Courtesy photo
Cynthia van de Erve and Connie Freeland in a café in Ireland.
Cynthia van de Erve confesses she’s a travelholic who loves books. And she claims her friend Connie Freeland is a bookaholic who loves to travel.
The two local women both retired several years ago from their respective jobs.
Erve, of Woodinville, was a longtime travel agent and tour director, while Freeland, who lives in Kirkland, worked as a college English teacher before becoming a professional technical writer and editor.
The pair recently decided to team up and combine their passions and skills to create Book Lover’s Travel, a company that specializes in small group tours to destinations fueled by literature.
“This company is the dream child of our friendship,” says Erve. “We’ve been talking about doing something along these lines for awhile and now it’s becoming an exciting reality for us. We plan to take small groups of women on trips to explore art, culture and history by reading fun informative books set in various international destinations. We will do an in-depth exploration of each destination, visiting all the famous sites, as well as some off-the-beaten path ones, with local guides who are well versed in the culture and history. And although books will form the common bond within the group, we won’t be limited to visiting just the literary sites.”
Erve continues to explain that participants will receive a book list ahead of their scheduled trip, with selections that focus on the specific destination. There will be a wide variety of choices, including fiction and non-fiction reads, and individuals may opt to read one or several of the books.
The idea is for people to get a feel for the country they will be visiting from literature instead of from guide books. “Guide books are so cut and dry, for the most part,” adds Erve. “Literature is so much richer and can give you such interesting insights into a particular place.”
Freeland echoes the sentiment and says, “When I read a historical novel, for example, I get a definite sense of place and time and a tie to what others thought and did back then. It gives me a perceptive that you can’t get from guide books.”
Erve comments that ideally it would be optimal for the participants to be able to discuss the books prior to their trip and she notes that the forum could vary from a casual get together in someone’s home to an online chat room.
The former would be obviously appropriate for a group comprised mostly of women who live near one another, whereas the latter would suit those coming from a variety of locales.
“We want to encourage the groups to do this because we think the discussion aspects are very valuable,” says Erve.
The company is targeting women, primarily those in their mid-30s on up to about 80, and the trips are geared toward individuals who don’t want to travel alone, but who are looking for something more personal than a big bus tour.
“I think women who want to learn something and who want an intimate experience that only a small group (max of 16) can afford will enjoy our trips,” adds Freeland. “They will provide people with an opportunity to develop a meaningful relationship with a country.”
Both Erve and Freeland have made travel a priority in their lives for many years.
For Erve, it’s been a way to explore the world and gain a broader understanding of other cultures. She has found in her extensive adventures abroad that although there are many differences that separate people on this planet, the one commonality that brings them together is their desire to love and be loved.
She says, “People in their hearts are the same all over. They care about their families and their loved ones. That’s what matters most to them.”
For Freeland, travel is an eye opener, in that it provides different views of the world, as well as gives her a new perspective on herself. The women believe the combination of travel and books is a potent one and that their company’s niche will appeal to the demographic they have described. “Reading the books will serve as a way to open a window on a place before we get there,” explains Erve. “The books will be the common link in the group and serve as the gateway to the travel experience.” Once the group has arrived at their destination, participants will spend their time sightseeing, as well as engaging in a variety of other activities. They might take cooking lessons, attend musical and theatrical performances, meet with local authors or do what many women adore, shop to their hearts’ content.
There will also be plenty of free time built in for folks to explore on their own. Accommodations are at three star hotels.
Planning the tours involves much research. Erve and Freeland visit the countries, make connections with the guides, select activity options and work out all the necessary logistics.
For 2009, the company is offering trips to Ireland, Hawaii and either Israel or Italy (TBT). “This will actually be our inaugural year,” says Erve, “and we already have women chomping at the bit to sign up for one of our programs. They’re enthusiastic about the niche we’ve developed and can’t wait to register. The positive feedback, even in these slow economic times, has really helped to assure us that we’re onto something good.”
As an aside, Erve adds that the value of the dollar versus the Euro has been rising, which in turn has caused the cost of the trips to decrease, almost 20 percent in the past months.
“We’re not too worried about the economy,” she comments, “because the women we are targeting are most likely going to be independent, financially successful career women who have both the resources and the desire to travel.”
Thus far, strong word-of-mouth has helped to promote the company.
A website is in the development stages and other advertising materials are in the process of being created. Erve and Freeland are fortunate to each have broad social networks that are definitely coming in handy as they work to spread the news about their new “baby.”
“It’s definitely been crazy trying to get things going,” says Freeland, “but we both thrive on organizing details and have good communication skills. It’s the fact that we’re actually making our dream come true that really matters. That’s the best reward.”