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• Travel Advisors

Independent travel advisors, working for you

Worry-Free, Expert Planning Unforgettable Luxury Experiences VIP access to the World’s Best Hotels, Tours, and Cruises

The Travel Experts Difference

Our network of independent travel advisors is comprised of entrepreneurs who are passionate about travel and are always seeking new ways to craft the best travel experiences for each of their clients. With advisors located across 38 states, rest assured you will find someone that is the perfect match to make your travel dreams become a reality.

Our advisors have access to our unparalleled relationships with the world’s top luxury hotels, tours and cruise lines, who offer upgrades and travel experiences that are only available when you work with one of our “best of the best” in the industry. Whether you are longing to relax on one of the world’s top beaches, or seeking the travel adventure of a lifetime, working with one of Travel Experts’ independent travel advisors will give you the opportunity to experience the world in ways you previously thought were unimaginable.

Your luxury travel advisor will guide you through the exciting planning phase of your next adventure, customizing your travel arrangements around your needs. With precision and attention to every detail, they understand that your time is valuable and ensure that your next vacation is seamlessly orchestrated. While away, you have the peace of mind knowing there is someone at home on-hand to help should any unforeseen event arise. From the very early stages of planning, right through your return home, your Travel Experts luxury travel advisor has your back.

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Unforgettable Travel Experiences

When you book with one of our expert advisors, you gain access to a world of personalized travel experiences. Plus, you’ll get special perks and upgrades through our partnership with Virtuoso.

Enjoy benefits such as:

• Daily full breakfast for two
• Spa, dining, or shopping credits
• Room upgrade on arrival (if available)

With Virtuoso Voyages, you'll receive:

• Dedicated onboard host
• Welcome-aboard reception
• Choice of shore event, shipboard credit, or car and driver

You'll enjoy these perks:

• Preferred rates
• Over 220 experience providers
• Tours in over 2,500 locations

Benefits and availability may vary and are subject to change.

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2024 A-List Travel Advisors

Since 1971, Travel + Leisure editors have followed one mission: to inform, inspire, and guide travelers to have deeper, more meaningful experiences. T+L's editors have traveled to countries all over the world, having flown, sailed, road tripped, and taken the train countless miles. They've visited small towns and big cities, hidden gems and popular destinations, beaches and mountains, and everything in between. With a breadth of knowledge about destinations around the globe, air travel, cruises, hotels, food and drinks, outdoor adventure, and more, they are able to take their real-world experience and provide readers with tried-and-tested trip ideas, in-depth intel, and inspiration at every point of a journey.

USA, Canada, & Caribbean

Central america, mexico, & south america, africa & safaris, north africa and the middle east, australia, new zealand, and the south pacific, special interests, travel advisory board.

Want to tour the Louvre after hours? Tag rhinos in Rwanda? Get married on Mykonos? Throw a milestone birthday party on St. Barts? Or take a luxurious cruise to the Arctic? Our travel advisors have you covered. In our 22nd annual A-List, we present a directory of the most influential vacation specialists in the world, vetted by the editors at  Travel + Leisure .

Featured Advisor: Eric Sheets

Courtesy of Eric Sheets

A trip with Sheets might include a seaplane tour of Patagonia and the Atacama Desert, bookended with world-class wine tastings, or a villa stay in the Galápagos, where a celebrated biologist can teach guests about the evolution of the region’s famous finches.

Lighthouse Travel

Audley Travel

Diego Travel

Andavo Travel

Royal Travel & Tours

Azurine Travel

Entree Canada & Alaska

Premier Tours

JSB Journeys

Blue Parallel

Adventure Life

Costa Adventures

Sated Ventures

Knowmad Adventures

Absolute Belize

Journey Mexico

Jacada Travel

Almaz Journeys

Extraordinary Journeys

Amakuna Travel

Latin Excursions

Bravo Luxury Travel

French Side Travel

TempoVip Portugal & Spain

Tours For You

Fuoritinerario

Celebrated Experiences

Joyce Falcone The Italian Concierge

OvationNetwork

IC Bellagio

Madrid & Beyond

French Promise

Turkey At Its Best

Exeter International

Adams & Butler

LeCompte Travel

Royal Travel

Sofia's Travel

Immersa Global

Crafted Ireland

Authentic Explorations

Tasteful Croatian Journeys

Titanium Tours

Louisa White Travel

John Skelton Travels

Jim Strong Travel Services

Condado Travel

JayWay Travel

Travels with Tesa

Iberian Escapes

Wagner Bespoke Travel

Departure Lounge

River Oaks Travel

Hellenic Holidays

ABOUTAsia Travel

Greaves Tours

Asia Desk Ltd

InsideAsia Tours

JapanQuest Journeys

Remote Lands, Inc.

Rothschild Safaris

Legacy Untold Travel

Immersion Journeys

Micato Safaris

InsideJapan Tours

WildChina Travel

Travel Beyond

Explore Inc

Journeysmiths

TravelStore

Roar Africa

Travel Artistry Africa

Red Savannah

Premier Tours Inc.

Africa Endeavours

Anastasia's Africa

Journeys by Design

Mosaic Safaris

Piper & Heath Travel

Volcanoes Safaris

Alluring Africa

The Africa Adventure Company

Wander Africa

Hippo Creek Safaris

Stanley Safaris

Mango African Safaris

AfricanMecca Safaris

Travelous Corp

Global Patina

Cobblestone Private Travel

Stephanie Fisher Travel

Admiral Travel International

Travelicious

The Travel Box International

Tova Wald Redefining Travel Experiences

Touring Israel

Camelback Odyssey Travel

Wells Luxury Travel

Southern Crossings

Down Under Endeavours Inc

Ahipara Travel

Touring Treasures

New Zealand Travel Inc

Frosch Travel

Perolus Yachting

Q Cruise + Travel

Adventure Life Journeys

Goldring Travel

TopFlight Travels

Expedition Trips

Preferred Travel and Company

Betty Maclean Travel, Inc.

Valerie Wilson Travel

Jonathan's Travels/TravelStore

Protravel International

Bear & Bear Travel, Inc.

The Travel Siblings

Natural World Safaris

D.A.Luxury Travel & TravelLustre

International Travel Management

Embark Beyond

Fischer Travel

Culture Traveler

Runway Travel

Bell & Bly Travel

The Society of International Railway Travelers

The Local Foreigner

Mi Familia Internacional

Mini Mouse Counselors

LaVon Private Luxury

Renshaw Travel

Journeys With Purpose

Friend of a Friend Trip Design

Plaza Travel

Huffman Travel

KK Travels Worldwide

JetSet World Travel

DavidTravel

Affluent Luxury Travel

Susan Whitson Travel

Chase Travel

This group, which shares its industry knowledge with the editors of T+L, oversees tens of thousands of individual trips annually. While not all of these 27 experts personally look after clients, many do. The rest have teams who excel at orchestrating memorable adventures

American Express

Culture Traveler, LLC

Condado Travel, Inc

Travel Experts, Inc.

"the perfect hosts".

Travel Experts, Inc. was established in 1989 as a pioneering host agency, designed to support and promote the businesses of independent travel consultants around the country. Travel Experts is also a proud member of Virtuoso, giving their travel consultants access to exclusive, added-value arrangements with top travel providers. For more information, call 800-274-2544 or contact Travel Experts via email at [email protected]. Further details about Travel Experts are also available on the web at http://www.travel-xperts.com/.

Virtuoso Member Since 23 Oct 2000

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• Travel Types

Luxury Vacation Planning Services Tailored to Your Needs!

Let go of the stresses of travel planning and reclaim your most precious commodity: time. Focus on creating cherished memories with your loved ones, knowing that every detail of your journey is meticulously overseen by our devoted team of travel experts.

At Evyssa Vacations, we curate personalized itineraries and deliver them with exceptional service. Say farewell to the burdens of itinerary research and design as our seasoned travel advisors take the helm. From booking accommodations to managing logistics, we handle every aspect of your trip, granting you the freedom to savor quality moments with your loved ones.

Welcome to a journey crafted exclusively for you. Let us be your compass in the world of luxury travel, where the unknown becomes an exhilarating opportunity to be discovered.

Are you ready to embark on your personalized adventure?

How do we work?

Our work is based on years of experience, in-person and online training, extensive travel, vast industry affiliations, and a big network of reliable partners — all to enhance your vacation and ensure a seamless planning and booking experience, as well as memories of trips to last a lifetime.

Luxury Travel Redefined For Leisure and Businesses

For Leisure Your Personal Escape into Luxury Getaways

Discover the unique touch of our travel advisors' expertise, as we craft a journey that truly reflects your travel style and preferences, ensuring a personalized experience that resonates with your expectations. From romantic getaways to family vacations, and from cruises to rail adventures, our tailor-made itineraries are designed to deliver unforgettable experiences. Let us transform your travel dreams into reality, with the luxury and comfort that you deserve.

For Business Elevating Incentive & Rewards Travel to New Heights

Step into the world of incentive travel programs with us. Perfect for companies seeking to reward, motivate, and unite their teams, our travel solutions blend business objectives with exceptional travel experiences. From group retreats to performance-driven getaways, our expertly curated travel programs are more than trips; they're investments in your team's success and company culture.

Let's start planning your next luxury getaway

Choose the travel type and our expert travel agents will design a custom itinerary for you, your family and your friends!

Romantic Getaways

Embark on a one-of-a-kindtrip with your partner on our curated romantic getaways. Ideal for anniversaries, honeymoons, or just for getting away from the mundane!

Family Vacations

Bring your family on a memory-making journey with one of our family vacation packages. We help plan itineraries that the whole family - not just the kids - will love!

Luxury Group Travel

Small groups, big groups? No problem! From bachelor/bachelorette parties to friendly get-togethers, our luxury group travel plans take the stress out of planning in bulk.

Cruises & River Cruises

Voyage across the open seas or coast along exotic landscapes with our cruise and river cruise packages. Choose from classical cruise itineraries or from private yacht charters, sailboat adventures, and all-inclusive catamaran rentals!

Rail Vacations

Go town-to-town with ourrail vacation travel plans. Race across beautiful landscapes and rediscover howthe journey is just as grand as the destination.

Ultimate Adventures

Scratch items off of your bucket list with an ultimate adventure itinerary! Be it a safari in East Africa or a hike through the Himalayas, Evyssa Vacations helps make planning for the extraordinary simple.

We are an Award-Winning International Travel Agency

We have been recognized by several organizations and media outlets. Our expert travel agents have been creating memories and serving our clients since 2009. Evyssa Vacations is a proud member of the  American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA)  and  MAST Travel Network  and we are accredited by the  International Association of Travel Agents Network (IATAN) . ‍

Luxury vacations designed with you in mind!

We assist with your itineraries as much - or as little - as you need us to. From simple logistics planning to designing entire itineraries, Evyssa Vacations works with you every step of the way to help make your plans a reality.

Ideas based on our experience.

As certified travel agents, we work for you, our client. Customization is what we do best, and it looks different for each client. Our end to end services help you make travel decisions that best suit your needs, our creative consultants always come up with ideas and recommendations you might not otherwise consider, and we make sure your trip components are booked through trusted tour operators.

Making the best decisions.

We act as your advisor and your advocate, we help you understand where it makes sense to splurge or where to hold back, and assist in making sure that you make the best decisions for yourself and your family.

Custom itineraries.

Every itinerary is unique and catered to you. We plan for your budget, your party, and your interests to ensure that your vacation is stress-free and truly memorable!

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Echoes of delight from our customers

We love to make our clients happy! And we love to hear their feedback after they returned from vacation. Here are a few of them.

Research & Itinerary Design Retainer

We charge a nominal retainer to insure a commitment to one- another, and our reciprocal respect for each other’s time. This is paid before any quotes are worked on.

Treat yourself to the luxury vacation you deserve!

Indulge in 5-star service, exclusive amenities, mouth-watering culinary delights, and unique activities. Breath-taking views await. Where will your next adventure take you? Let's design your custom itinerary!

August 5 - 14, 2023 European Pickleball Vacation on Luxury River Cruise

Amadeus River Cruises & Evyssa Vacations will bring you a unique experience!

Honeymoon in Tahiti

Explore the most beautiful and exotic locations in French Polynesia on your luxurious honeymoon.

Honeymoon Adventure in Costa Rica

Get a taste of Costa Rica's world-class highlights on an ultimate adventure.

Couple's Getaway in Aruba

Discover the happiest island on the Caribbean and immerse yourself in pure luxury.

Recommendations of the month for your next luxury getaway

As someone who appreciates the finer things in life, you understand that a luxury vacation is more than just a trip - it's an experience. This month, we've curated a selection of destinations that truly embody the essence of luxury.

"Love Takes Flight": A Destination Wedding & Honeymoon Showcase in Hoffman Estates

An exclusive event tailored for couples who are dreaming of an unforgettable and unique destination wedding and honeymoon.

Goddesses Abroad: A Women-Only Group Photoshoot in Italy

Elevate your travel game and join our exclusive sisterhood of sophisticated women who explore the world together.

European Pickleball River Cruise or Land Vacations

Embark on an extraordinary Pickleball adventure, where friendly matches unfold on European courts and the charm of Europe embraces you.

Adults-Only Cruises to Europe and the Caribbean

Get pampered while you save big on your luxury cruise vacation!

Embark on the perfect Tahiti honeymoon and create your unforgettable moments in paradise.

Scandinavia, Peru, Alaska, London, Italy are just some of the best destinations for family fun.

Rest easy as we take charge, ensuring a stress-free experience!

Luxury means different things to different people. Our job is to make sure you get the best value for your money. We partner with top service providers and hand-picked tour operators to deliver top-tier amenities and benefits to you! We want your time away to be well spent enjoying authentic experiences. We customize your personal adventures to your individual interests and travel styles. Our mission is to offer a seamless vacation planning process and peace of mind. Elevate your journey by having a dedicated travel advisor by your side. Your satisfaction is our main priority.

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Get Connected With Travel Experts

Whether its Business Travel, Vacation Travel, or Meetings and Events, our professional team of talented, caring and supportive travel advisors are here to support you 24/7, 365 days a year

Why Travel Leaders 365?

With a team of supportive travel specialists, our agency is driven and dedicated to meet your unique travel needs, whether your travel needs are for business or vacation. Combining our years of travel experience, our family managed travel company provides each of our clients with a supportive approach, designed to elevate your entire travel experience. Led by local, engaged leadership, our team of professional agents will provide you a best in class travel experience.

Our Travel Advisors

Claudia Pascua

Luxury Travel Experiences

Las Vegas NV

Angela Waggoner

Luxury Cruise Advisor

Michael Byrne

Hawaii and Ireland, two islands I love

Framingham MA

Rose Cacciatore

Escorted and Customized travel

Ian Cambata

President of Business and Luxury Travel

Chicago Executive Airport IL

Natalie Cambata

Luxury Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Specialist

Wheeling IL

Shahrookh Cambata

Specializing in the Indian Sub-Continent & beyond

Donna Campbell

Luxury Travel Specialist

West Palm Beach FL

Peggy Cleary

Adventure Travel Agent

Diane Coffey

Corporate Travel Specialist

Specialist in tailor-made vacations to Britain

Lesley Hayden-Hock

Gluten Free and Celiac Travel Specialist

Phyllis Horodner

Luxury Travel & River Cruising Consultant

Val Kalliecharan

Caribbean Specialist

Sandra Miller

Director of Corporate Sales

Diane Mullahy

Adventure Travel, Hiking and Golf

Darshana Sampat

International Travel Specialist

Lindsay Taylor

Luxury Travel Expert

Rose Thomas

Specialist for India and the Indian Subcontinent

Jessica Avery

Tailor-Made Private Luxury Itineraries

Scottsdale AZ

David Axelrod

Luxury Travel Designer

Cathy Brooks-Oliver

LUXURY TRAVEL SPECIALIST

Isabel Chalem

Independent Exotic Destination Specialist

Tony Cosenza, CTA

Expedition and Luxury Cruise Expert

Fort Lauderdale FL

Kevin D'Costa

Cruise Expert -Journeys of Discovery & Awareness

Ashley Gallo

Middle East Travel Expert

David Gedansky

Exotic Destination and Cruise Specialist

Wally Jones

Multi-Destination Specialist

Ritu Kaushal

International Business Travel Agent Specialist

Centreville VA

Sapphire Kharyzma

Luxury Travel Management | Bespoke Groups | Women

Saint Michaels MD

Kristi Kusel

Luxury, Family, Honeymoon Specialist

Riverton WY

Hannah Roth

Luxury Travel Advisor

Los Angeles CA

Jennifer Schaller

Luxury Travel Concierge

Taegan Walker

Romance and Family Luxury Travel Expert

Apphia Webster-Williams

Individual and Group Travel Specialist

McDonough GA

Pam Wittmann, CAE, IOM, VCTA

World Traveler & Luxury Travel Specialist

Alexandria VA

Our Awards & Certifications

Agent review by Agencies -->

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Delray Beach, Florida Delray Beach, Florida

Outstanding Travel agent

Edinburgh ~ Scotland ~ Europe

Boca Raton, Florida Boca Raton, Florida

Definitely the best vacation ever!!

Sedona ~ Arizona ~ USA

Chicago, IL Chicago, IL

Natalie is Amazing & Knowledgeable!!

Spain ~ Europe

Napa, CA Napa, CA

Davie, FL Davie, FL

A very good Travel Agent

Florida ~ USA

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix, Arizona

Miami Bound!

Miami ~ Florida ~ USA

Conway, AR Conway, AR

No stress...All excitement!

Havre, MT Havre, MT

If I could give you more than five stars I would!

Playa Mujeres ~ Quintana Roo ~ Mexico

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland, Ohio

Italy ~ Europe

Ashburn, VA Ashburn, VA

Great experience with India flight bookings!

India ~ Central Asia

Our Partners

Our office locations around the world

Business Travel

• High Touch Service
• Travel Management

Vacation Travel

• Luxury Travel
• Customized Vacations
• Travel Inspiration
• Travel Specials

Contact Info

• 1098 S Milwaukee Ave Suite 200 Wheeling, IL 60090
• [email protected]
• +1 (224) 765-4575

Copyright © 2023 Greaves Travel LLC

Luxury Travel Experiences

We want to show you the World. We want you to feel it beneath your feet with every step. To take it in with every breath. We want you to experience the World in all of her authentic glory and diverse beauty. And, we want you to go in style - your style. Epic World Travel Experts are different. Unlike many Luxury travel advisors, we have been traveling the world for years. We have experienced a variety of travel challenges, often having learned things the hard way.  We have resources on the ground around the globe who often provide us with exclusive offerings not available to the public. Epic World Travel Experts travel agency is pleased to offer our clients luxury travel experiences that are only four and five-star and beyond. Epic World Travel Experts is a full service luxury travel planning team with an unmatched passion for seeing the World. Whether you dream of an exotic African adventure, a family reunion in the Caribbean, a romantic ocean cruise or a river cruise down the Nile, or an expedition to Mt. Everest, allow us to put our expertise to work planning your one-of-a-kind bucket-list travel experience. Our goal is to create your trip matching your desires with your budget. Come home seeing the world with new eyes.

****Click above for sound **** 

"The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.”

                                                                                  ― Saint Augustine

                                                    W hy Choose Us?

We are Certified Travel Advisors with over 40 years of travel experience

We have access to the best itineraries and deals to fit your budget

We will handle all of the complexities of modern travel so you don't have to

We will be your personal Concierge - no waiting on an 800 line for an operator if you need help

Schedule a Complimentary Discovery call today!

Make Your Next Trip Extraordinary

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• About Wendy
• Meet the Team
• Code of Ethics
• How We’re Funded
• How to Support Us
• How You Can Benefit
• Smart Travel in 2024
• Where to Go When
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• Our Own Trips
• Ask a Teenager
• Travel Insurance
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• Tell Me Where to Go
• Just Back: The Latest Reviews
• Anniversary Trips
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• Christmas Day Abroad
• Europe in Summer: Beat the Heat
• Europe in Winter: Smart Trip Ideas
• Europe for Winter School Breaks
• Europe’s Secret Spots
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• Grandparents with Grandkids
• Meeting Noteworthy Locals
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• WOW Moments
• The WOW List
• WOW List FAQs
• Fees/Pricing Tips
• WOW Moment Rules

The 2024 WOW List: 95 Top Local Fixers in Countries Worldwide

The WOW List is a collection of exceptionally knowledgeable and well-connected trip planners around the world. They have been rigorously road-tested, based on my decades of experience as a travel journalist and based on the latest trip reviews from travelers who used my WOW approach to ensure an extraordinary trip. In 2023 they quickly found solutions to the travel complications and disruption that arose: They rerouted travelers away from wildfires and floods, kept them cool and comfy amid extreme heat, helped them bypass unprecedented tourist crowds and lines, restored whole days of sightseeing missed because of flight cancellations, and lessened the impact of hotels’ sky-high prices, understaffing, and skimpflation. We know they did this because of your trip reviews . We continue to monitor trips and update The WOW List in real time.

HOW TO GET A WOW TRIP 1. Find the right local fixer for your needs below. 2. Click their CONTACT button and share the details of your dream trip via my questionnaire. 3. Done! The local expert will reach out to you directly and quickly.

START WITH MY QUESTIONNAIRE • That’s how you get VIP treatment and these WOW benefits . • It’s how the WOW Lister knows that I sent you and that you will be reviewing your trip. Your trip reviews determine who remains on The WOW List. • It’s the only way I can advise you and monitor your trip from the most important moment—the conception and initial design. • It’s the only way your trip will count toward a WOW Moment .

WOW TRIP COSTS AND STYLE What these local fixers do is custom-tailor a private itinerary exactly to your trip goals and travel style, get you special access to iconic sights, and mastermind all the trip logistics so that you don’t have to. Trips start at about $10K to $15K, depending on your destination and timing.

FOR MORE GUIDANCE Not sure where to travel or who is the best fit for your specific trip needs and goals? Click to Get a Personalized Trip Recommendation.

Africa Asia Australia and Pacific Canada Caribbean, Central America, Mexico Cruises and Yacht Charters Europe Middle East South America USA

Egypt Jim Berkeley, Destinations & Adventures International

Read Jim’s Insider’s Guide to Egypt .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Jim Read Trip Reviews

Morocco Hicham Mhammedi Alaoui and Radia Tehitahe, Experience Morocco

Read Hicham and Radia’s Insider’s Guide to the Sahara Desert .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Hicham and Radia Read Trip Reviews

Morocco Michael Diamond, Cobblestone Private Travel

Read Michael’s Insider’s Guide to Marrakech and the Atlas Mountains, Morocco .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Michael Read Trip Reviews

Safaris: Southern and Central Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius Cherri Briggs, Explore, Inc.

Read Cherri’s Insider’s Guides to Namibia Adventures , Zimbabwe , Zambia ,  and Madagascar .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Cherri Read Trip Reviews

Safaris: East Africa and South Africa Dan Saperstein, Hippo Creek Safaris

Read Dan’s Insider’s Guides to South Africa Safaris   and East Africa Safaris .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Dan Read Trip Reviews

Safaris: Southern and East Africa Julian Harrison, Premier Tours

Read Julian’s Insider’s Guides to Botswana’s Small Safari Camps   and Cape Town and South Africa’s Winelands .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Julian Read Trip Reviews

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Bali and Indonesia Diane Embree, Michael’s Travel Centre/Bali Barong Tours

Read Diane’s Insider’s Guide to Bali .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Diane Read Trip Reviews

Central Asia, the Silk Road, and Uzbekistan Zulya Rajabova, Silk Road Treasure Tours

Read Zulya’s Insider’s Guide to Uzbekistan .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Zulya Read Trip Reviews

China: Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan Mei Zhang, WildChina

Read Mei’s Insider’s Guides to Beijing , Yunnan Province , and China’s Big Cities and Small Villages .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Mei Read Trip Reviews

India, Bhutan, Nepal Sanjay Saxena, Nomadic Expeditions

Read Sanjay’s Insider’s Guides to Agra and the Taj Mahal , Delhi , and Secrets of India .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Sanjay Read Trip Reviews

India Bertie and Victoria Dyer, India Beat

Read Bertie and Victoria’s Insider’s Guides to Rajasthan   and Mumbai .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Bertie and Victoria Read Trip Reviews

Japan Scott Gilman, JapanQuest Journeys

Read Scott’s Insider’s Guide to Classic Japan .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Scott Read Trip Reviews

The Maldives and the Seychelles Justin Parkinson, Linara Travel

Read Justin’s Insider’s Guides to the Maldives   and the Seychelles .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Justin Read Trip Reviews

Mongolia Jalsa Urubshurow, Nomadic Expeditions

Read Jalsa’s Insider’s Guide to Mongolia .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Jalsa Read Trip Reviews

Sri Lanka Miguel Cunat, Sri Lanka in Style

Read Miguel’s Insider’s Guide to Sri Lanka .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Miguel Read Trip Reviews

Southeast Asia: Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos Sandy Ferguson and Ethan Crowley, Asia Desk

Read Sandy and Ethan’s Insider’s Guides to Thailand , Vietnam , Southeast Asia , Bangkok , and Laos .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Sandy and Ethan Read Trip Reviews

Southeast Asia: Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam Daniel Fraser, Smiling Albino

Read Daniel’s Insider’s Guide to Thailand Like You’ve Never Seen It .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Daniel Read Trip Reviews

Australia and Pacific

Australia Stuart Rigg, Southern Crossings

Read Stuart’s Insider’s Guides to Sydney and the Great Barrier Reef .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Stuart Read Trip Reviews

French Polynesia (Tahiti, Bora Bora, Moorea) and the Cook Islands Kleon Howe, The Art of Travel

Read Kleon’s Insider’s Guide to Bora Bora, Tahiti and French Polynesia .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Kleon Read Trip Reviews

New Zealand Jean-Michel Jefferson, Ahipara

Read Jean-Michel’s Insider’s Guides to Active New Zealand and Queenstown .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Jean-Michel Read Trip Reviews

New Zealand and Australia Sarah Farag, Southern Crossings

Read Sarah’s Insider’s Guide to New Zealand and Australia .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Sarah Read Trip Reviews

Atlantic Canada: Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island Jill Curran, Maxxim Vacations

Read Jill’s Insider’s Guide to Newfoundland and Labrador . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Jill Read Trip Reviews

French Canada: Quebec Centuries of history, majestic megafauna, indigenous culture, pristine landscapes, and a strong dose of France, all within a short flight (or even a drive) of many U.S. locales: This is Quebec. Browse Montreal’s street art with an internationally acclaimed artist, hop on a seaplane for a picnic on a remote beach, get VIP access to observe whales and black bears in the wild. Click on the button below and we’ll connect you with a side of Canada you’ve never seen before.

Pacific Northwest: British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies Sheri Doyle, Pacific Northwest Journeys

Read Sheri’s Insider’s Guides to Seattle , San Juan Islands and the Olympic Peninsula , and California Coast .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Sheri Read Trip Reviews

Western Canada: British Columbia, Canadian Rockies, Northwest Territories, Yukon Marc Telio, Entrée Canada

Read Marc’s Insider’s Guide to British Colombia . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Marc Read Trip Reviews

Caribbean, Central America, Mexico

Bahamas and Caribbean Yacht Charters Picture sparkling seas, the waves lapping at your boat, a captain who knows every secret snorkeling spot, toes-in-the-sand beach bars where you can stop for a drink, fabulously fresh seafood—prepared by your private chef—to enjoy at night…. All that can be yours when you charter your own vessel. But of the hundreds that are based in the Caribbean and the Bahamas, which to choose? And how do you know that its crew can make the magic happen, and that its water toys are up to snuff? We know yacht-charter experts who spend a good portion of every year inspecting boats and their crews to find the very best. Tell us what you have in mind, and we can match you to the right specialist for your specific needs.

Belize Patricia Johnson and Rachael Wilson, Absolute Belize

Read Patricia and Rachael’s Belize Insider’s Guide: Azure Waters, Green Jungle . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Cabo Julie Byrd, CaboVillas.com

Read Julie’s Insider’s Guides to Los Cabos Villa Vacations   and Los Cabos Beach Vacations .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Caribbean Islands and Dive Vacations Meg Austin

Read Meg’s Insider’s Guide to the Scuba Diving in the Caribbean and Bahamas . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Costa Rica Irene Edwards, GreenSpot

Read Irene’s Insider’s Guide to Costa Rica Luxury Eco-Travel . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Costa Rica Priscilla Jimenez, Costa Rica Expeditions

Read Priscilla’s Insider’s Guide to Costa Rica Adventure . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Yes, you can still travel to Cuba. Legally and privately. The Cuba experts we know have worked in the country for years and are well connected to artists, musicians, historians, TV personalities, and the best privately-owned boutique B&Bs, casas particulares , and paladares . They can have you learning the secrets of a perfect mojito from a local bartender, enjoying a night out at a pop-up jazz club, bird-watching on a day trip into the countryside, and strolling Havana with a former architect or journalist (who now earns more as a private guide).

Mexico Zachary Rabinor, Journey Mexico

Read Zachary’s Insider’s Guides to Puerto Vallarta , Mexico City ,  and the Riviera Maya .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Panama, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua Pierre Gedeon, Costa Adventures

Read Pierre’s Insider’s Guide to Nicaragua . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Cruises and Yacht Charters

European Barge Cruises Ellen Sack and Caroline Klein, Barge Lady Cruises

Read Ellen and Caroline’s Insider’s Guide to France’s Waterways .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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European Rivers and Luxury Cruises Worldwide Tom Baker, Cruise Center

Read Tom’s Insider’s Guides to Alaska Cruises and Mediterranean Cruises .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Expedition Voyages Ashton Palmer, ExpeditionTrips

Read Ashton’s Insider’s Guides to Antarctica Cruises , Arctic Cruises , and Small-Ship Alaska Cruises .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Luxury Cruises Worldwide Mary Jean Tully, Cruise Professionals by Tully Luxury Travel

Read Mary Jean’s Insider’s Guides to Asia Cruises and Africa Cruises .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Yacht Charters Picture sparkling seas, the waves lapping at your boat, a captain who knows every hidden cove, quaint villages to explore by day, fabulously fresh seafood—prepared by your private chef—to enjoy at night…. All that can be yours when you charter your own vessel. Maybe it’s a sailboat on the Dalmatian Coast, a catamaran in Tahiti, a bareboat charter in the Caribbean, or a mega-yacht on the Great Barrier Reef. But of the thousands out there, which craft and crew to choose? We know yacht-charter experts who spend a good portion of every year inspecting boats and their crews to find the very best. Tell us what you have in mind, and we can match you to the right travel specialist for your specific needs.

Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland Gwen Kozlowski, Exeter International

Read Gwen’s Insider’s Guides to Austria , Hungary ,  and the Czech Republic . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg Tom Stinglhamber, Brilliant Ideas

Read Tom’s Insider’s Guide to Belgium . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Croatia (plus Bosnia, Montenegro, Slovenia) Ala Osmond, Exeter International

Read Ala’s Insider’s Guide to Croatia . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Croatia Jay Ternavan, JayWay Travel

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England and the British Isles Travelers bound for the United Kingdom and Ireland seek a broad array of experiences for which there is a broad array of sources. Do you need a castle in the countryside for a 50th birthday party or a manor home for a family reunion near the university where your kid is in college? A week of hiking in the Cotswolds or meeting the most interesting local characters in the hidden pockets of Ireland? The more specific you can be about your trip goals, the better we can direct you to the right fixer for your needs.

England, Ireland, Scotland Jonathan Epstein, Celebrated Experiences

Read Jonathan’s Insider’s Guides to Killarney and County Kerry, Ireland ,  Scotland , and the Cotswolds . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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England, France, and Italy Jennifer Virgilio, Queen of Clubs

Read Jennifer’s Insider’s Guide to Paris with Perks . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Jennifer Read England Trip Reviews

Read France Trip Reviews Read Italy Trip Reviews

France Philip Haslett, French Promise

Read Philip’s Insider’s Guide to Provence and the French Riviera . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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France Michael Eloy and Alex Zglinski, Trufflepig

Read Michael and Alex’s Insider’s Guides to Paris for Food Lovers  and Burgundy . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Germany and beyond (Austria, the Netherlands, Scandinavia) Claudia Schwenger, Trufflepig

Read Claudia’s Insider’s Guide to Bavaria, Germany . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Greece Certain Greek islands, especially those visited by cruise ships, can be a mosh pit in high season, and the logistics of getting between islands can be surprisingly complicated. The right expert can steer you to the most reliable ferry operators, ensure there’s a taxi to pick you up at the pier, even arrange for private boat rides to secret islands. There are hundreds of Greek islands to choose from, of course—each with its own unique character—and the right expert can design an itinerary with just the right combo of ancient history, modern culture, near-empty beaches, sleepy villages, pulsating nightlife, or whatever it is that you want most. Tell us via the button below, and we’ll help as best we can.

Greece Jacoline Vinke, Trufflepig

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Greece Mina Agnos, Travelive

Read Mina’s Insider’s Guide to the Ionian Islands . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Iceland Iceland has awesome landscapes and unusual adventure activities, from volcano diving to geothermal-pool hopping. But it is surprisingly expensive, and soaring tourism has caused demand—for accommodations, activities, all-terrain vehicles, glacier adventure guides, etc.—to outpace supply, driving prices even higher. What’s more, the country’s tourism infrastructure is geared to mass-market group tours. For the right local fixer to deliver a private, custom-tailored itinerary with unique experiences, click on the “Ask Wendy” button below.

Iceland Chris Gordon, Icepedition

Read Chris’s Insider’s Guide to Iceland Adventures . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Iceland, Denmark, and the Faroe Islands Mads Tange Christensen, Nordic Star

Read Mads’s Insider’s Guide to Off-the-Beaten-Path Iceland . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Ireland Travelers bound for Ireland seek a broad array of experiences for which there is a broad array of sources. Do you want to hike the trails of Killarney National Park, stroll through Galway with a local musician, meet artisans and farmers in the countryside, overnight in an 800-year-old castle, or rent a Georgian manor home for a family reunion? The more specific you can be about your trip goals, the better we can direct you to the right fixer for your needs.

Italy   Andrea Grisdale, IC Bellagio

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Italy   Luisa Grigoletto, Trufflepig

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Italy, France, England  Jennifer Virgilio, Queen of Clubs

Contact Jennifer Read Italy Trip Reviews

Read France Trip Reviews Read England Trip Reviews

Italy and Switzerland Brian Dore and Maria Gabriella Landers, CIU Travel

Read Brian and Maria’s Insider’s Guides to Venice , Florence , Umbria , and Tuscany .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Italy: The Cinque Terre and the Italian Riviera  Anna Merulla and Emanuela Raggio, BeautifuLiguria

Read Anna and Emanuela’s Insider’s Guide to The Cinque Terre and the Italian Riviera . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Italy: Puglia Antonello Losito and Alison Pike, Southern Visions Travel

Read Antonello and Alison’s Insider’s Guide to Puglia . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Italy: Sicily and the Aeolian Islands only Marcello Baglioni and Matteo Rota, Agave Travel Creative

Read Marcello and Matteo’s Insider’s Guide to Sicily . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and beyond in Eastern Europe Greg Tepper, Exeter International

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Malta Jason and Damon Camilleri Allan, Exclusively Malta

Read Jason and Damon’s Insider’s Guide to Malta . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Norway Torunn Tronsvang, Up Norway

Read Torunn’s Insider’s Guide to Wild Norway .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Norway and Scandinavia Jan Sortland, Norwegian Adventures

Read Jan’s Insider’s Guide to Norway . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Portugal and Spain Gonçalo Correia, Tours for You

Read Gonçalo’s Insider Secrets of Portugal . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Romania Raluca Spiac, Beyond Dracula

Read Raluca’s Insider’s Guide to Romania . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Spain and Portugal Pablo Calvo

Read Pablo and Gonçalo’s Insider’s Guides to Spain’s Basque Country   and Portugal .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Spain and Portugal Virginia Irurita, Made for Spain and Portugal

Read Virginia’s Insider’s Guides to Madrid , Barcelona , Andalusia , and The Algarve, Portugal .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Spain: Andalusia and Southern Spain Iván Ricoy, Genuine Andalusia

Read Iván’s Insider’s Guide to Southern Spain . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Sweden, Finland, and Scandinavia Leigh Landis, Exeter International

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Switzerland and Road Trips Through the Alps Nina Müller, Cosa Travel

Read Nina ‘s Insider’s Guide to the Secrets of Switzerland . Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Turkey Karen Fedorko Sefer, Sea Song Tours

Read Karen’s Insider’s Guides to Istanbul   and Turkey’s Aegean Coast .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Turkey Earl Starkey, Sophisticated-Travel

Read Earl’s Insider’s Guides to Istanbul   and Cappadocia .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and the Arabian Peninsula Nick Rhodes, Arabian Lux

Contact Nick Read Trip Reviews

Egypt and Jordan Jim Berkeley, Destinations & Adventures International

Egypt, Jordan, Oman, and beyond, incl. Central Asia Jonny Bealby and Dan Waters, Wild Frontiers

Read Jonny and Dan’s Insider’s Guide to Oman .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Jonny and Dan Read Trip Reviews

Israel Joe Yudin and Jonathan Rose, Touring Israel

Read Joe and Jonathan’s Insider’s Guides to Jerusalem   and Israel .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Joe and Jonathan Read Trip Reviews

Morocco (see Africa, above)

Turkey (see Europe, above)

Argentina, Chile, Patagonia, Uruguay Maita Barrenechea, Mai10

Read Maita’s Insider’s Guides to Buenos Aires   and Argentina’s Wine Country .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Argentina, Chile, Patagonia, Peru, Ecuador, and beyond Tom Damon, Southwind Adventures

Read Tom’s Insider’s Guides to Patagonia   and Machu Picchu .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and beyond Paul Irvine, Dehouche Travel

Read Paul’s Insider’s Guides to Rio de Janeiro   and Trancoso .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Chile, Argentina, Patagonia Jordan Harvey, Knowmad Adventures

Read Jordan’s Insider’s Guide to Chile .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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  Colombia Boris Seckovic, Amakuna

Read Boris’s Insider’s Guide to Bogotá, Colombia .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, Peru Allie Almario, Premier Tours

Read Allie’s Insider’s Guides to Quito and the Northern Andes   and the Galapagos Islands .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Peru and Bolivia Marisol Mosquera, Aracari

Read Marisol’s Insider’s Guides to Secrets of Peru , Bolivia: The Salt Flats Are Just the Beginning   and Peru for Food Lovers .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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Alaska Judith Root, Entrée Alaska

Read Judith’s Insider’s Guide to Alaska .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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American West and National Parks Melissa Ladvala, West Bench Adventures

Contact Melissa Read Trip Reviews

California and Hawaii Jay and Dani Johnson, Coastline Travel Advisors

Read Jay and Dani’s Insider’s Guides to Maui , Oahu , and the Big Island .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

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California and the Pacific Northwest Sheri Doyle, Pacific Northwest Journeys

Read Sheri’s Insider’s Guides to Seattle ,  the San Juan Islands and Olympic Peninsula , and the Perfect California Coast Road Trip .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Disney and Orlando Michelle Allen, Travel Magic

Read Michelle’s Insider’s Guide to Disney World, Orlando .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

Contact Michelle Read Trip Reviews

Ski Vacations in the U.S. Rockies  Meg Austin

Read Meg’s Insider’s Guide to Skiing the Rocky Mountains .  Check Wendy’s pricing tip .

* While these Trusted Travel Experts are road-tested and well-respected, and I have known them for years, I don’t make any representation as to their financial stability or the suitability of their arrangements. I am connecting travelers with trip planners, and can help during the travel-planning process, but I cannot be held responsible or accept any liability for what happens after that. As always, to protect yourself, pay with a credit card and buy third-party travel insurance .

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Announcing Vertex AI Agent Builder: Helping developers easily build and deploy gen AI experiences

Burak Gokturk

VP & GM, Cloud AI & Industry Solutions, Google Cloud

Try Gemini 1.5 Pro

Google's most advanced multimodal model in Vertex AI

Generative AI presents a wealth of opportunities for developers and organizations, enabling them to optimize business processes, elevate customer interactions, and discover untapped sources of revenue. To capitalize on the vast potential, builders and IT leaders need to overcome a range of challenges, including balancing the rapid experimentation and iteration of AI models, apps, and agents with costs, governance, and performance at scale.

To help our customers manage these obstacles and accelerate the development of gen AI agents, we’re pleased to announce Vertex AI Agent Builder, which brings together our Vertex AI Search and Conversation products, along with a number of enhanced tools for developers.  

Google Cloud customers already working with these offerings are building exciting use cases. 

On the customer experience front, ADT is building an agent to help its over 6 million customers select and set up their home security systems; Intercontinental Hotels Group will launch a generative AI-powered travel planning capability that will help guests easily plan their next vacation; and NewsCorp is using Vertex AI to help search data across 30,000 global sources and 2.5 billion news articles updated daily. 

Meanwhile, other Google Cloud customers are building agents to boost internal efficiency. For example, researchers at Mayo Clinic are leveraging Vertex AI Agent Builder to search over 50 petabytes of clinical data. Vodafone has also developed a tool using Vertex AI to rapidly and securely query documents and understand specific commercial terms and conditions across over 10,000 contracts. We’re thrilled to see this momentum and look forward to continued customer innovation in the months to come.  

Let’s take a closer look at Vertex AI Agent Builder’s capabilities. 

Fast and powerful for experts, simple and accessible for novices

Vertex AI Agent Builder lets developers easily build and deploy enterprise-ready gen AI experiences via a range of tools for different developer needs and levels of expertise — from a no-code console for building AI agents using natural language, to open-source frameworks like LangChain on Vertex AI.

Additionally, Vertex AI Agent Builder streamlines the process of grounding generative AI outputs in enterprise data. It offers not only Vertex AI Search as an out-of-the-box grounding system, but also RAG (or retrieval augmented generation) APIs for document layout processing, ranking, retrieval, and performing checks on grounding outputs. Developers can also use vector search to build embeddings-based agents and applications, increasing the accuracy and usefulness of model responses. Security and enterprise controls are built-in, making Vertex AI Agent Builder a one-stop solution for quickly creating and deploying production-ready gen AI-powered experiences.

Building enterprise-grade, factually grounded AI agents — fast  

Whereas gen AI models offer incredible content creation and analysis capabilities, AI apps have to package those capabilities in a secure, useful interface. AI agents need to go even further, combining model capabilities with external systems so the agent can offer deep personalization and execute actions on the user’s behalf. Vertex AI Agent Builder helps to streamline these processes.

Easily build production-grade AI agents using natural language The no-code agent building console in Vertex AI Agent Builder enables developers to build and deploy generative AI agents using Google’s latest Gemini models. To start building agents, developers navigate to the Agents section in Vertex AI. Here, they can create new agents in minutes. All they need to do is define the goal they want the agent to achieve, provide step-by-step instructions that the agent should follow to achieve that goal, and share a few conversational examples for the agent to follow. 

For complex goals, developers can easily stitch together multiple agents, with one agent functioning as the main agent and others as subagents. A subagent can pass information to another subagent or the main agent, allowing for seamless and sophisticated workflows. These agents can easily call functions, connect to enterprise data to improve response factuality, or connect to applications to perform tasks for the user. 

The Vertex AI agents console also features advanced tooling to make agent building, orchestration, and maintenance easier, including the ability to create production-grade, high-quality agents out of a prototype, monitor the performance of agents in real-time, and improve responses for specific queries by training them using natural language.

Easily build production grade AI agents using natural language in Vertex AI’s no code agents console

Grounded outputs and capable agents Gen AI models are familiar only with the information that they were trained on. Most enterprise use cases require supplementing the model’s training knowledge with other data sources to ground outputs in relevant, factual information. Commonly referred to as Retrieval Augmented Generation, or RAG, this technique can be complicated to implement, with few specialized tools available for evaluating and maintaining the quality of grounding mechanisms over time. 

Vertex AI Agent Builder offers comprehensive capabilities to ground model outputs in enterprise data, including Vertex AI Search’s out-of-box RAG system. Only a few clicks are necessary to get up and running, and with pre-built components, the platform makes it simple to create, maintain, and manage more complicated implementations. Thanks to a variety of RAG APIs for tasks like document layout, ranking, and retrieval, developers can quickly and easily perform checks on grounding outputs. For more complex implementations, Vertex AI Agent Builder also offers powerful vector search to build custom embeddings-based RAG systems. Vector search can scale to billions of vectors, find the nearest neighbors in a few milliseconds, and combine with keyword-based search techniques to ensure the most relevant and accurate responses for users.

Customers also have the option of grounding model outputs in Google Search, combining the power of Google’s latest foundation models with access to fresh, high-quality information that can significantly improve completeness and accuracy of responses. Google is the only cloud provider to offer customers out-of-the-box grounding capabilities on both their own data and Google Search results. 

Additionally, Vertex AI Agent Builder makes it easy to augment grounding outputs and take action on your user’s behalf with extensions, function calling, and data connectors. 

Vertex AI extensions are pre-built reusable modules to connect a foundation model to a specific API or tool. For example, our new code interpreter extension enables models to execute tasks that entail running Python code, such as data analysis, data visualization, and mathematical operations. 

Vertex AI function calling enables a user to describe a set of functions or APIs and have Gemini models intelligently select, for a given query, the right API or function to call, along with the appropriate API parameters.

Vertex AI data connectors help ingest data from enterprise and third-party applications like ServiceNow, Hadoop, and Salesforce, connecting generative applications to commonly-used enterprise systems.

Enterprise-grade security and reliability Moving from a working prototype to a production-ready app or agent can be fraught with technical challenges. Vertex AI Agent Builder eases these concerns with support for a range of compliance and security standards, including HIPAA, ISO 27000-series, and SOC-1/2/3, VPC-SC and CMEK. It also integrates with Vertex AI Studio, which lets developers leverage model tuning capabilities and easily connect with Vertex AI’s other out-of-the-box offerings for unified workflows. All capabilities come with standard access controls, data governance tools, and data sovereignty options that Google Cloud customers have come to expect, ensuring builders can focus on innovating while keeping data safe and services reliable. 

Enter the era of AI agents today

Try Vertex AI Agent Builder’s no-code agent building console to build your AI agents using natural language prompts or our open-source offerings like LangChain on Vertex AI .

To learn more about Vertex AI Agent Builder visit our webpage .

• AI & Machine Learning
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• Google Cloud Next

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Claudia Looi

Touring the Top 10 Moscow Metro Stations

By Claudia Looi 2 Comments

Komsomolskaya metro station looks like a museum. It has vaulted ceilings and baroque decor.

Hidden underground, in the heart of Moscow, are historical and architectural treasures of Russia. These are Soviet-era creations – the metro stations of Moscow.

Our guide Maria introduced these elaborate metro stations as “the palaces for the people.” Built between 1937 and 1955, each station holds its own history and stories. Stalin had the idea of building beautiful underground spaces that the masses could enjoy. They would look like museums, art centers, concert halls, palaces and churches. Each would have a different theme. None would be alike.

The two-hour private tour was with a former Intourist tour guide named Maria. Maria lived in Moscow all her life and through the communist era of 60s to 90s. She has been a tour guide for more than 30 years. Being in her 60s, she moved rather quickly for her age. We traveled and crammed with Maria and other Muscovites on the metro to visit 10 different metro stations.

Arrow showing the direction of metro line 1 and 2

Moscow subways are very clean

To Maria, every street, metro and building told a story. I couldn’t keep up with her stories. I don’t remember most of what she said because I was just thrilled being in Moscow.   Added to that, she spilled out so many Russian words and names, which to one who can’t read Cyrillic, sounded so foreign and could be easily forgotten.

The metro tour was the first part of our all day tour of Moscow with Maria. Here are the stations we visited:

1. Komsomolskaya Metro Station  is the most beautiful of them all. Painted yellow and decorated with chandeliers, gold leaves and semi precious stones, the station looks like a stately museum. And possibly decorated like a palace. I saw Komsomolskaya first, before the rest of the stations upon arrival in Moscow by train from St. Petersburg.

2. Revolution Square Metro Station (Ploshchad Revolyutsii) has marble arches and 72 bronze sculptures designed by Alexey Dushkin. The marble arches are flanked by the bronze sculptures. If you look closely you will see passersby touching the bronze dog's nose. Legend has it that good luck comes to those who touch the dog's nose.

Touch the dog's nose for good luck. At the Revolution Square station

Revolution Square Metro Station

3. Arbatskaya Metro Station served as a shelter during the Soviet-era. It is one of the largest and the deepest metro stations in Moscow.

Arbatskaya Metro Station

4. Biblioteka Imeni Lenina Metro Station was built in 1935 and named after the Russian State Library. It is located near the library and has a big mosaic portrait of Lenin and yellow ceramic tiles on the track walls.

Lenin's portrait at the Biblioteka Imeni Lenina Metro Station

5. Kievskaya Metro Station was one of the first to be completed in Moscow. Named after the capital city of Ukraine by Kiev-born, Nikita Khruschev, Stalin's successor.

Kievskaya Metro Station

6. Novoslobodskaya Metro Station  was built in 1952. It has 32 stained glass murals with brass borders.

Novoslobodskaya metro station

7. Kurskaya Metro Station was one of the first few to be built in Moscow in 1938. It has ceiling panels and artwork showing Soviet leadership, Soviet lifestyle and political power. It has a dome with patriotic slogans decorated with red stars representing the Soviet's World War II Hall of Fame. Kurskaya Metro Station is a must-visit station in Moscow.

Ceiling panel and artworks at Kurskaya Metro Station

8. Mayakovskaya Metro Station built in 1938. It was named after Russian poet Vladmir Mayakovsky. This is one of the most beautiful metro stations in the world with 34 mosaics painted by Alexander Deyneka.

Mayakovskaya station

One of the over 30 ceiling mosaics in Mayakovskaya metro station

9. Belorusskaya Metro Station is named after the people of Belarus. In the picture below, there are statues of 3 members of the Partisan Resistance in Belarus during World War II. The statues were sculpted by Sergei Orlov, S. Rabinovich and I. Slonim.

10. Teatralnaya Metro Station (Theatre Metro Station) is located near the Bolshoi Theatre.

Teatralnaya Metro Station decorated with porcelain figures .

Taking the metro's escalator at the end of the tour with Maria the tour guide.

Have you visited the Moscow Metro? Leave your comment below.

January 15, 2017 at 8:17 am

An excellent read! Thanks for much for sharing the Russian metro system with us. We're heading to Moscow in April and exploring the metro stations were on our list and after reading your post, I'm even more excited to go visit them. Thanks again 🙂

December 6, 2017 at 10:45 pm

Hi, do you remember which tour company you contacted for this tour?

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Radiators fail once more: Moscow suburbs residents appeal to Putin

R esidents across the Moscow suburbs are besieged by a heating problem, for which they plead direct intervention from President Vladimir Putin. These individuals have yet to experience any semblance of home heating since winter started due to a dwindling supply of heating oil. The issue, one largely avoided by local authority communication, has left residents desperate to the point of directly appealing to the president.

While plots have been uncovered to disrupt Ukraine's infrastructure for a second consecutive winter, thus depriving civilians of heating, it seems Russians are now mired in their crisis. Irony drips from the fact that those under Putin's leadership are looking to cause turmoil in Ukraine, yet at home, they face a similar predicament.

Many dwellings within the Moscow agglomeration are presently without heat. The capital's residents are desperate, directly appealing to President Putin due to a perceived lack of alternate avenues for assistance. The absence of suitable heating functionality since winter commenced pushes them towards desperation with no relief in sight.

This seems improbable, but in Russia, it appears that anything can happen.

It remains uncertain if Vladimir Putin is actively addressing the heating crisis. Some experts suggest that Russia's heating oil reserves are depleting, which negatively affects residents' quality of life. Plagued by cold radiators and plummeting winter temperatures, these citizens have directly addressed their pleas to their head of state.

This heating crisis is happening in Elektrostal, a town approximately 71 miles from Moscow.

Ironically, Russia has constantly aimed to destroy the Ukrainian infrastructure since war broke out, deliberately trying to leave Ukrainians without heating during the harsh winters, aiming to break their strong will. It's an irony they now struggle with a domestic heating crisis, particularly near Moscow, their largest and most pivotal city.

Desperate individuals are reaching out to Vladimir Putin. They question his knowledge of the heating infrastructure conditions in the Moscow suburbs and the dire situations residents face there. Sundown brings no relief from the harsh Russian winter and without heating, their houses turn cold. With elections nearing, more and more residents find themselves reaching out directly to their president.

"Since winter's start, we've been without heating. This has been a yearly occurrence for the past three years. Despite paying for heating, we don't have enough. We implore you, help us!" - these are the desperate pleas from the heavily dressed populace dealing with the Russian winter conditions.

Experts attribute the heating oil shortage to international sanctions and surging demands for diesel fuel, pivotal to military operations. Russia now grapples with a dearth of raw materials essential for boiler and heating plant operation. As supplies dwindle, houses grow cold with little hope of any immediate corrective intervention.

It would be adequate if the war ceased, residents were prioritized, and attention accorded to their welfare.

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