You hear it from every tour operator on the planet, “Our Guides are the Best”. Guilty as charged… We feel that way too! Ask any experienced traveler about their last trip and the first thing you will hear about is the guide. The secret to a perfect trip is having an exceptional guide,  it really comes down to the guide making or breaking the trip. Sure we can set you up with the best routes, best rooms and amazing meals... but it really comes down to having a great guide. We have to trust in our guides to share with you the trip of a lifetime and trust that we do!

We cannot say enough about our wonderful collection of guides, a more passionate group you will never find.  With Austin Lehman Adventures there really is three key factors that gives us the confidence to state “for the record” Our Guides are the best!

#1 Consistency! It all starts with retaining only the best of the best.  We only add a few guides each year (more on that in a minute) and we get hundreds of applicants.  Are we looking for any particular skill or experience?  No, at least not at first.. we are looking for that passion to share the wonderful world we live in with everyone they come in contact with. We may find this passion in a school teacher or in a retired engineer… maybe a bar tender or the hostess at the local restaurant.  One thing they all have in common is a passion for adventure, you won’t find them playing video games on their days off. They will be out exploring and doing what they love.

#2 Training!  37 years in the business has taught us a lot of things and none more important than having an annual spring guide training.  Regardless of whether you are a “newbie” or a 20 year veteran, spring training is not optional.  It is here we “teach” the secret ALA Formulas to an amazing adventure. For some it’s a refresher course or a chance to share their experience, for others its total emersion into the world of exceptional customer service.  With a balance of class room time and time in the field, we study up on everything from the artful presentation of the afternoons lunch to how to tune up a bike on the fly.  We practice, practice and more practice a wide range of real life scenarios, “what if’s”. All so that when we are in charge out there on your trip you can relax and trust we are prepared for anything. 

#3 Veterans! Fact is guides are like fine wine… they just keep getting better with time (and experience) and this is why guide retention is so important.  We like to believe we treat and support our guides with the utmost respect…  why.. because we know they are working harder than anyone could ever expect out there on the trips.  We have to be doing something right, with an average tenure exceeding 12 years and several into their 20 plus season.. they keep coming back!  We could not be prouder of our team, we look at all of our guides as an extension of our family… just ask them….

Désirée Janssen.. When you talk veteran guides,we have one clear leader and that is Désirée. This will be Désirée’s 25th season guiding throughout Europe. Reading the evaluations that come back from guests that have traveled with Désirée seem like they are talking about an “old” friend.  An uncanny ability to reach out and welcome all travelers to Europe in a warm, caring manner that makes you truly feel like family from day one.  Whether you join her on her favorite trip to Italy or in her own backyard of Holland. She will share with you the hidden gems reserved only for the “locals”. Fluent in 5 languages, she is a great hostess regardless of your destination. She has the ability to excite you about what she gets excited herself, and what you otherwise might have overlooked.  Tuscany, Provence and Bordeaux to Dordogne are just a few of her highlights this summer.  With her 25 years of hosting guests she is also our #1 requested guide for Custom Trips, which keeps her busy like no other.

Blair Peck and Toby Grapner or just plain Blair and Toby as we refer to them.  There is a “saying” about guiding with your significant other, it is either going to be the end of the relationship or make it stronger. Well in this case it can’t get much stronger as this guide team is soon to be Mr. and Mrs. Grapner and we couldn’t be happier for them.  Guiding is tough and the only thing more important than starting with the right guide is paring the right guide partners…  well we must have done pretty good with these two.  Collectively this will be their 10 year  and their 3rd guiding together.  The passion Toby has for the outdoors is only matched by Blair’s vast experience and intellect.  When we need a team to help develop a new program, who do we call on? You guessed it.  Or how about a team to show a new crew the ropes… again, you guessed it. These two are the best and represent Austin Lehman and the industry at an entirely new level.  And when they aren’t out guiding? Well you can find them exploring some far off country or doing relief work in the jungles of Guatemala (and that is just for starters).  This year you can find them in a few of our newer destination, like Yosemite or the San Juan Island.

Meet the rest of our guides

May is National Bike Month

Help us support biking! We will be donating $200 to Wheels of Change, for each person booking one of our dedicated biking trips during the month May.

Learn more>>