Welcome to our 2025 Best of Europe 21-day Tour scrapbook!
We are Trenton and Karen Graham.
We call beautiful NE Oklahoma home. Here we've raised 6 kids, are blessed with 5 amazing grandkids, and are the devoted parents of 3 frisky dogs and 2 lazy cats.
While our professional titles label us as a network engineer and project management professional, respectively, our true selves identify as serial escape artists. Translation, we love to travel. And while we've been to various US destinations (and Karen has been to the UK and Middle East) our favorite trip together (thus far) is our Best of Europe in 21 Days Tour.
This website is designed to tell you why we chose a Rick Steves tour and share our adventure insights, delights, and photography with you.
Why Rick Steves Tours?
In a nutshell, the beauty of Europe cannot be fully captured in a picture.
It must be experienced with the senses. You can go solo or with a group.
For a trip of this magnitude, we chose a group. Please see our reasons below.
1
PBS
Trenton and I are 80's kids.
In the early 90's, while international travel was still just a pipe dream, I would travel vicariously around the world via "Travels in Europe with Rick Steves" and later in the 2000's watching "Rick Steves Europe" all the while dreaming of one day making my own memories overseas.
Even today, having travelled, Rick's travel philosophy continues to resonate with me! Travel is freeing, fun, illuminating, and helps you not only appreciate the world overall, but who you are and where you're from. It's enlightening. Travel is truly a privilege and a blessing.
2
Past Experience
...both mine and Rick's.
I've traveled to Scotland and Ireland with family and planned all the travel (fun, but a lot of work). I've also taken 2 tours with our church with other tour companies (with both big and small groups) to Israel, Jordan, Egypt, and Greece. Based on these adventures, I 100% believe that overseas tours should be with family or a small group only.
When my hubby decided to tour 6 countries in Europe with me for our 20th Wedding Anniversary, since it was his first international trip, I wanted it to be the best it could be. I knew it had to be with Rick Steves Europe.
3
Flexibility
While I love the intricacies of travel planning, Rick Steves tours offered me the luxury of having much of the travel planning done for me, with economies of scale to help lower costs, while affording me the opportunity to indulge in researching and organizing the many opportunities of free time reserved throughout the trip.
And while you can do it yourself, professional guides do provide a rich insight into the locations, culture, history, and language throughout your trip. They also help with unforeseen emergencies, working behind the scenes while you enjoy the trip.