WonderCrafted Travel

Home
United States
Glen Carbon, IL
WonderCrafted Travel

🎯 Not a booking agent. Louis Metro
🔗 calendly.com/kristy-wondercraftedtravel/30min

A curator of trips worth scrapbooking.
✈️ Europe | Hawaii | Mexican Caribbean | SE Asia | Beyond
🎨 Independent Stampin' Up Demo | Scrapbooker | Paper Crafter
📍 St. With a passport boasting entry into 20 diverse countries across North and South America, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and Oceania, Kristy is a truly seasoned and insightful global traveler. Her extensive experience stems from over two d

ecades spent navigating personal and professional travels. This robust background has not only honed her exceptional organizational skills, but also provided a unique perspective on the intersection of business and travel. Leveraging over 20 years of experience in corporate roles, including executive leadership positions in marketing, sales, and product management, Kristy is now sharing her passion and expertise with those seeking expertly-crafted travel experiences.

06/04/2026

Hi, I'm Kristy 👋 (a few things you might not know about your travel curator)

Five fun facts about the human behind WonderCrafted Travel:
🏃‍♀️ I'm running a 5K in every state. 40 down, 10 to go. Yes, I know exactly which 10. Yes, they're already on a list.
📝 Speaking of lists — I am a hyperorganized, master list maker. The twist? I actually finish them. (Turns out, itineraries are just very pretty lists with flights attached. ✈️)
📖 I'm a scrapbooker. Obsessively. My daughters' lives are documented in approximately one zillion albums — and yes, that's exactly where "trips worthy of their own scrapbook" comes from. It's not a tagline. It's a worldview.
🎨 I love tie-dye, papercrafting, colored pens, washi tape, and basically anything that turns a blank page into something. The "Crafted" in WonderCrafted isn't an accident — I believe a trip, like a scrapbook page, is built one thoughtful detail at a time.
🌈 The common thread? I plan. I make. I finish what I start. And I'm endlessly delighted by the small, specific details that turn an ordinary thing into a memorable one.

If that sounds like the kind of person you'd want building your next big trip — I'd love to meet you. 📖✨

06/02/2026

A private half-day tour planned for the day after you land sets the tone for the entire trip.

Most travelers either save the guided tour for "later in the week" or skip it entirely. Both are mistakes.

The day after you land is the sweet spot, because you're rested enough to absorb (day one is a jet-lag wash), but it's early enough that you haven't yet locked in your assumptions about the city.

A great private guide for three or four hours does three things no guidebook can:
→ Sets the emotional tone for the entire trip
→ Hands you intel on the hidden gems (i.e. the right bakery, the bench with the view, the back street nobody's photographing)
→ Tells you the real story...not the dates-and-monuments script, but how people actually live here

You'll spend the rest of the trip applying that intel. Every meal, every walk, every decision gets sharper because day two set the frame.

06/01/2026

The blog is officially live — and my first post is the most honest thing I've written about how I do this work. 🖊️

For 25+ years, I've been a scrapbooker. Story first. Memory anchors. Negative space. Built by hand, one page at a time.

And somewhere along the way, I realized: that's exactly how I plan travel.

Not templates. Not cookie-cutter itineraries. But trips shaped like a story — with one defining moment per day, room to breathe, and details so specific they could only belong to your family.

✨ My latest blog post breaks down 5 things scrapbooking taught me about travel planning — and why the two crafts are, at their core, the same craft.

Whether you're a fellow memory-keeper or just someone who wants a trip worth remembering, I think you'll find something in this one.

👉 Link in the comments below!

05/31/2026

✈️ May has been a whirlwind of a month and as I wrap things up, I have so many amazing client trips coming up! Here are 3 itineraries that I'm particularly excited about: 🌍✨

1️⃣ Vienna, Bratislava & Budapest 🏰 – A multi-destination masterpiece through Central Europe! This trip features private transfers, seamless train transport between cities, and an incredible mix of culture and indulgence. Highlights include city walking tours🚶🏻‍♀️, a chimney cake class 🥐, a scenic Danube cruise 🚢, a private day spa experience at the Széchenyi Baths 💆‍♀️, and a private day trip to the breathtaking Wachau Valley 🍇.

2️⃣ Kauai 🌺 – The Garden Isle done right! This family will enjoy a luxury 5-star property, a rental car for easy island exploration 🚗, and a packed bucket-list itinerary. Think a Na Pali Coast catamaran & snorkel adventure 🐠, the iconic Smith Family Luau 🌴, and visits to Hanalei, the Royal Coconut Coast, and the stunning Waimea Canyon 🏞️.

3️⃣ Riviera Maya 🏖️ – A relaxing, all-inclusive escape! Featuring non-stop flights ✈️, private transfers, and a luxury adults-only resort 🍹. To balance the relaxation with a bit of adventure, I added a small-group off-property excursion so they can experience the magic of the region beyond the resort. 🌊

You might be noticing a theme…thoughtful curation and cultural immersion. 🧠✨ Not to brag, but I'm kind of a strategic mastermind, balancing logistics against your two most important assets – time and money! 💰⏰ Each of these trips was expertly tailored to the client's unique interests and travel style.

When you're making a vacation investment, it should be on experiences and accommodations you'll love! 💖 If you need an advisor to mastermind and curate your perfect vacation, let's chat! 💬

05/30/2026

First comes the awe. Then comes the story you'll tell for the rest of your life. 📖

We've seen it happen time and again - a client returns from a journey we've curated and they can barely find the words. Then, slowly, the stories begin to pour out. The hidden cafe in Amsterdam. A private château dinner in the Loire Valley. Watching the sun melt into the Amalfi Coast from a clifftop terrace. At WonderCrafted Travel, we don't just plan trips, we craft the stories you'll spend a lifetime sharing.

What's the best travel story you've ever told? Share it with us below. ✨

05/28/2026

Belgium in THREE days?!
- Strategic? Absolutely.
- Worth every minute? Without question. 🇧🇪✨
- THREE cities. THREE distinct personalities. ONE perfectly crafted long weekend.

Belgium doesn't ask for much of your time — but it gives back everything. Here's a taste of what three days across Brussels, Ghent, and Bruges actually looks like.

BRUSSELS:

- Arrive early and claim the Grand-Place before the crowds do — the guild houses and Gothic Town Hall in morning light are worth setting an alarm for. Follow the comic strip mural route through neighborhoods most tourists never find, and don't miss the Royal Palace's Mirror Room, its ceiling covered in 1.5 million jewelled scarab beetles.

- My 🏨 pick: Rocco Forte Hotel Amigo — steps from the Grand-Place, with the kind of service that makes you feel like the city's best-kept secret is yours alone.

GHENT:

- Start your morning at the Graslei quays, where medieval facades have been reflected in the River Lys for five centuries — beautiful at any hour, but magical before the day gets busy. Stand before the Ghent Altarpiece in St Bavo's Cathedral, the most stolen painting in history, finally home. Then cross the moat into Gravensteen Castle rising straight out of the city centre.

- My 🏨 pick: 1898 The Post — a converted 19th century post office with soaring ceilings, dramatic interiors, and a gin bar that earns its own itinerary entry.

BRUGES:

- Pause at Rozenhoedkaai where the canal, centuries-old facades, and the Belfry all meet in one frame — then take to the water on a canal boat for a completely different perspective of the city. Climb the 366 steps of the Belfry tower for panoramic rooftop views. Step inside the Church of Our Lady to find Michelangelo's Madonna and Child — his only work located outside Italy.

- My 🏨 pick: Hotel De Orangerie — a 15th century convent on a private canal, intimate and extraordinary in equal measure.

One day in each city is BARELY a taste — and that's exactly the point. Belgium has a way of making you realize you should have stayed longer.

If Belgium has been sitting on your list, let's build it around your timeline, your style, and your story.

05/27/2026

Quick PSA from your favorite travel advisor: ✋

I don't expect anyone to hire me FOR the handmade "welcome home" cards I send my travelers. (Although they're a nice perk. 😉)

But here's something worth remembering as more and more of life gets handed over to algorithms:

AI will not send you a "welcome home" card.
It doesn't have hands. 🤖
It doesn't know your kids' names.
It doesn't remember that you cried happy tears when you finally booked Italy.
It doesn't care if your trip was the best week of your life.

BUT, I do...and that's the whole difference! 😘💞

05/26/2026

🍽️ Travel Tip Tuesday: Pre-book your signature dining experiences — don't leave them to chance.

The most coveted tables in the world don't wait. A cliffside dinner in Positano. An intimate chef's table in Paris. A celebrated waterfront restaurant in Sydney. These are the meals that become the stories you tell for years, but only if you secure them well in advance. The finest restaurants can book out weeks, sometimes months, ahead of peak periods.

This is one of the details where concierge-level planning makes all the difference. Knowing which reservation to prioritize, and when to make it, transforms a great trip into a truly memorable one.

At WonderCrafted Travel, seamless experiences are woven into every itinerary we craft, and nothing is left to chance. 🌟

What's the most memorable meal you've ever had on a trip? We'd love to hear it. 👇

05/24/2026

When your client (Chad Opel) sends you an amazing room walk-through video like this, you stop everything and share it!! 🎥 (Well, after asking permission, of course...and removing his voiceover, editing out his beautiful wife to protect her privacy, adding a few subtitles, and spending a few hours pretending I'm a CapCut expert!! 😄)

But back to the reason we're here.

This is the Tower Room at 1898 The Post in Ghent, Belgium — and yes, it's every bit as extraordinary as it looks. A converted 19th century post office turned luxury boutique hotel, with views over the city that you simply cannot get anywhere else.

This is exactly why I obsess over hotel selection. Anyone can book a room. Finding the one that becomes part of the storyline — that's the difference.

Ghent has been one of Belgium's best-kept secrets for too long. If it's not on your list yet, consider this your sign. 🇧🇪

Ready to find your version of this moment? Drop "BELGIUM" in the comments and let's start the conversation. 👇

Address

Glen Carbon, IL
62034

Website

http://www.wondercraftedtravel.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when WonderCrafted Travel posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to WonderCrafted Travel:

Shortcuts

Want your business to be the top-listed Transport Service in Glen Carbon?