Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:11] Speaker A: Welcome to the Victory Show.
Hey, victors. Welcome to this episode of the Victory Show. If this is the first time you're joining us, I'm Travis cody, bestselling author, 16 books. And I've had the privilege of helping hundreds of business consultants, founders and entrepreneurs write and publish their own best selling books as well. And during that journey, I've discovered a really fascinating pattern. A lot of businesses hit a revenue plateau, usually around seven figures a year, and they struggle to break through it. So on this show, I sit down with some of the world's most successful CEOs, leaders, founders and business owners to uncover the strategies they used to overcome those plateaus and scale their businesses to new heights so you can do the same. So get ready for some deep insights and actionable takeaways that you can implement in your life and business, starting right away. Now, today's guest is a world explorer turned industry leader with a passion for curating unforgettable journeys and unlocking the best kept travel secrets. Michael Bluestone is the founder and CEO of Bluestone Travel and an independent travel advisor at Frosh, where he crafts one of a kind luxury travel experiences for clients who want more than just a vacation. They want a story to tell. As a member of the ITA advisory board, Michael represents over 600 travel advisors within the Chase Travel Group, helping shape the future of luxury and experiential travel. But before the boardroom, he was out in the world leading adventure trips across Europe, South America and Asia for back roads and visiting over 70 countries by the end of his 20s. Since then, he's created his own signature bluestone travel experiences to places like the Dolomites, Patagonia, Atacamama. I'm saying that wrong. The Atacama Desert, the Faroe Islands, and South Africa. Always hunting for hidden gems and extraordinary moments that miss that most travelers miss. So if you've ever dreamed of traveling deeper, smarter and more meaningful, this conversation is your passport. Michael, thank you so much for being here today.
Seventy countries, by the time you were 30.
[00:02:10] Speaker B: It was, it was a fun time. You know, we were living out of a suitcase and when you were on assignment with backroads, they told you where you were going. But when you were off, you could basically go anywhere you wanted in the world. They would provide leader houses, beds, bikes, food, all of that at no additional expense. So it made it pretty easy to bump around and see some new places.
[00:02:32] Speaker A: So did you choose travel or did travel choose you? Because it sounds like you got started in the travel game pretty early.
[00:02:40] Speaker B: Yeah, no It's a great question. Definitely wasn't by choice. I was 14 years old, returning home from summer camp, expecting to start my freshman year of high school just two days later.
And my parents walked into my room one morning. I distinctly remember this because I thought they were getting ready to deliver some terrible news or something. It was strange. And that's when they told me that instead of starting my freshman year of high school two days later, I was going to be moving to Italy for a year to live with an Italian family in Lake Como who I'd never met before, never spoke a word of the language, and had no idea where Italy was on a map. So it's definitely a shock to the system.
[00:03:20] Speaker A: How.
[00:03:22] Speaker A: How does that even happen? Like, this. Was your friends of your family, or.
[00:03:27] Speaker B: Yeah, I got this question a lot. You know, were you a bad kid? Why did your parents want to send you?
[00:03:31] Speaker A: Was this an intervention?
[00:03:34] Speaker B: A little bit of. A little bit of everything. So I. I was one of the youngest kids in my grade, and all through lower school and middle school, I had good grades, but my behavior was not as good. You know, wouldn't sit in his chair, won't raise his hand, distracting friends, you name it. That was kind of the my MO for all lower school and middle school. And my mom was not excited about me starting high school with bad behavior. And also they had put me in all of the hardest classes at the high school. And she thought this was just going to be a disaster for me and wanted to give me a year to mature before I started high school.
And so it just happened that my father's in the steel business, buys steel from a family in Italy, and their son was visiting Houston at the time, staying at our house.
So really, my mom, two weeks before I was supposed to start high school, asked this kid Carlo if I could go and live with his family for a year. And that's the abbreviated version. You know, there's a lot more involved there. But it changed my life. I came back fluent in Italian, and I've been back to Italy every year since then, either for personal reasons or for work.
[00:04:45] Speaker A: Well, I mean, for first time overseas, being Lake Cuomo doesn't sound like too bad of a spot to sort of have to. To mature at me better than some little village in the middle of, like, the mountains of Italy, I would think.
[00:04:57] Speaker B: Sure. I mean, honestly, coming from Houston, anything in Italy is. Is a treat just to have, like, good food, beautiful outdoors. So it was. It was. It wasn't a bad deal.
[00:05:09] Speaker A: So what was that that year like for you, then when you were there, like, what, how. Like, how long did it take for you to kind of get over the shock.
[00:05:16] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:05:16] Speaker A: And start to settle into the lifestyle there. And were you going to school there or were you just kind of.
[00:05:22] Speaker B: I did go to school. So the family that I lived with, the mother was the director of a small private school that actually she and her husband had helped fund. They're very philanthropic. They're one of Italy's largest steel producers and had a big footprint in the area. Wow. And so she set me up with a very structured day where I was getting private Italian classes every day from three different teachers. And then I would also join the. The class with other kids my age for subjects like math, English, pe, Anything where I could kind of relate. Yeah. And I did grow up speaking Spanish, so I was able to get by a little bit. But it wasn't until two or three months into the experience where I really started making friends. Felt like I could communicate. Started playing on a basketball team, which made a huge difference. And then I started spending a week or two weeks at a time at some of my friends houses because they were just my age versus this family whose children were all in their, you know, late 20s, early 30s, and I was 14.
[00:06:23] Speaker A: So. Wow, what a remarkable story.
Okay, so I'm assuming you went back and finished school in Houston from there.
So how. How does that. How does that lead into a lifetime of travel?
[00:06:37] Speaker B: Yeah, so that did open the door as far as just like, wanting to explore new cultures, curiosity for different countries.
And I did come back, finished high school. After high school, I went and lived in Israel for a year.
I ended up going to the University of Maryland. And as soon as I got there, I specifically asked the advisor, you know what, abroad opportunities are available to me. And I'm not just talking about like one semester abroad. I want to know every single spring break opportunity. Can I do more than one semester abroad? And so through college, I spent a semester in Prague. I did a program called Semester at Sea, where I was living on a ship for four months, circumnavigating the globe. And we visited, I think, 15 or 16 countries.
And then I ended up doing a few summer experiences in Italy as part of my college curriculum. And so already, by the time I graduated, I was pretty exposed to different countries. And I went on a hiking trip with my parents in Alaska. I think it was during my sophomore year of college. And the woman who led that trip for four back roads, she was the one who told me that they really needed Italian speakers. And if I wanted a job in Italy when I graduated to reach out to her. Wow. And so it wasn't long after, after I finished school that, I mean, I tried to get a real job. I think it was six or seven months. I lasted in D.C. and then I, you know, just had the itch to, to, to get out. And so I started working for Backroads when I was 23 and was trained in Provence and then spent basically the next eight years working all around Italy, a little bit in Spain, and my winners were in Peru and Argentina.
[00:08:20] Speaker A: Wow.
Wow.
So how long did you work with. With Backroads?
[00:08:26] Speaker B: Yeah, it was eight years for, I guess, if you count. Yeah, both summers and winters. I would do four, four or five months over in Europe and usually one or two months in South America.
[00:08:37] Speaker A: Then the rest of the time you just travel.
[00:08:40] Speaker B: Did a lot of, you know, Costa Rica for a yoga teacher training. I went backpacking Southeast Asia for a couple months. I was camping in New Zealand for a couple months. I did a full back packing trip around South America because, yeah, when you're, you're in between seasons or your schedule and you have breaks, I mean, you're already on the move with a suitcase and cool stuff comes up. And so that was kind of the, the lifestyle for pretty much all my 20s.
[00:09:06] Speaker A: Wow.
So did it start off as just like, yeah, let me go do this travel thing, it'll be fun for a little bit and then I'll move on to like a real job.
And if so, like, at what point did your brain go, maybe I could make a, make this is my life, like my lifetime path here?
[00:09:25] Speaker B: Yeah, my, my idea was like, all right, two, maybe three years, you know, go have some fun, see the world.
And I just couldn't get away from it. The people at Backroads were so amazing. The, the lifestyle of traveling. I mean, there, there are pluses and minuses. I missed a lot of big friend and family events and, you know, if I wanted to come home from Europe, it was always on my dime backwards. Would you out and back once during the season.
So there were some expenses involved there, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. And I guess maybe in my seventh or eighth season, I knew that living this way out of a suitcase and, and moving around the world wasn't going to be a sustainable life, especially because I wanted to start a family. I had met at the time my now, now wife and, you know, it just wasn't going to work out. So I started thinking, how can I incorporate travel still do a little bit of what I love doing, but have somewhat of a, you know, station job.
[00:10:27] Speaker A: You have a home base to live out of.
[00:10:30] Speaker B: Exactly. And yeah, I pitched this idea to a club here in Houston. It's called the Houstonian, and they've got about 13,000 members, and it's a pretty high level fitness club, country club. It's. It's pretty all inclusive as far as anything activity related.
So a lot of people that have, you know, money to spend on traveling and also that are active. And the idea was to offer my exclusive trips that I developed from the ground up specifically to their members. And they loved it. They. They put it out on their email newsletter blast, and then they put my little flyers up on the screens throughout the club. They'd let me go in and talk to people either after a yoga class or cycling class, just to give like a little, you know, 30 second pitch about what I was doing.
And then I hosted some info sessions. And that's how I launched my initial Dolomites trip for Houstonian members, which was meant to be a one week, one group trip. And the interest level was so high, we ended up expanding it to three weeks in a row with three sold out groups.
[00:11:40] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:11:41] Speaker B: And that jump started everything. I mean, that, that group of clients, the experience was amazing. They loved it. It was their first time traveling together.
Some of them had never met each other, but they knew that they knew each other's faces through classes or just walking around at the club. And so it solidified this new network of clients and this new community within the Houstonian community that love traveling on Bluestone travel trips. And so since then, we've done, you know, several other destinations. And a lot of those clients started coming to me for travel planning advice outside of the trips that I personally offer, which ultimately led me to Frosh and becoming a travel advisor. Wow.
[00:12:24] Speaker A: So walk me through the first, let's say, year or so, then running your own travel business, you start at the Houstonian. What. What did the. From that point, like, what did the directory trajectory look like from that. That start figuring you're gonna. I'll do a week and see how it goes. And suddenly you're like, oh, I'm gonna be a month in, in. In Italy.
Where. Where did that, where did you go from there when you came back, did you start using that same model or what were some of the processes you used to grow?
[00:12:52] Speaker B: Yeah, it was almost immediate. People on this trip in, in the Dolomites were asking me, where are we going next? So before the Trip even ended. We were brainstorming together what destinations and I had ment just because I knew it well from working for back roads down there. And that seemed to be pretty exciting. So I decided I would combo Patagonia with the Atacama Desert to offer something just a little different off the beaten path, which is kind of in line with now my brand.
And that trip came together pretty quickly. I collaborated with a hotel expedition group called Explora and they do a fantastic job. They have a few properties throughout South America, but they also have their own guides, their own vans, their own logistics. And so it was pretty easy for me to customize and create an itinerary with the support of Explora on the ground.
And I would say within a few weeks of returning from Italy that summer, I had a sold out group of 24 people going with me to Chile.
And that kind of kept the ball rolling right from there. We launched the Faroe Islands. After the Faroe Islands, South Africa and Botswana. Coming up next are the Azore stores in Madera. And there's all kinds of requests for developing trips in New Zealand, Antarctica. So it's, it's almost like one leads to the next.
[00:14:17] Speaker B: From a business standpoint, you know, it's not the most sustainable or even, I don't know if it makes sense, development like from a developing standpoint. Just because I can't go on all these trips personally forever, I can maybe do one to three a year and still get by, you know, with my wife, not.
[00:14:42] Speaker B: And so from a growth standpoint, like it does limit me a little bit, but there are some opportunities to train and have people do what I'm doing for me. And then I think the biggest scalability is more on the travel agent side of things where, you know, just this year I've got somewhere between 80 and 100 trips that are being planned just in 2025 for clients. And some of those could just be hotel bookings, but a lot of them are more, you know, involved. And that's where maybe I bring an assistant or another travel advisor who can be part of my team and handle some of the requests and expand a little bit on what we're able to offer.
[00:15:24] Speaker A: So part of your brand is creating experiences that most people won't get otherwise. So how do you go about doing that?
Like, what's your philosophy around that?
[00:15:36] Speaker B: I think a lot of it is places that I've learned and, and seen firsthand traveling, whether it's through back roads or on my own, like, you know, in the Dolomites we go to a mountain refuge that there are no public roads. You cannot get up there unless you have some kind of logistical organization with the HUD owners who will drive down and pick up your luggage, store them away in a shed. We, we leave our luggage and we hike up there and they come and pick up our luggage for us. And then we use that as a base for the next two days to hike. And it just limits the amount of people that, that come into the area. And for that reason, you get a pretty unique, exclusive experience.
[00:16:21] Speaker B: And so that's just one example of how I developed, you know, something special for the Dolomites for the Faroe Islands. You know, I personally went there and spent 10 days on the islands. And then I went back a year before my, my trip launched to do a two week research period exploring every single part of the island with a local guide who's been doing this for, you know, decades now. And so really discovering how to offer something that nobody else can do. Like we hired the men's Choir of Torshawn, 12 guys that came, and we had them stash away on a boat inside the largest sea cave in the world. While my group was, you know, going on these rib boats along the caves to see the, see the cliffs where the puffins nest and in and out of different caves. And then we would end up in this last final cave where the choir was already there waiting for us. And they would then perform as we were coming in. And we had a grotto concert for the next 20 minutes that moved people to tears, talked about how it was a transformational experience for them.
And that's really what it's about for me, right, Creating these experiences where people come on my trips and they feel like they've, they've changed. You know, it's something that they would never be able to duplicate or experience themselves. And I love creating that for people.
[00:17:44] Speaker A: So what's, what's one or two sort of, I think what a normal person might consider a crazy request for somebody going, we want to do a trip that does blank.
[00:17:56] Speaker B: I mean, now that I've gotten some clients that are at our.
At a certain level.
[00:18:03] Speaker B: I've gotten all kinds of crit. Like the, the most recent one just a week ago is someone who really wants to explore this area where the Vietnam War was fought. But it requires a private helicopter to get you to this specific battleground. And since he's on that side of the world, he figured he would fly over to the Great Barrier Reef, spend a few nights on Lizard island, exploring that area. And from there, he wants to pop over and spend some time in New Zealand. And since he's in that direction, he'll stop over in Hawaii and continue making his way back. And, you know, it's like piecing together. And these are. These are clients that are at a very high level where they're not budget sensitive and you can put together, you know, with. With help.
[00:18:54] Speaker B: An amazing custom itinerary.
But that would be one that. That recently came up, and I was just like, wow, I've never. I've never done a five, six country, you know, itinerary that includes four or five different flights over different oceans, like.
[00:19:12] Speaker A: Plus a private helicopter tour to some place that nobody hardly ever goes to because it was a huge battle.
[00:19:17] Speaker B: Right.
[00:19:18] Speaker A: That's crazy.
All right, so what. What's the difference then between what you do at Bluestone and. And something like Frosh? Like, when would somebody be better served with Frosh versus going with. With Bluestone Travel?
[00:19:30] Speaker B: Yeah. So a lot of people may or may not know this, but just booking through a travel advisor, you get a lot of amenities that. That are offered when you check into your hotels. Right. There could be some hotel spa or bar and food credit. There could be a complimentary room upgrade. There could be early check in, late checkout. These are just, like things that you get when you book through a travel advisor.
And honestly, it's pretty standard across the board, like, even through a credit card like Chase or Amex.
So that's. That's more the frosh side of things, where you get the perk of working with a travel advisor who's established these relationships. And then Bluestone Travel, it's, you know, trips that I've customized and developed myself. And so that could be anything from a private group that's requesting a specific destination that wants me to either build it from the ground up or personally guide it to going on one of my trips that I've already developed and offered. And they're just signing up as a guest on my trip.
And so, yeah, I think the limits on Frosh are endless. Right? It could be flights, hotels, cruises, blue sun travel. I have very specific destinations that I develop.
Got it.
[00:20:51] Speaker A: So I'm going to throw. I'm going to throw one at you because I just saw an article the other day. I was like, that's interesting. In 2027, there's going to be a full solar eclipse, and it's going to go directly over Luxor Temple in Egypt.
[00:21:06] Speaker B: All right, awesome.
[00:21:07] Speaker A: So how would you develop.
How would you develop that tour or is that even an area you would deal with?
[00:21:13] Speaker B: Yeah, no, I mean, I, I have not sold Egypt. I haven't been myself. So I'd be very transparent on that. I would have to reach out to some of ground operators that we have contacts through Frosh, through Chase Travel, and, and start researching it and figure out, you know, what is the best way to offer that kind of unique experience that maybe nobody else is doing but.
[00:21:35] Speaker A: Say, being standing in a 4,500-year-old ancient Egyptian temple at a full eclipse sort of seems like it. That, that would be a good story.
[00:21:44] Speaker B: Very cool.
[00:21:45] Speaker A: You're like, oh, that's putting that on there. So, so, so you deal with a lot of travel. Let's get into the nitty gritty for you as an operator. Like, what are some of the big mistakes that people make when they're, when they're traveling or getting ready to set up a trip with, with someone like Bluestone Travel?
[00:22:02] Speaker B: Yeah. I mean, is the question more like what mistakes have I learned from or made through this process or.
[00:22:09] Speaker A: No, no. What are the things when people show up at the tour where you go, oh God, that.
[00:22:15] Speaker B: Yeah. There's a book called the Ugly American. I don't know if you've ever heard of it. No, it's, it's, it basically depicts, you know, the worst version of an American when they're traveling and they're outside of their comfort zone. And, and yeah, I think those are the moments where I feel most like, oh, please, just pull it together. Right? Where you're, you're just not sensitive to other cultures or how they do things and you're used to your comforts and your way.
And if you go into a trip with that kind of closed minded, like, whatever it is, whether it's I gotta have air conditioning or, you know, I want my meal to be 30 minutes or less or, you know, whatever.
[00:23:01] Speaker A: Wait a minute. Italy doesn't serve meals in 30 minutes or less.
[00:23:05] Speaker B: Exactly.
[00:23:08] Speaker B: So those are the, those are the biggest things. I mean, aside from packing issues. I think people just like pack way too much generally for, for trips. I think there's a lot of mistakes that are due to feeling like you need to have a lot of stuff with you when you're going on a one week trip. And it doesn't really require much, but yeah.
[00:23:32] Speaker A: All right, so what do you recommend then? Like, what's the bare bones, like, easy way to travel if we're going on a 10 day trip somewhere? Like what, what's the essentials that I need and what can I leave at home?
[00:23:42] Speaker B: What's the destination?
[00:23:44] Speaker A: I'll say Italy. Let's look at that.
Yeah.
[00:23:46] Speaker B: I mean, if it's a hiking trip and the Dolomites, you know, I, I always recommend doing things like wear your hiking boots on the plane and maybe just bring like a small set of slippers that you can change into on the overnight flight. You know, you don't need to bring multiple pairs of tennis shoes, a couple hiking shorts or a couple hiking pants and rinsing them out. Same thing with, you know, underwear, socks.
So that's, that's my approach. You don't have to have like a fresh pair for every single day you do laundry while you're, you're on the trip.
Layers, you know, a good windbreaker, something to keep the rain out and something for warmth. That's sufficient.
And one pair of jeans. Right. You don't need multiple dinner wear. Nobody really cares what you're wearing. Wear your hiking shirt that you're going to hike in the next day to dinner the night before. And, you know, so I think that's.
[00:24:39] Speaker A: Interesting because I think most Americans that I talk to when they travel, the idea of doing laundry while they're traveling doesn't even occur to them that that's like an option, which is why they end up bringing like a suitcase with two weeks worth of clothes.
[00:24:50] Speaker B: Yeah, no, I'm big on the, the tide to go packets and doing some sink laundry.
And, you know, if you get desperate, you can always turn your, your underwear inside out.
[00:25:04] Speaker A: So. So, like, if somebody's listening to this conversation and they're like, oh, amazing, like, I want to work with Michael and, and design a dreamtrip. Like, how do people find you? How do they get in touch with you? How do they engage you and your group?
[00:25:19] Speaker B: Bluestone-travel.com or on Instagram, it's just Bluestone Travel. People can email me directly at Michael bluestone-travel.com and would always be happy just to talk and figure out what kind of trip is being planned, if there's any help needed, or if it's just a simple hotel booking. That's something that, you know, can be done if they want perks added to their, their reservation.
[00:25:42] Speaker A: Wow. Yeah. Again, stuff like that. I would never, I don't, I would. Don't think I'd ever think of doing a travel advisor just for hotel stuff.
[00:25:49] Speaker B: So, yeah, maybe a misconception that, like, using a travel advisor means you're gonna have to pay extra money. And listen, there are some circumstances, if it's a Highly customized trip that requires a lot of legwork and you're booking trains and flights and this and that. Maybe there are some planning fees and. But generally speaking, that's not something that I do, especially if it's a simple hotel booking.
[00:26:12] Speaker A: Wow, that's remarkable.
Okay, so what does, what does the rest of the year look like for you? What are the big trips you have coming? Which one. Which ones aren't full yet? So if people still want to get in on them.
[00:26:25] Speaker B: Yeah, unfortunately, I am fully sold out through this year.
So coming up after that would potentially be an Antarctica trip that I'm looking at doing at the end of 2026, early 2027. Is that a pretty.
[00:26:40] Speaker A: Is that a pretty high requested trip?
[00:26:42] Speaker B: I keep hearing it over and over again, so we're going to put it together.
But my next big trips, I'm going back to the Dolomites private group from Houston. 15 people that I'll be taking on the same itinerary that I've run now for the last four years. And then Azores and Madera are coming up in the fall. So these are islands off the west coast of Portugal.
[00:27:06] Speaker A: Wow. Wow, that's fantastic. I'm, I'm. My brain now is like, Antarctica. Can we, can we custom do one where we do Antarctica, but we go overland? Antarctica to the, the mysterious ice wall.
[00:27:19] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:27:22] Speaker A: Where. Where's the place on Google Map that was the big tunnel going underground? We can. Then we can go there.
[00:27:28] Speaker B: Yeah. The Pharaoh.
[00:27:30] Speaker A: Yeah. I love it. It.
[00:27:31] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:27:32] Speaker A: All right. I always like to end every conversation with. With three personal questions. So we'll hit. Hit those and we'll wrap things up. But if you could go back in time and give your younger self a piece of advice, what would it be and why?
[00:27:44] Speaker B: I like that question a lot.
[00:27:49] Speaker B: I would.
I think the advice would be something around.
[00:27:59] Speaker B: Yeah. I mean, this is definitely personal, but, like, you'll figure it out. Right. You don't need to prove anything to anyone.
Stick to what you know and who you are, and it's all going to come together fine. And, you know, I definitely made some mistakes in my past, and I think a lot of that came from wanting to.
To just impress.
[00:28:26] Speaker A: Sure. I think that we. I think we're all that way when we're younger.
[00:28:29] Speaker B: Right.
[00:28:30] Speaker A: So what believe or mindset shift has had the biggest impact on your success?
[00:28:42] Speaker B: I don't know. I think if everyone's doing something one way and that's the way that you are, quote, unquote, supposed to be doing it, it go the other way.
[00:28:51] Speaker A: That's a good one. All right, final question. I'm making this one up on the spot here, but if. If finances were no limit, what is Michael Bluestone's dream trip?
[00:29:05] Speaker B: Gosh, I have a running list of places that I, I want to go to that I haven't been to.
[00:29:11] Speaker A: I say I always find that amazing when you've been to 70 countries and you're like, I have a big list of people at places I haven't gone to yet.
[00:29:17] Speaker B: Yeah, Mongolia is high on my list and I don't know much about it, so I just keep hearing that it's such a special place.
[00:29:27] Speaker B: But my dream trip would probably involve going to a lot of my favorite spots that I already know and develop and revisiting the people there.
[00:29:35] Speaker A: That's fantastic.
Well, Michael, this has been a fantastic conversation. Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to be here.
[00:29:42] Speaker B: Absolutely. Thanks, Travis.
