Vacation Pros - Rachel the Celiac Travel Pro

31/10/2024

Spain is in the books! What an awesome group of humans to travel with. This was Day 1 in Barcelona 🙂

**small** hotel map glitch, lol - but everyone got to the beautiful Hotel Catalonia, enjoyed the gothic quarter then joined us for a group tapas dinner - 100% gluten free!

Aaron and I went to A Vocado for lunch and the pizza is pear, Gorgonzola and blue cheese with honey and pine nuts 🤤 Found a cute vintage shop walking back to the hotel - where everything was just 1 Euro!

Walked with Shelley Case and Blair to the Plaça Real, after showing them a bit of the gothic pedestrian only streets. Patio cocktail, then wandered back and found a gorgeous and huge market, hopping at night as you don’t eat dinner before 8 pm in Spain, and you shop same day 😉

Everyone got together for the first meal at the 100% dedicated - so delicious!

You know it’s a cool group when everyone meets for the first time and 2 people from opposite sides of the country walk up and hug each other - old friends who didn’t know they’d be there together! 🙂 Day 2 up tomorrow with the GLORIOUS adults only spa resort in Costa Brava 😍

13/10/2024

ULTRA last minute! 1 solo spot just came up - shared with a roommate 🙂 One solo traveller had to cancel last minute because of work, ugh for them😭 So…. anyone want to join us NEXT weekend in Spain? 🤣 Their trip is non-refundable this close, BUT if someone wants to come, I can then get a refund exception for them, and you can take their spot with our group 😍 The more, the merrier 💃

October 19-26 (yes, next Saturday haha, I told them I would ask!). For a solo female traveller, sharing with another female. Please email me at [email protected] if you happen to have ultra flexible schedule and may be interested 🤞🏻

Happy Turkey weekend to my fellow Canadians! ♥️🇨🇦🦃

Only a few days until I’m in Spanish paradise with the awesome crew. Best countdown ever - I can’t wait to hike this path 😍😍😍

05/10/2024

Happy Saturday 🙂 good changes and updates!

So I posted for one last room for our awesome Spain trip - and… I may have tipped off a storm lol. I got over 150 messages, 25+ calls and a bajillion emails. Why is that cool? Because that means celiac travel is awesomesauce and we’re here to stay!

IMPORTANT: I am not taking on new client bookings. I so badly want to help ALL the celiacs travel well! But I personally can’t do 1000 trips a year (I know - I’m disappointed in my typing speed too haha). I have lots of amazing clients from my years and will continue to help them for all their needs - this will fix a lot of response times.

Who will help?!:
So what about all those who want and need help? I’ve FINALLY got the right plan for that 🙂 I’m bringing two experienced Canadian travel agents with me to Spain. In addition to sharing all my extensive research and resources, I’ve been doing one on one intense training with them in the weeks leading up to the trip. They’ll travel celiac style - fully gluten free, checking menus, asking questions.

Why is this different than when I had my own agents help me?
💚 They will have first hand experience - know what it is like in real life, not just theoretical or what I train them on. Going hungry at airports is real 😭 relatability and understanding are the difference between just a “note on file” kind of booking, and what we anxious celiac travellers need.
💚 They don’t work for me. Yay!! They are Canadian travel agency owners like myself, who’ve travelled extensively. This means I get to support the celiac side, do more advocacy and not get in the weeds of running a large team. I never wanted to build a huge agency, or compete with Expedia style 🤪. I tried it so we could help more people, but… it’s not service - it’s business management & sales. That’s apparently the nature of the beast, and just not my jam 🤦‍♀️ so… pivot?!! 🙌🏻 (I love you Ross!)

They’ll start taking booking requests as soon as we’re back from Spain. I’ll have their calendar links up for you all before we head out - so you can plan with agents who have amazing travel knowledge, and work with me in tandem for all your questions and support. 💚💚💚

Spain clients first, catching up with my current clients who are booked, training your two future guru celiac travel agents, connecting with EVERYONE who has had to wait for me and making it right.

THEN we’ll get onto the fun new things - a new celiac beach group - where you get to ASK AN AGENT, not just reviews 😁. Future celiac friendly group trips - cruises and all inclusives. And lots more 😉

Thanks so much for hanging in. This has been the hardest year of my life - both medically and professionally- and it’s finally about to switch to being awesomesauce again. 😘

19/08/2024

Guess who’s back? 😜 WOO WOO!!!!

I’m going to be posting regularly now….

So - prepare yourself for the gluten free travel deliciousness, fun updates, my ridiculous take on life’s adventures AND me switching more in to heavy celiac advocacy mode 😍 specifically about travel of course, we’ll all be gurus together lol!

I’m gonna’ train up some gurus ACROSS CANADA - so….I get to take more selfies with pizza in Rome 🍕delve deeper for my clients ✈️And… demand dedicated pizza ovens and fryers at the resorts, on cruise lines - you know, the usual 🫣🤣

But first - I have 💚ONE ROOM💚 for 2 people, OR with a roommate option - for our epic Spain trip - October 19-26! 👀 I had a cancellation, and so even though I don’t post deals - this is over $1000 LESS per person than if you booked it now. HUZZAH!

Adults only, foodie, tapas crawl, Salvador Dali, 5 star spa beach resort - WALKABLE to dozen of restaurants. There’s more, but you get it 😉

Only 22 of us in total - no big buses or long drives, crazy schedules - this is exactly my favourite kind of travel ♥️🇪🇸

If you may be able to swing it - send me a message!! This is the last group trip I’m hosting for a while (while I get the guru training set up!)

Also, the next few will be cruise based 🛳️(secrets…. Between us of course, ha).

My hilarious and handsome husband is coming (you’re welcome). Shelley Case is coming 😍😍 (you know… Dr. Shelley Case - the celiac dietician 😉 - read her books if you haven’t yet!). Old friends, new friends, couples, solos. That’s my max name dropping for today.

Back to other fun travel stuff shortly - message me if may be able to join 😘💚💚

PS - I’m obviously feeling myself….did you even see the amount of emojis in this??! 🎤 ⬇️ 🤦‍♀️😂

18/06/2024

I’m alive!! lol. But seriously - I’m not gone, I promise.

However, I am on a medically ordered break from work…. and detoxing from meds that are apparently as fun as trying to come off he**in? Dude - why??! Malarkey, but I digress…

My autoimmune trifecta is tricky maze to navigate, but I’ve always persevered, worked harder, ignored pain, even if it got to last minute I would always get it done. That superpower of mine, has disappeared, and I want off the rollercoaster!

Fascinating fact: almost 30 years of undiagnosed celiac leaves damage, we all know that. But here is something I didn’t consider, mine means I don’t ever absorb medication the same each month, week or even day. So when my drs want to offset one of my major symptoms - one day it can have full effect, the very same conditions, the next day doesn’t work at all 😵‍💫And everything in between - told you I was a unicorn 🦄

So against standard medical practice/knowledge (and I’m medically supervised!) I’m flushing it all at once, cold turkey because it *can’t* work for me. Dr actually told me to drink wine to cope, as it was gonna suck 🤪 And I hadn’t even had a drink in over a month lol.

Chasing health is a tricky thing, more for my autoimmune crew than most. I see you fellow unicorns ♥️

Spain is still on and I am SO excited to spa, eat and explore with the fun crew! My clients travelling this summer, you are the only ones who get to stay on the docket for now (I negotiated with the drs lol).

I’m so freaking excited to feel better, weeks away at most! I also had to make some staff changes, but oh man - just wait until you learn of the upgrade (my fellow travel agents are gonna be SUPER jealous, likely the best hire of my adult life - that’s all you get for now, ha!).

So, this took me almost 2 hours to write - and for those that have seen me type, this slo-mo is 🤦‍♀️ I can’t see/read or focus well at the moment, but it’s coming! And improving!

Time to build something bigger that can run without me being the linchpin solo. ♥️

***YES, I know I overshare. I won’t stop either, ha. Why? Because if even one other unicorn feels slightly better and less alone in this bonkers journey which is often solo, I’ll take that as the win every single time. 😘

Back with the fun travel stuff soon! Xo, Rach

22/05/2024

Life is currently 🌪 🌪 🤪. But I'm crushing long days and making some GF travel magic happen! So let's skip the "why me??" vibe, and instead be pumped that I'll be at GFG on Sunday! I can't wait to see all my fellow celiac friends and eat all the yummies 😍 I'll be bringing my top "sales rep" - his name is Ronan, he's 7, and he'd love to talk to you about your travel plans 😂 Okay - I'm back to work.... 30,000 emails reinstated, 170+ voicemails in the last week - I'm rocking octopus arms at the moment.

Need a getaway? We know a person! Rachel, owner of the boutique travel agency Vacation Pros, has celiac disease and knows what it’s like to travel on a strict gluten-free diet. She thrives on helping people with dietary restrictions explore the world. Rachel, a world traveler herself, has planned trips for many clients throughout Europe and beyond and is also known for her Celiac Beach All-Inclusive Reviews group on Facebook. She will be hosting a small group trip to Spain in October. Be sure to stop by her booth, check out her website and learn more!

🛒 Gluten-free travel services with Vacation Pros

📍Find Vacation Pros - Rachel the Celiac Travel Pro inside the Barn at

21/04/2024

Such a good sport. The beginning…. 🤣

18/04/2024

Happy Thursday!! Big things are coming. Awesome changes. Will share soon. 😘

URGENT! I **may** have forgotten to post that I have exclusive group space on this amazing sailing. 🤦‍♀️ Did you want to do Europe this summer, but prices are too crazy?? On this almost completely sold out ship - I have 10….TEN!!! - Balcony cabins left.

No balconies left except the $50K per person Retreat! 😳🤤♥️♥️

So….ours have wifi, drink package (yes - I mean booze!), and gratuities INCLUDED. It also has a dedicated allergen kitchen for my fellow celiacs and food allergy friends! It’s dreamy - see some of my past posts 😉

Current sale is on TOP of our group rate and is second guest is 75% off! Freaking bonkers, lol.

I’ll update shortly with the price (blasted wifi from Dominican! lol). If a family of 4 - we’d do two cabins, so two bathrooms 🙌🏻, and that would be 75% off second AND 4th guest 😍😍

Make a comment below if you want info! Me and the awesome team will have it out shortly 🙂



Set sail on the Celebrity Apex for 7 Nights and experience the best of Europe on the Norwegian Fjords. Book your Celebrity Cruise today!

Set sail on the Celebrity Apex for 7 Nights and experience the best of Europe on the Norwegian Fjords. Book your Celebrity Cruise today!

09/04/2024

Rachel - where the bleepty blap did you go?! lol

I’m working. Every single day, promise 😉

14 year old senior dog adoption, my sons provincial championship gold medal season (winners!!), more old dogs, insane bunny cake (I let the Stewart boys decorate this year)!

Work: new Barcelona foodie tour - YES - we are doing it with the Spain group! Lots of clients having AMAZING trips, and GF paradise. A few, arrived and felt struggle. I’ve never felt so Marvel level in my life - I go “Karen” level ALL the way up anyand every chain. YOU. WILL. TAKE. CARE. OF. MY. CELIAC. TRAVELLERS. are okay sometimes 😉

I had to change some medications (lottery winner - with 3 autoimmunes!), and I may have some bonkers reactions, ha. But things are good. I’m so close with my team to being full scale and caught up!

Just a few: Custom family private dinner menus in Greece underway, Hawaii and Australia honeymoon, countless restaurant reservations - my job is to take the pressure OFF!

I’ll be travelling again next week… prepare for some beachy envy. But first, I’ll map all the cruise ports, help those with Christmas and all the details outstanding. I’ll open up to new trip planning and clients when I’m back.

I **may** have an extraordinary deal on a sold out for Europe in the crazy priced August…. I have the only balcony cabins left - and they have a dedicated allergen kitchen 😉

Reach out or stay tuned. Cheers to old dogs and gold medal kiddos ♥️

10/03/2024

Oooh - I love photography, AND driftwood!

Working tirelessly to find the - why the bleep is it so elusive?

I LOVE planning vacations!
I LOVE helping celiacs travel!
I LOVE making a work environment where mental health and personal lives matter, more than the dollar. Always.

I just need to adjust the workload, it happens. I have the pleasure of working with absolutely AMAZING fellow agents. So I need to lean into them, and I will. Transferring all the years of my celiac travel knowledge and setting them up, worth every minute. For our clients too 😉

Stay tuned for the new details and systems! Jason will handle all the cruises. Jeni, Sarah, Sabrina and Crystal will handle the all inclusives. Lindsay will handle the clients from BC (Mexico all day!). Ellie will handle our luxury retirement travel.

For ALL the celiacs - I will always be 100% the escalation, the person you text with issues, your pre travel chat/prep and the guide for my team for all your planning. Flaming sword too - if needed 😉 momma bear style, lol.

What will I be doing??
- changing the industry, for us all
- making groups so we get deals and awesome travel
- doing all the Europe and custom itineraries (I love the crazy details!)
- every tight budget, and or high anxiety celiac clients - those are my people, and mine to help too ♥️

This will give me space. To help MORE, to teach and train. And to account for my own unicorn health status, without having service levels drop.

Walking the beach taking pictures of gorgeously burnt AND perfect driftwood - reminds me the balance can be what you make it. It is beautiful.

Cheers to our mental health, chronic illnesses, empathy, disabilities, and our capacity to help, despite those. We’re awesome!

Now - if you read ALL that - take a look at my fabulous *new* old dog named Jax. Picture in the comments, old rescue dogs fill my soul ♥️ I’d love if you shared something that fills yours 🙂

XO, Rach - boss lady, celiac, old dog aficionado. What is meant to be, will be.

21/02/2024

Happy birthday daddy. You left us 3 years ago this May. Today is your birthday, you would have been 74.

All my funnies - I get from you ♥️ I promise I’ll figure out this clients vs life balance. I’m not taking anyone new until I have everyone set.

I’m lowering my stress and my expectations. Kids get sick, and so do I. Probably more than we should 🙂

I miss the oldies sing a longs, the absolutely silly humour, the kindness. There has never been a family like you. Not before - and not since.

I have no family without you - they all disappeared. But it turned out for the best. I have my bear and our 3 boys, plus amazing friends. Honestly more than I could hope for. A super full life.

Today instead of just coping - I enjoyed the sunshine and great people around me. I worked all weekend and will keep going.

Because - I’m not broken. I’m awesome, just a little behind due to life. But for the first time in forever, I don’t feel a horrible loss. Just happiness, and the ability to get down to my work planning with awesome travellers.

Thanks for always being the fun and laughs dad - it meant way more than you could ever know. It’s held me up, and been the warm hug - those things I’ve needed.

Happy heavenly birthday daddy. Still your baby girl at 43, lol.

♥️♥️♥️

16/02/2024

Happy Friday!! Like…finally, lol.

My boys are good! The flu has finally left my house! (Be gone foul germs, laundry is NOT MY ideal pastime 🤪) My team is at full capacity - woo woo!

So let’s talk about FUN news :) I’m currently working with clients on Europe, South America, Hawaii, all inclusive getaways - fun! Pictures below of some of the amazing places we planned for them - more to come!

Rooms are booking up for Spain ♥️🇪🇸 Oh man, I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited to host a trip - we have the BEST folks coming. Including a member of the Professional Advisory Council for Celiac Canada 👀….details I’ll share soon ;) We have some rooms left - don’t miss out!

I’ll be working this weekend to catch up for the lost days, but will still make room for family time.

For now - enjoying some travel paradise photos- from your favourite celiac travel agent 😘

Tips, tricks, resort reviews, bucket list and fun stuff to come!

Which photo/place gives you the travel drool? (That’s a thing, I suffer regularly! lol) Guesses of each are welcome, let’s see who knows….🤩