Syndrome Society, a non-profit started by Hannah’s mom when Hannah and her brother were diagnosed.