Josh Whitaker
Owner
I’m passionate about bringing the extraordinary travel experiences I’ve had in my life to my clients. What drives me? Listening to my clients, fully understanding their desires, and then utilizing my knowledge to craft that perfect trip, tailored to their exact needs, every time.
Prior to serving as a travel advisor, I worked in retail sales management for 17 years. All the while, I traveled the world, gaining experience and forming connections to craft trips for my friends. In 1994, I eventually decided to turn my passion into my profession, and since then have never looked back.
I specialize in urban getaways, multigenerational travel, and beach destinations and especially enjoy letting my clients know about those overlooked gems in our own back yards such as the Mayan Riviera, the northern Florida Coast, and Turks & Caicos.
What’s your idea of the ideal trip? Let’s talk so that I can start turning your desires into dreams.
Arlene Thompson Brantley
Owner
Arlene is an expert luxury travel advisor and an Owner of Rudi Steele Travel, with experience managing hundreds of trips per year across the world. Her history started with planning group tours in Downtown Dallas and she slowly increased her expertise over 35 years to become successful both with clients and within her industry.
Arlene is fueled by her passion for building relationships with hotels and tour operators to provide unique and creative experiences that her clients crave. She is constantly looking for new destinations for her clients to explore and reveal new experiences to see well-trodden destinations in a different light. Through consistent travel and conversations, Arlene is eager to learn the history and culture of her destinations to bring them to life.
Her ability to go above and beyond for her clients has contributed to her success in increasing her client base through consistent word of mouth. Arlene’s unique abilities have also translated to her professional relationships and built a prominent standing within the luxury travel industry. She has served on numerous advisory boards including Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, Intercontinental Hotel Group, and the Virtuoso Hotels and Resorts Committee. Among her peers, she was nominated as Travel Advisor of the Year in 2017, a splendid accomplishment given the thousands of advisors within the network.
If asked, she would contribute her success to a dedication to her clients, a grateful relationship with her partners, and friendliness among her peers. Even as a veteran, Arlene looks forward to what the future brings in this exciting industry, and creating more wonderful travel memories.
Rudi Steele
Chairman
Rudi Steele began his career in the travel industry over 50 years ago in Zurich, where he worked as an apprentice for the company HotelPlan. After leaving Switzerland, Steele worked for Guy Tombs Ltd., a company based in Montreal, Canada, in their travel department, where he was responsible for housing during the World’s Fair in Montreal in 1967. Later that year, Rudi began working for Thomas Cook in San Francisco and eventually headed their offices in Dallas. In 1972 he accepted the position of manager for Neiman-Marcus Travel in North Park, where he worked for six years before starting his own company, Rudi Steele Travel, in 1978. In addition to receiving numerous travel awards and recognitions, he served on the Virtuoso Advisory Board for many years, as well as advisory boards for Conde Nast Travel, The Luxury Collection, the Ritz-Carlton Presidential Roundtable, and The Preferred Hotels. Steele was also a long-standing member of Virtuoso Select Properties Committee. Rudi Steele Travel, Inc., a full-service travel provider specializing in luxury and adventure travel, has established itself as one of the pre-eminent purveyors of luxury travel in the Southwest. From the beginning, Rudi Steele Travel, Inc. has distinguished itself and is uniquely positioned to assist the most discriminating traveler by offering the highest level of personalized service, making arrangements on all seven continents. Small by choice, the agency consists of only 10 agents, some of whom have been with the agency for over 30 years.Now in its 34th year, Rudi Steele Travel has been a member agency of Virtuoso almost from beginning of its establishment.
Beth Whitaker
Accountant
Beth joined the Rudi Steele Travel staff in January 2018 as the Accounting Manager. She is moving back to accounting for her encore career after 23 years in financial services. Most recently she was a Vice President of Operations with Fidelity Investments. She holds an MBA in Finance from University of North Texas and a BBA in Accounting from Texas Tech University. She has maintained a CPA license for over 35 years.
David Norwood
Luxury Travel Advisor
I have been in the travel industry since 1985. My primary focus is to arrange individual and family luxury vacation travel experiences. I enjoy sports and adventure travel, luxury cruising and excellent food, wine and craft beer. Travel is my addiction. I live to experience unique properties and destinations to help clients fulfill their travel dreams.
Margery Hunter
Travel Consultant
My passion is blending travel experiences with history, geography, art, architecture, music, and literature. I studied in London and Oxford as an undergraduate, and lived two years in southwestern Germany, traveling and teaching English as a second language to IBM personnel. Returning to the US, I taught all levels of English, developed a successful real estate business, and then, on a visit to the Middle East, found my life's work - creating rich and rewarding travel experiences for thoughtful, discerning clients.
Sue Hulett
Travel Advisor
My Background
- Food & Wine
- Art & Architecture
- History & Culture
- Church History
- Sports (winter sports, skiing, hiking, golf, water sports)
Sunnie Lukowicz
Travel Advisor
The knowledge and enjoyment we gain from traveling around the world enriches our lives, refreshes our minds and strengthens our relationships. Travel is undoubtedly a formative part of our lives.
My trips over the years still bring me joy through their everlasting memories. I discovered that the skills I had developed from working on every itinerary of our family trips have inspired a passion for me to pursue a professional career as a travel advisor.
My goal is to design and deliver a full service and seamless itinerary per your desire and expectations for your trip. I consider it a great honor to hear your story and purpose to visit a destination, whether for a family celebration, trace of heritage, witness of world history or experience of local cultures. I am then very eager to research all the options and resources for a vacation plan with the best value. It is my specialty to conduct extensive research and due diligence to build a custom itinerary that saves your time and ensures a smooth and relaxed trip.
As a Virtuoso travel advisor, I have the privilege to travel to many places in person, and in return, I can provide you with advice for in-depth local visits and sightseeing. In addition, you will be delighted with luxurious services and exclusive amenities from my connections with the comprehensive network of relationships throughout the travel industry.
Sunnie Luxury Travels is designed to create itineraries tailored to your travel desires, expectations and budgets that are easy to follow and come with pleasant and luxurious services.
Travel Specialties
Interests
· Family Travel
· Food & Wine
· Ocean Cruising
· Spa Vacations
· Honeymoons
Destinations
· Switzerland
· Greece
· France
· Ireland
· Italy
· United States - All
· China
· South Africa
· Costa Rica
Bon Voyage
Cheryl Wilson
Travel Advisor
“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – Andre Gide
Cheryl Wilson joined Rudi Steele Travel in June of 2020. As a luxury travel advisor, she began with her love for anniversary and honeymoon celebrations which developed into a love of partnering with clients to prioritize bespoke travel itineraries all over the world.
As a graduate of Texas Christian University with a BA in Business Marketing, Cheryl began her career at Anderson Consulting then moved into pharmaceutical sales with Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Her passion for details, discovering new things and working with people make being a travel advisor a perfect fit.
In addition to her love for travel, Cheryl enjoys running, cooking and most importantly supporting the Southlake Carroll and TCU Football Teams. She resides in Southlake, Tx with her husband and their two boys.
Personalized details make all the difference in a luxury vacation. Details matter. Experience is everything. You expect the best.
Karen Dawson
Owner-Southlake Travel
Ms. Karen Dawson, CTC, CTIE, Managing Director, Southlake Travel -Contact: (817) 657-9866 (cell/text); kdawson@southlake-travel.com; www.southlake-travel.com - Evening & Weekend Appointments; Readers Choice Award for Best Travel Agency - 2018 / 2019 / 2020 - Dallas-Fort Worth. Certified Agent: Tauck Tours; Certified: Seabourn Cruise Lines; Certified: Sandal Resorts, Hotels & Honeymoons;
Personally handled the vacation travel for Mr. Ned Johnson, Chairman/CEO, Fidelity Investments. Corporate Travel & Meetings Director, Colonial Investments; Travel Franchise DIrector - American Express, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, Uniglobe Travel; Product Marketing: Sabre / Travelocity; Sales & Marketing Manager, Virtuoso, Fort Worth, TX. Experience with C-suite executive / private travel arrangements; Corporate and incentive travel programs nationally and globally.