Meet the Euro Travel Coach Team
The Euro Travel Coach team has always had a great love for travel, and now we’ve turned that passion into a profession. We travel throughout Europe most of the year, reporting and taking notes on the best (and the worst!) of each place we visit. Our appreciation for hospitality, good food and wine, local history, and culture, inform the way we do business.
Betsy Ball
As Euro Travel Coach continues to grow, I feel like I have finally found my calling. I love exploring the world and helping other people travel. I also find that spending summers at our family cottage in Quebec feeds my soul. I love sitting outside and enjoying a spritz, sharing a good hearty laugh with those around me, reading historical fiction, and being with my family wherever and whenever our scattered lives bring us together.
Greg Ball
In my previous life, I was a musician who taught saxophone and directed jazz bands at the university level for 30 years. When I’m not traveling — or helping others travel — you might find me on a golf course, hiking in the mountains, or renovating our cottage in Quebec, Canada. I love cooking, discovering new restaurants, and collecting and drinking wine.
Chelsea Ball
I'm passionate about discovering culinary and cultural experiences throughout Europe. I love seeking out hole-in-the-wall restaurants, unique walking tours, family-run food and wine producers, cooking classes, perfect picnic spots, delicious tasting menus, local markets, and more — both for myself and for our clients. I studied hospitality in university and also love to find amazing accommodations that are a great fit for each individual client. I lived in Copenhagan, Denmark for a year and half and Bristol, England for two years. During that time, my husband, Sam, and I traveled all over Europe. When I'm not traveling or creating custom itineraries, you can find me reading cookbooks, doing yoga, brewing beer with Sam, or hosting dinner parties in our tiny house in Madison, Wisconsin!
Travel Philosophy
When we create itineraries for our clients, we do not make recommendations based on earning a commission. We want to find the perfect accommodations, transportation options, activities, and dining opportunities based on what you and your travel companions will most enjoy. As a destination expert, Euro Travel Coach charges a fee for what we do instead of earning a commission on each sale. This allows us to find the very best of everything for our clients.
LIFE IS SHORT; DO WHAT YOU LOVE
You might wonder why we want to help people make great travel plans. We believe life is too short to not spend time doing what you absolutely love to do. We love planning trips. If trip-planning isn’t something you love to do, let the Euro Travel Coach team do it for you — and do it well. We make planning a vacation to Europe easy for you, and your trip will be amazing!
Experience unique, local experiences on your holiday
There are so many things to see and do in Europe, and you will definitely want to see the major tourist spots in the places you visit. But we also want to help you meet the locals and experience the unique culture of each destination. You’ll have a better experience — and will better understand the places you visit — when you interact more with the people who live there.
THIS IS OUR PASSION
We truly enjoy planning our clients’ European adventures. We love crafting customized trips and witnessing the joy that travel can bring. Let us do that for you! Send us an email or fill out our questionnaire, and let's talk about your travel dreams! Allow us to put our passion and experience to work for you, to make your trip to Europe absolutely amazing.
Qualifications and Experience
Betsy Ball holds an MBA and a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management. She received her Wine and Spirits Education Trust Level 3 Certification in Wine and Spirits in 2015. Before starting Euro Travel Coach, she led travel groups to Italy, Spain, and Ireland, as well as to Canada, Australia, and parts of the US. She is a graduate of the Travel Beyond the Obvious Destination Expert Course, focusing on Europe as her area of expertise. Betsy likes to get to know every single client the team works with, so when you reach out to Euro Travel Coach, Betsy will be your first point of contact.
In the 30 years that Greg Ball taught music, he took students to the UK, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, and Italy. If you’re a music lover, he’ll find you find the perfect concerts, festivals, and venues for you to enjoy what you love. Greg also helps the team find the best hiking and biking routes, perfect for those who enjoy the outdoors. Greg received his Wine and Spirits Education Trust Level 3 Certification in Wine and Spirits in 2015.
Chelsea Ball is a graduate of Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration and worked for the Hart Davis Hart Wine Company for three years before joining Euro Travel Coach. While in school, she interned with two famed New York City restaurant groups (Union Square Hospitality and Dinex) and was one of only six nationwide recipients of the Kopf Foundation Scholarship, which gave her the opportunity to travel for six weeks to California, Italy, and France during the harvest season to study wine. Through this opportunity and her work experience, she developed personal relationships with vintners and local producers that the Euro Travel Coach team is often able to share with clients. Because of her passion for hospitality, Chelsea is also particularly fond of seeking out unique accommodations and fantastic dining experiences for our clients. She’ll find you the very best restaurants and hotels based on your individual specifications.