Where it all began — 30 travelers and the Pacific Northwest

Every story has a first chapter. Ours was written from September 27 to October 4, 2021, when 30 travelers signed up for the very first tour under the brand-new Making Memories with Mary name.

The route was a classic: the sweeping views from the Space Needle in Seattle, the rugged, wave-carved Oregon coastline, the impossibly tall redwoods of Northern California and, finally, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.

“There were 30 travelers that joined me on my first tour with my new business.”

But what made the trip wasn’t only the scenery. As Mary put it afterward, it was “a great group with lots of fun, laughs, along with great memories and new friends made along the way” — a description that could fit almost every trip since.

Taking the leap

The business itself began in December 2020, in the middle of a pandemic, with zero contacts and a lot of faith. Mary has said she prayed for two months before taking the step. By the end of that first year, she had taken groups to the Pacific Northwest and to Greece.

Coming full circle

Five years later, the Pacific Northwest called again. The 2026 Discover Pacific Northwest & California tour filled all 44 seats so quickly that a second departure was added — and that one sold out too. In June 2026, two groups traveled the same coastline where it all started.