Florida Schilling
Travel Agency Owner
Téléphone
+1 707 255 8737
Adresse
3323 David Drive,
Napa, CA, USA
About Us
People often ask me how and why I became a travel agent. As a child growing up in Tahiti, my favorite subject was geography. I was drawn to discover the world beyond my beautiful but remote islands in the South Pacific. After I moved to California, in March 1973, I found a job as a travel assistant to Mr. Clifton Thompson, owner of Thompson Creekside Travel, a well-respected, popular company in Napa, California.
I discovered that this was my ticket to the world. Not only did I learn how to make travel arrangements for clients, but I got travel benefits as well. It was my dream job, and when Mr. Thompson retired, I was honored that he felt I could take over his agency and continue his work.
More than 50 years later, I still love this work. Is it challenging? Always. As the world of travel changed with the introduction of the internet, travelers still needed help finding their best choices, whether it is a flight to Los Angeles, or a trek in Nepal.
This is especially true today when people confront a bewildering array of options. Which is the best one? Is there something they have missed? I enjoy putting together a trip and arranging the details, and I admit, I love to find bargains.
Meanwhile, I have been able to travel to 75 countries, sometimes with other travel agents and sometimes on my own with friends. We have traveled by camel in Egypt, by boat in Vietnam, and by train on the Trans-Siberian railroad across Russia. We have explored tiny countries like Latvia and Lithuania, and enormous ones like China. As well as the adventures and memories I gather when I travel, I also bring back my personal experiences to help guide clients.
I still have many countries to visit on my bucket list, and I am happy to help you make your own plans to explore the world.
Megan
In the summer of 1970 I studied at the University of East Africa in Nairobi. We were taught by the university’s professors and went on safari at the end of the coursework.
My love of sub-Saharan Africa began with that first trip and blossomed ... a visit to my uncle and aunt in South Africa in 1972 and the realization of my dream to work as an archaeologist - a dig in Zaire in 1973 (at a Late Stone Age site) - gave me an abiding interest in this amazing continent.
Archaeology of a different kind brought me to England in 1974. A planned two month stay became twenty years!
In 1982 my husband and I moved to the US. I trained as a travel agent and began work with Bridge to Travel in San Francisco. I went on to work for Thomas Cook Business Travel in San Francisco.
On our return to England in 1985, I began work with Thomas Cook Travel Management in Basingstoke and was promoted to assistant manager. I oversaw the opening of a new travel management office in Poole and was promoted to manager of that office.
In 1996 after returning (again) to the US, I began working with Linda Thompson and Florida Schilling at Thompson Creekside Travel. In addition to organising independent travel, I have led groups to Tanzania, the Galapagos, Ireland, Botswana, England and Scotland.
I have arranged itineraries to all parts of the world ... perhaps the most remote was two bookings on the Trans-Siberian Railroad!
Timeline: Our Journey
March 1971
July 2010
2010–Present
Thompson Creekside Travel is founded.
Florida Schilling inherits the agency and becomes owner.
Celebrating over 50 years of travel expertise and personalized service.
Expansion of services to include cruises, corporate travel, wedding packages, and sustainable tourism options.