About Us

Susan Schaefer has always been passionate about travel, and the amazing life-changing potential offered through travel.  After a career in customer service that spanned over 20 years, she had the opportunity to transfer her customer service skills and combine it with her passion for travel.

In 2004 she began her professional travel training, and in 2005 she opened Ships ‘N’ Trips Travel, and is currently affiliated with the Leisure Travel Alliance as well as Avoya Travel / American Express Travel.

Over the years, Susan has earned several industry certifications, including the Cruise Line International Association’s (CLIA, www.cruising.org) Elite Cruise Counsellor (ECC) desgination.  This required completion of a comprehensive program of cruise sales, classroom training, and product instruction, delivered through a combination of ship inspections and personal cruise experiences.  ECC is the third of four  levels of CLIA certification.  CLIA certified cruise counselors are widely recognized as the foremost cruise vacation experts among American travel professionals.

Susan has also gone through extensive training with the New Zealand Tourism Board to become a Certified Kiwi Specialist.  After traveling to New Zealand in 2009, she fell in love with this stunning country in the South Pacific.  She also took the opportunity to tandem sky-dive over Queenstown (well it is the adrenalin-adventure capitol of the world after all).

At Ships ‘N’ Trips Travel we strive to understand what is important to you, to ensure that the recommendations that we make meet your needs, and that we aren’t imposing our preferences on your vacation.  We make a point to spend as much time as necessary with each client, providing support and service before, during and after your travel.


Specialties: Certifications:
  • Contiki Vacations Specialist
  • Trafalgar Tours Specialist
  • Uniworld Specialist
  • Certified Kiwi Specialist
  • Alaska Certified Expert
  • Caribbean Destination Specialist
  • Hawaii Destination Specialist
  • Certified Sandals & Beaches Specialist
  • Las Vegas Certified
  • Disney Specialist
  • Cunard Line Staff Captain
  • Princess Cruise Commodore
  • Certified Niche Cruise Specialist
  • Holland America Line 5 Star Agent
  • Royal Caribbean Cruise WOW Expert