Hi there!
I'm Chris, founder and co-owner of the Second Star Adventure Co. I've had an almost 30 year career in software development and product management, working on everything from e-commerce to health care. So, you might be asking, how did someone who otherwise looks like a respectable member of society, find himself running a travel company focused on, of all things, Disney?
Two reasons: One, after all those years, it was definitely time for a change, and two, turns out I've been focused on Disney for even longer.
My first trip to a Disney property was Walt Disney World, in Florida, in 1992. My mom, an English teacher, took me, my sister, and my grandma on a week-long trip, staying at the Polynesian Village Resort. I certainly wasn't going to let this golden opportunity go to waste, so I spent months reading guide books and planning itineraries. On a recent trip into my mom's basement, I even found my original notebook, with day-by-day descriptions of what to do, where to go, and how to get there and back. I've been this way for a loooong time, apparently!
Seeing my dorky teenage self, it all starts to make sense, doesn't it? 😀
This was the first time I ventured in a new place all by myself, and had an afternoon to myself (it was raining and nobody else wanted to go) in Epcot. I bought myself my first solo meal (Scotch eggs, a raspberry fool, and a Coke) and decided everything about my day, just for me. That one day not only ignited my love for Disney; I fell in love with travel and adventure to, well, anywhere!
Among more exotic travel destinations like Europe and India and Thailand, I kept finding myself back at Walt Disney World; whenever there was a work conference nearby, I stayed an extra few days. And then in 2011, I was exceptionally lucky enough to find this guy in the green shirt (you can read Andrew's spotlight soon!). Here we are in my happy place, Epcot, during our engagement vacation.
Together, we've visited WDW too many times to count, plus the Disneylands in California, Tokyo, and Paris (here's us on the Tokyo Splash Mountain), and Shanghai and Hong Kong are still on our to-do list. We've taken my mom to Aulani for both her 70th and 80th birthdays (I bet she's glad she started this all back in 1992!) and celebrated our own tenth anniversary, in the Tower Suite aboard the Disney Wish.
And the very best part of it all is that now we get to share all of this magic with our daughter. It's incredible to re-experience all of these amazing adventures, but now through her eyes! Plus, I understand so much more about how the parks are designed now than I did before I had to navigate stroller parking, find a cool, quiet spot for a nap, or get to the Baby Care center for a diaper emergency -- although now we're focused more on getting her to eat her dinner so she'll grow up big and tall enough to ride Space Mountain!
My friends in high school called me "the cruise director," and that drive to figure out and share the best things to see and do hasn't really changed! I get such genuine joy when I help people have a wonderful time, and that's the real reason that I'm so proud to be the running this company. I can't wait to talk to you, and learn how I can help you and your family have a magical vacation too!
