Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Siems.
Hi Sarah, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My favorite stuffed toy as a child was a globe, so in hindsight, the signs that this would end up being my career were probably there from the beginning.
Travel has been at the forefront of my mind for as long as I can remember. When I was 12, I spent a summer visiting eight countries, mostly without my parents, including Australia, Fiji, and New Zealand through a Student Ambassador program. Those experiences sparked a curiosity that never really left me. I became fascinated not just by destinations, but by people, cultures, hotels, food, and the countless ways travel can change your perspective.
Around the same time, I was obsessed with the show “Great Hotels” with Samantha Brown. I loved how she approached travel with genuine curiosity and connection, and I found myself equally fascinated by beautiful hotels, local culture, and the stories behind a place. I also took hospitality classes when I was younger and loved them.
Professionally, I first built a business as an online personal trainer. Because many of my in-person clients traveled frequently, I created highly personalized fitness plans that worked around their schedules, destinations, and lifestyles. Before long, I realized I was often planning their trips too. Friends, family, and clients would mention a destination, and I’d inevitably end up researching hotels, building spreadsheets, recommending restaurants, mapping out itineraries, and finding ways to make the experience feel more personal. Meanwhile, I’d check in on the clients while I also traveled the world!
For years, I remember thinking, “If travel advisors were still a thing, I’d do that.” It seemed like one of those careers that had largely disappeared with the rise of online booking. When I realized the profession hadn’t disappeared at all—it had evolved—I knew I’d found what I was supposed to be doing.
Today, I work as a luxury travel advisor and “Hotel Matchmaker,” combining my love of research, hospitality, relationship-building, and personalized planning. My favorite part of the job is getting to know clients well enough to curate experiences that feel uniquely suited to them. Whether it’s a luxury hotel stay, a family vacation, or a once-in-a-lifetime journey, I love helping people create memories they’ll be talking about for years.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Yes and no. The smooth part was how aligned it felt from the beginning. One friend said, “It’s about time—you’ve been doing this unpaid for over a decade.” When I first announced it on social media, I was surprised by how many people, some of whom had maybe only met me once, commented things like, “You were made for this.” Looking back, while I knew I had always been interested in this field, it was very cool to see that everyone else could see the connection, too.
The biggest challenge wasn’t figuring out whether I enjoyed the work—it was keeping up with how quickly things took off. I initially thought I would dip my toe into the industry and slowly learn over time. Instead, it felt like drinking from a fire hose. I was learning suppliers, hotel programs, destinations, booking systems, marketing, content creation, and client management all at once while actively serving clients.
Travel is one of those industries where you can’t wait until you know everything to get started. Every client, destination, and request teaches you something new. The learning curve was steep, but I loved it because I was fascinated by what I was learning.
What I’m most proud of is that while it felt like trial by fire behind the scenes at the beginning, clients still had a great experience. In my first four months, I achieved what many advisors hope to accomplish in their first year, and I was able to do it while building a base of happy clients who continue to refer friends and family. That early momentum helped shape the rest of my career.
In hindsight, I think the reason it felt more exciting than overwhelming is that I had found a career that combined so many things I already loved: travel, hospitality, research, relationship-building, and creating memorable experiences for other people. The parts of the job that came most naturally to me also happen to be some of the hardest to teach—true interest in people, attention to detail, and a real desire to understand what someone will truly enjoy.
We’ve been impressed with Hotel Matchmaker, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
The philosophy behind my business is that the best travel experiences happen when the right people are connected. That starts with understanding the traveler and matching them with the right hotel, destination, or cruise line—but it also means leveraging the relationships I’ve built throughout the travel industry to help create experiences that feel personal, seamless, and memorable.
As a luxury travel advisor, I specialize in helping travelers find the right fit for their personality, priorities, travel style, and budget. While many people spend hours scrolling through reviews, rankings, and social media recommendations, I help them cut through the noise and find the experiences they’ll love. That’s actually where the name “Hotel Matchmaker” came from. I’ve always had a knack for connecting people with the right hotel, destination, cruise line, or travel experience after getting to know them and understanding what they’re hoping to get out of a trip.
One thing I love about my business is that I can be as involved as a client needs me to be. Some travelers already know exactly which hotel they want and just want access to VIP perks and an advocate in their corner. Others are looking for more guidance and prefer a collaborative planning process. Whether someone is planning a weekend escape, celebrating a special occasion, traveling for work, embarking on a luxury cruise, or checking off a bucket-list destination, my role is to meet them where they are and provide the level of support that works best for them.
What sets me apart is that I believe travel is ultimately a people business. Through my network of luxury hotel partners around the world, I can often provide clients with benefits such as complimentary breakfast, resort credits, welcome amenities, upgrade priority, and personalized recognition during their stay. But those relationships go far beyond perks. I spend a significant amount of time visiting properties, touring hotels, meeting with sales directors and general managers, and building relationships with the people behind the brands. Over the years, many of those professional relationships have grown into friendships. When a client is traveling, I’m often communicating directly with people I know personally rather than a generic reservations department. Those relationships allow me to advocate for my clients and help create the kind of thoughtful touches and elevated experiences that can turn a great trip into an unforgettable one.
At the same time, I never lose sight of the traveler. I’m endlessly curious about what people enjoy, what helps them relax, what excites them, and what kind of memories they want to create. The hotel knowledge, destination expertise, and industry relationships are important, but understanding what will make a particular trip meaningful for a particular traveler is the foundation of everything I do.
What I’m most proud of brand-wise is the feedback I receive after clients travel. My favorite messages are the ones that say, “That was exactly what we were looking for,” “You nailed it,” or “We never would have found that on our own.” Knowing I helped create an experience that exceeded someone’s expectations is incredibly rewarding.
At the end of the day, I want readers to know that working with a travel advisor isn’t just about saving time or getting perks—although those are certainly valuable benefits. It’s about having someone who understands your travel style, helps you navigate the endless options, advocates for you, and creates a trip that feels thoughtfully designed around you.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
I don’t think of myself as someone who takes reckless risks, but I do believe in taking thoughtful ones.
One of the biggest risks I took was starting my travel business. I was entering a new industry, building something from scratch, and learning as I went. At the same time, I realized I had been preparing for that career for years without really knowing it. Travel had always been a passion of mine, and I was already doing many aspects of the job unofficially for friends and family. The bigger risk, in some ways, would have been never trying.
Travel has probably shaped my perspective on risk more than anything else. Every meaningful adventure comes with some degree of uncertainty. You leave what’s familiar, navigate new places, and open yourself up to experiences you can’t fully predict. That’s part of what makes it worthwhile.
One of my favorite Anthony Bourdain quotes is, “Travel is not a reward for working, it’s education for living.” I think that’s true. Some of the most memorable experiences of my life came from saying yes to something unfamiliar, whether that was traveling internationally at a young age, visiting a place I’d never been, or taking a chance on a new opportunity.
Of course, I don’t believe in being frivolous. Do your research. Make smart decisions. Stay vigilant. Understand the risks. But I also think there’s a risk in staying stuck. Adventure requires a willingness to step into the unknown, and the return on investment can be incredible. Long after a trip is over, people are still talking about it, laughing about it, and sharing those memories with the people they love. In many ways, the trip itself is only part of the experience—the anticipation beforehand and the memories afterward can last a lifetime.
At the end of our lives, we don’t get to take our money or our vacation days with us. What stays with us are the experiences we’ve had, the people we’ve met, and the memories we’ve created. To me, that’s a risk worth taking.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://hotelmatchmaker.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hotelmatchmaker/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HotelMatchmaker
