About Joseph Fasel & Escape World Travel
I’m Joseph Fasel Jr., Senior Travel Advisor at Escape World Travel, where I’m now in my 11th year helping travelers plan escorted tours, river cruises, and other vacations throughout Europe and around the world.
Some travelers contact me knowing exactly what they want. Others have a destination in mind but are still deciding which itinerary or style of travel will suit them best. In either case, I pay attention to the details that shape the experience — pace, walking, included sightseeing, free time, comfort, and how the trip is organized.
My goal is not to steer everyone toward the same type of vacation.
There isn’t one right way to travel.
There is a right way for you.
Travel Experience I Bring to the Planning Process
I’ve personally traveled to Europe on four escorted tours, two independent vacations, and two river cruises.
Over those journeys, I’ve experienced destinations throughout Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Austria, England, the Netherlands, and Hungary. I’ve traveled through major cities such as Paris, Florence, Venice, Amsterdam, Madrid, and Munich, as well as smaller cities, towns, and regions that can be just as memorable.
Those experiences have also allowed me to see Europe in very different ways.
I know what it feels like to follow an escorted-tour itinerary, travel from one destination to another, spend time sightseeing with a guide, and then have opportunities to explore independently. I know the different rhythm of a river cruise, where the ship becomes your home base while the scenery and destinations change around you. And I’ve experienced independent travel, where you gain flexibility but also take responsibility for considerably more of the planning and logistics yourself.
Having traveled in those different ways helps me understand what an itinerary may actually feel like once you are there — not simply what it looks like on paper.
There Is No One Right Way to Travel
One traveler may love a tour that visits several countries and fills the days with sightseeing. Another may prefer spending several nights in the same place with more time to wander independently. Someone else may like the idea of unpacking once on a river cruise and returning to the same ship each evening.
None of those choices is automatically better than the others. A vacation that is an excellent fit for one traveler may feel too fast, too structured, or simply too ambitious for someone else.
That is why I believe the more useful question is: Which experience fits the way you want to travel?
My role is to help you understand what to expect so you can choose a vacation that makes sense for you.
Where I’m Traveling Next
Romantic Rhine (Southbound)
October 20026, I’ll be taking my third European river cruise, this time traveling along the Rhine.
I’ll be paying particular attention to the things travelers often want to understand before their first river cruise — the ship, accommodations, meals, sightseeing, walking, free time, and the overall rhythm of the experience.
It will also give me another firsthand perspective on how river cruising differs from an escorted land tour and what type of traveler may especially enjoy this style of vacation.
Peru Travel-Industry FAM Trip
November 2026, I’ll be traveling to Peru on a travel-industry FAM trip, including time in Lima, Cusco, the Sacred Valley, and Machu Picchu.
This journey will be a little different from most of my personal travel. Rather than traveling with Katie, I’ll be traveling with other travel-industry professionals and experiencing the itinerary from both a traveler’s perspective and an advisor’s perspective.
I’m looking forward to learning more about what travelers should expect from an organized trip to Peru and sharing those observations during and after I return.
Planning Travel for Individuals, Couples, Friends & Groups
I work with individual travelers, couples, friends, and groups, and people come to me at very different stages of the planning process.
Some already know the specific tour or cruise they want. They may simply need help with the reservation, airfare, accommodations before or after the trip, or other arrangements that bring the vacation together.
Others know where they want to travel but are still deciding which itinerary or style of vacation makes the most sense.
In those situations, I help travelers understand the things that can make seemingly similar vacations feel quite different — how much is planned, how active the days are, what sightseeing is included, where free time appears, and what is left for you to arrange or enjoy independently.
Group travel brings another set of considerations. Different interests, budgets, activity levels, rooming arrangements, and travel preferences all need to come together in one workable plan.
And depending on the group and the trip, I may occasionally travel with the group as a host.
Whether I’m helping one traveler or an entire group, the goal is the same: create a plan that makes sense for the people actually taking the trip.
About Escape World Travel
Escape World Travel has been helping people explore the world since 1960.
Based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, we work with travelers planning vacations throughout Europe and around the world, with particular experience in escorted tours and river cruises.
Travel has changed considerably over the years. Travelers have more destinations, itineraries, cruise lines, tour companies, and online information available to them than ever before. But the basic purpose of good travel planning hasn’t changed very much. You want to know what you’re choosing, understand what to expect, and feel comfortable that the vacation suits the way you want to travel.
That is the approach I bring to my work at Escape World Travel.
Ready to Begin Planning?
You don’t need to have every detail figured out before getting in touch.
You may already know the exact tour or cruise you want. You may have narrowed your choices to a few possibilities. Or you may simply know where you would like to go and want some guidance on the best way to experience it.
I’m happy to help you with the next step.