Meet Laura Reece | Owner & Travel Agent

We had the good fortune of connecting with Laura Reece and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Laura, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
My husband and I are serial entrepreneurs. We love developing businesses together that serve the greater community and offer needed services. Reece Worldwide Travel was born from our family’s love of travel. Both my husband and I have lived abroad, in Scotland and England respectively, and my parents engrained in me a love of travel at a very early age. We were taken on trips short and long everywhere – from Texas, to Illinois to California to Florida as well as to most of Western Europe. We have wonderful family memories of my sister learning to skip in Paris, to driving as a family on the autobahn in Germany to asking for directions in a small town in Italy where no one spoke English. My husband and I also take our children on trips often and instead of exchanging gifts at the holidays, our family takes a trip together. As we amassed our travel knowledge we found that we were often giving advice to our friends on how to travel – from which airline to choose, to our favorite hotels or restaurants all over the world. We decided to open Reece Worldwide Travel to help others with their travel needs – saving people time, money and a lot of stress.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Reece Worldwide Travel is a boutique travel agency that offers carefully curated travel experiences for clients, specializing in travel for family and couples to destinations in the U.S., Mexico, the Caribbean, and Europe. We differentiate ourselves by offering personalized service from experienced agents who have personal, in-depth knowledge of destinations and experiences. We hire agents based on their knowledge of specific industries, as we know that one person cannot know everything about every destination on the planet. I have personally traveled to over 40 countries on 4 continents and have amassed extensive knowledge of hotels, airlines, cruises, trains and experiences all over the world; from Paris to London, to Rome to Geneva, to Lima to Hong Kong. My upbringing had a global perspective and I have a network of people around the world. My family valued experiences over things, and that has translated into my own family’s upbringing; we would rather spend time together experiencing something new, as memories last a lifetime. We also pride ourself on having a dedicated Disney specialist on staff who manages all of our Disney bookings. She has years of personal, in-depth knowledge of Walt Disney World, Fast Passes, Dining options, hotels, transportation and is a Disney Vacation Club Member and Annual Pass Member herself! Plus she’s sailed on multiple Disney Cruises. Her knowledge adds a lot of value to our company. Our mantra is “Carefully Curated Travel Experiences for Everyone” and we use it to guide our everyday interactions with our clients. We rarely sell cookie-cutter tours, and work dutifully to craft travel experiences for our clients that are personalized and as unique as they are. It’s our attention to detail and wide range of experience that set us apart and allows us to deliver a very special experience to our customers who ask us to plan future trips again and again.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Living in a vacation destination like Palm Beach affords us the opportunity to host guests often – and its a nice excise for me do some some “research” while entertaining friends and family. I read a lot on up-and-coming hotels and restaurants in our area – I recently had a tour of the new White Elephant Hotel – it’s an outpost from the Hamptons location and is a lovely boutique hotel for a stay-cation. Another favorite in the newly renovated Colony Hotel – I think I could sit in their living room and stare at that delicious de Gournay wallpaper all day! Both hotels offer special amenities like a beach shuttle, bicycles and special art collections in the hallways. The intimacy of these hotels ensures that no detail goes unnoticed and you’ll receive superb service during your stay. Next, I’d do some shopping on Worth Avenue – there’s a pair of earrings I’m lusting over at Van Cleef & Arpels and I want to order a new pair of needlepoint shoes from Stubbs & Wooten. Lunch would be at the Green’s Pharmacy & Luncheonette, a staple of Palm Beach Island since 1938, or La Goulue if you’re feeling French. More shopping would be had at the Royal Poinciana Plaza, where Stony Clover is a great place to pick up cute, colorful cases for travel and gifts. I always stroll through Pace Prints (I have a degree in Art History and worked at Art & Embassies at the US Department of State for a bit), and I love to support locally owned shops like Kirna Zabete who has some of the best clothes! And you MUST have gelato at Sant Ambroeus on the patio. Luckily, the White Elephant is in walking distance so we could pop back to our room to freshen up before evening cocktails at Lola 41 out on the terrace. Then its back to the Royal Poinciana for my favorite restaurant, Palm Beach Grill, The menu is simple, but absolutely delicious. My go-to is the seared Ahi tuna salad and the hot fudge sundae for dessert. Oh and the thin cut fries! You must have them. I steal them from my husband’s plate when he orders the French dip!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Wow, where do I start? There have been so many people along the way who have inspired, supported, guided and challenged me. My web of supporters is very wide – I have friends around the world who inspire me every day. I try to make valuable connections with and for everyone I meet. I want everyone to succeed, feel proud, and accomplish great things. I think this feeling stems from my Quaker upbringing – I’m not Quaker, but attended a Quaker school for 13 years – Kindergarten through 12th grade. Equality, compassion, respect and giving were all qualities that were instilled in me from an early age and they guide me in my business acumen today.

Website: http://www.reecewt.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reeceworldwidetravel/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-reece-5a86b5206/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/reeceworldwidetravel/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/reece-worldwide-travel-west-palm-beach

Other: https://thescoutguide.com/catching-up-with-laura-reece-of-reece-worldwide-travel/