Meet Linda Morrissey of Linda’s Sailing Adventures in Grapevine

Today we’d like to introduce you to Linda Morrissey.

Linda, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
While working in operations for American Airlines 1979-2007, and having been a sailor since I was 24, I organized sailing flotillas for airline associates on our vacations. 1986 was my first charter with Nautica Boat Club on Lake Texoma. The first charter I participated in was the Coast of Maine to see lighthouses and followed by the Annapolis Bay.

Then I started with a group of 4 boats in the British Virgin Islands. This led to sailing the Tahitian Islands and then Greece. The rest is history. Word of mouth spread to non-airline friends around the country. The largest flotilla I organized was 14 sailing vessels in the Dodecanese Islands in Greece.

Since that time (over 30 years) we have taken floating vacations on all sorts of vessels from Sailboat, Catamarans, Riverboats and Cruise ships.

We have sailed in the US, The San Juan Islands, San Diego, Las Angeles, Catalina Island, The Baja from San Diego to Puerto Vallarta, Panama, Maine and Maryland.

Internationally we have had multiple sails to these countries: Greece, England, Spain, France, Germany, Hungary, Vienna, Italy, Croatia, Turkey, Tahiti. The most popular sites have seen us return every several years.

As I listen to the requests from our frequent travelers I know where to go next.

One of our latest trips on the Viking River Cruise fascinated us with amazing service, beauty and comfort. Having travel agency access to companies that require an IATA opens the door to many other venues.

I am currently exploring   the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Waterway as an incentive for those who prefer not to risk international travel but I still have a large group who want to explore their bucket list around the world.

Has it been a smooth road?
Initially I funded all charters myself and then filled the boats. In the end, nearly every trip was filled to the last berth.

My Captains are all volunteers that have ASA Certifications and International Sailing Certificates. They are boat owners and/or Pilots or Airline mechanics.

Many of my guests/crews have some sailing experience. No experience is necessary. We do bare boat sailing trips as well as cruises and River Cruises where a full staff waits on us. The chemistry of the people we collect makes the trip and creates lifelong friendships.

Lately as I negotiate our charters,  deposit come in quickly and the boats are filled often before the contract is signed.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
In forming my business plan my adviser Marge Woodard, indicated that ‘LINDA’  is the drawing force, so we named the company Linda’s Sailing Adventures accordingly. As the eldest of 12 children, my skills of leading, mediating, negotiating and organizing came naturally. Accounting, is a necessary skill to accurately track progress.

The support and enthusiasm of the friends I have made encouraged me to keep going in the days I felt it was too much stress but these days it’s easy as I’ve been doing these vacations for so many years

Since retiring in 2007 from American Airlines, I find myself doing about 4 large group trips and several small groups throughout the year.

Having worked with American, I easily assist everyone with booking airfare to get it right. Providing packing and travel information to ease the stress of traveling thru airports in foreign cities. We travel together wherever possible.

I am having a blast and my bucket list is getting short.  Doing the research and finding just the right lodging for us before and after our floating holidays is my passion. Placing us right in the middle of the action where-ever we are exploring adds to the fun. Recently in Budapest and Prague our hotels were right on the edge of the top tourist attractions allowing us to walk everywhere.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Since my business is all about travel, being near a HUB airport like DFW airport near Grapevine is a bonus but really, I could be anywhere.

Social media, like Facebook and email are great tools for letting many people who might be interested find out about our Adventures.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lindassailingadventures.com
• Phone: 817-228-5629
• Email: linda7wonders@gmail.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/linda.morrissey

Image Credit:
Linda Morrissey and crew

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