Laura Rahn loves dreaming about, designing, and departing on travel adventures.
She has been including her kids in the travel process since they were old enough to have a voice and input. She is also a retired educator with 26 years of experience teaching elementary and middle school. Since becoming a wife, mother to two daughters, and educator, she realized the authentic value of travel for families and wanted to share what she has learned with others. She has since been a Certified Family Travel Coach with The Travel Coach Network for almost 2 years.
What are your travel specialties or areas of expertise?
I focus on empowering families to dream about, design and depart on that next great vacation! I love to help families visit national parks, plan great road trips and find the time to reconnect.
What inspired you to become a travel advisor?
I became a travel coach because I believe travel has the power to strengthen families and create meaningful connections. After 33 years as an educator and instructional coach, I saw firsthand how busy families often struggle to carve out intentional time together. Planning a vacation can feel overwhelming, and too often the trip doesn’t reflect what everyone truly wants.
As a Family Travel Coach, I help families slow down, dream together, and design trips that build memories instead of stress. For my own family, travel has always been where we connect best—whether exploring national parks, laughing over inside jokes at Disney, or simply sharing quiet moments on the beach. I want other families to experience that same joy, no matter their travel style or budget.
What is your most popular travel destination among clients?
What’s the most valuable tip or trick someone has shared with you that makes planning family travel easier?
One of the most valuable tricks I share with clients is to start dreaming and designing a vacation at least 12 months in advance. Early planning gives families more options—better pricing, wider availability for popular destinations, and time to secure those special experiences that make a trip memorable. But just as important, it creates space for every family member to be part of the process.
When kids, teens, or even adult children get to help choose destinations, activities, or even where to eat, they feel ownership, and that turns “just another trip” into something everyone is excited about. Starting early transforms planning from a rushed, stressful task into a fun, collaborative experience that builds anticipation and connection long before departure day.
What is one website, platform, database, or other tech tool you consistently use when planning family travel, and what do you use it for?
Wanderlog is a valuable itinerary planning tool that I recommend to my clients, and have consistently used myself also.
Photo courtesy of Laura Rahn.
