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Meet Our Team

"When I founded Sterling Journeys over 13 years ago, I made it my mission to imbue every trip I plan with the spirit of profound connection. Because connection, the kind that changes us, is truly a luxury today."
Lise-Marie, founder

Email: lise-marie@sterlingjourneys.com

Meet lise-marie WERTANZL

Managing Director , Travel Advisor

Lise-Marie is a skilled travel professional and industry leader with a passion for connecting clients with their dream destinations. Beginning at age three, her love for travel ignited when she began living abroad in Norway and traveling with her virtuoso violinist mother. From a young age she immersed herself in the study of ballet, theatre and voice, and later pursued a successful career as a professional performing artist.

While aboard the Crystal Harmony as the lead singer, she met her future husband, who was (and is) a cruise industry executive. From then on, travel became and remained at the forefront of their lives together, both personally and professionally. In 2011, she founded Sterling Journeys, named after her daughter. For the past three consecutive years, she has proudly maintained Sterling Journeys’ spot in Gifted Travel Network’s Top Producer’s Club (the network’s top 10% of agencies). Lise-Marie was recently asked to speak at Gifted Travel Network’s 2024 Annual Symposium: The Business of Selling Luxury Travel, an event in partnership with Forbes Travel Guide. Her unique experience and skill in the luxury space award her the reputation of a true luxury travel expert. 

In 2024, Lise-Marie was named a Virtuoso Cruise Icon. This honor is exclusive to Virtuoso advisors who are in the top 1% of cruise sales in the network.

Lise-Marie connects our clients to the people, places, and moments that will leave an indelible mark on their hearts and minds. 

While Lise-Marie specializes in all luxury travel products and services, she is most passionate about exotic destinations off the beaten path, such as Africa, Antarctica, Australia, New Zealand, and South America.

Lise-Marie is based in Miami & Cape Coral, FL.

Email: sandy@sterlingjourneys.com

Meet SANDY LIPKOWITZ

Director of Business Development,
Travel Advisor

With over 20 years in the travel industry, and a myriad of awards and accolades to her name, Sandy brings an extensive (and legendary) wheelhouse of skills and service to our agency. As an agency owner and top-producing travel advisor, Sandy’s commitment to white glove travel services that showcase the exceptional wonders of the world are some of the best in the industry. 

Sandy founded We Make Travel Easy in 2007. As independent affiliates of Gifted Travel Network, We Make Travel Easy and Sterling Journeys grew immensely over the years in a community fostered by professional collaboration and building effective business synergies. Gifted Travel Network’s Top Producers Club is home to the top 10% of advisors in the network, of which We Make Travel Easy and Sterling Journeys are veteran spot holders. 

This positive growth environment, where collaborative professional development thrives, (and the longtime friendship had by Sandy and Lise-Marie) inspired Sandy’s lucrative move to merge We Make Travel Easy with Sterling Journeys. We are thrilled to embark on this new chapter with Sandy, her extraordinary team, and her valuable clients. This is Sandy’s fourth consecutive year as one of Conde Nast’s Top Travel Specialists. Sandy was also voted Best Travel Agent in San Francisco by J Weekly Readers Choice for 8 consecutive years.

Sandy is based in San Francisco, CA.

Email: sterling@sterlingjourneys.com

Meet STERLING WERTANZL

Director of Operations, Travel Advisor

Sterling Wertanzl is a life-long world traveler and natural communicator. As the daughter of two longtime travel and cruise professionals, she understands the intricacies and nuances of the luxury travel experience, especially the notion of genuine connection. From a young age, Sterling embraced her Austrian and Norwegian heritage, forming deep relationships with both people and places throughout her life. 

She is passionate about providing high-touch service and designing intricate itineraries for our clients. Outside of travel, Sterling’s passion is exploring human communication, particularly the art of persuasive messaging in media and interpersonal contexts. 

She received her Master of Arts degree in Communication Studies from Ball State University in Indiana (2023), and her Bachelor of Arts in Rhetoric from Hillsdale College in Michigan (2021). 

Sterling is a proud member of Luxury Travel Advisor’s 30Under30 Class of 2024.

Sterling is based in Indianapolis, IN.

Email: narmada@sterlingjourneys.com

Meet narmada ramakrishnan

Travel Advisor

Narmada Ramakrishnan epitomizes integrity, energy, hard work and creative service in every detail of your vacation. Narmada grew up in Pondicherry, India in a well-renowned family and moved to San Francisco Bay area 19 years ago. Her passion for travel started at an early age of ten when her family took her on a trip to Sri Lanka. 

She took her love for travel seriously when she went on to study travel management at Centre for Tourism Studies, Pondicherry University along with Certificate of Proficiency in Travel Careers, Foothill College, Los Altos Hills, CA. She is a 22+ year travel industry veteran who has built strong relationships with clients and industry experts through her expertise and experience. Her mantra to use insight and foresight to proactively address details before they become a problem have won her accolades and appreciation. Her love for cooking, arts, and crafts, movies, good friends, and wine are the secret ingredients that make her a true travel specialist.

Narmada is based in San Francisco, CA.

Email: linda@sterlingjourneys.com

Meet Linda Alley

Client Care Manager

Linda Alley has over 32 years in the travel industry, specializing in creating custom trips that go above and beyond the guests’ expectations. She listens carefully, pays attention to detail, and tries to anticipate her guests’ needs. Her love of travel started after high school when she went on her first cruise. After that, she wanted to go everywhere and see everything! Since then, she has been fortunate enough to have been to every continent except Antarctica. 

For Linda, whenever she starts dreaming of a new vacation somewhere, it’s always the age-old dilemma: “Do I go back and re-visit the places I enjoyed so much before, when there are still so many other places I have yet to see?”

Linda is based in Seattle, WA.

Experience the Luxury of a

Life-Changing Journey

We help travelers cultivate connections to the people, places, and moments sure to leave an indelible mark. 

Our combination of high-touch service and in-depth destination knowledge informs your keenly crafted itinerary. Our relationships with vetted travel suppliers take you far beyond the ordinary. Whether it’s a stylish stay in Paris or a journey to the heart of the Serengeti, We leave no stone unturned in our search for the most dazzling escape for you, hunting out tucked-away boutique properties or VIP-exclusive tours that define “once in a lifetime.”

View Journeys

Adventure (the kind that doesn’t compromise on luxury) awaits you.

Let Sterling Journeys take you there.

Book your complimentary consultation call with me now to start planning your own Sterling Journey.

Connect with Us

Kind Words from Happy Travelers

"We’ve been working with Lise-Marie for what seems like a lifetime. We can honestly say she has made each and every trip that we have taken truly amazing. The best example came last Christmas when we decided to take what would have otherwise been an ordinary vacation (because we had booked so late) into an amazing experience. Lise-Marie took the extra time to make what must have been dozens of calls to make every aspect of our trip as special as possible. Her touch was so obvious. And because of that, each and every one of us felt that it was the best trip we had ever taken. At this point we wouldn’t think of taking a trip without her."
Rick & Giovanna
"While we had been providing incentive trips for several years, Lise-Marie helped us take them to a whole new level with her attention to detail and experience in the luxury market. Her professional connections were particularly beneficial with our international trips. Her ability to anticipate our CEO’s needs and his vision for the experience ensured a successful trip and delighted guests."
LINDA B.
"We’ve made some of our best family memories thanks to Lise-Marie and her thoughtful planning, she goes above and beyond to find unique experiences and accommodations and creates a seamless experience from beginning to end"
MAGGIE B.
"Lise-Marie at Sterling Journeys has organized several wonderful trips for our family throughout the US, Europe, and Asia covering a number of different venues including luxury train excursions, private drivers and tour guides, river boat vacations, and top-end cruises. In all cases, her attention to details; extensive knowledge of the various locales and venues; and ability to coordinate as well as facilitate every aspect of the travel went beyond our (very high) expectations. Lise-Marie is the consummate professional who understands the needs of her clients and never fails to deliver impeccable service. "
LINDA N. 
"Lise-Marie is the best! She has planned our last 6 trips and they have all been fabulous! She is extremely professional, attentive to detail and on call whenever you need her. We highly recommend her! "
DEBBIE & DENNIS C.
"Lise Marie Wertanzl, from Sterling Journeys, is by far the best travel agent we’ve ever used. She goes above and beyond the call of duty and has always given us ultimate service.  We recommend her to all our friends and family. "
LINDA F. & IRWIN M.
"Lise-Marie is a fantastic travel specialist! This was my second trip that she has planned and she has always fulfilled all of my travel needs & provided excellent client service. Her attention to detail in planning my family reunion Cruise last year for 28 people was beyond amazing, especially with ages ranging from 2-81years of age. Lise-Marie’s vast knowledge of Cruises, travel destinations and her personal attention to details is why she will be planning my next trip."
LISA W.
"Lise-Marie planned a dream wedding for us and 60 of our closest friends and family onboard a cruise ship. She took care of every detail so my bride and I could enjoy our special day."
MATTHEW A.
"It was so wonderful to not have to think about a thing. Lise-Marie organized beautiful hotels in Barcelona, Venice and our fabulous boutique hotel in Paris. Everything was seamless. We had an extraordinary time and can’t wait to rebook with her for our next adventure."
KATHY O.
"As soon as my (now) husband and I decided to get married on a Celebrity cruise ship, we knew we needed a travel agent who could help us. Lise-Marie came highly recommended from a friend, and she truly went above and beyond for us. She secured amazing group rates for our entire wedding party (45 guests!), got us lots of perks, and liaised with Celebrity to help us plan an incredible, memorable wedding onboard the Constellation. Our friends and family commented on what a pleasure it was to book the cruise through Lise-Marie, and we highly recommend her."
VICTORIA R.
"Lise-Marie took our incentive trips to a whole new level. Her expertise with arranging luxury trips for groups was invaluable and was particularly beneficial with our international trips. Plus, her ability to manage the needs of everyone from the CEO to our guest ensured that everyone received blue ribbon care."
LINDA B.
"My husband and I simply told Lise-Marie that we wanted to visit the distilleries in Scotland and to see the landscape as well as castles. She did an excellent job planning and developing our itinerary. All of the places we stayed were excellent and absolutely beautiful. She was in contact with us the whole time through her app and was up to date with everything we were doing."
LAURA W.
"She's the Best. I can honestly say that Lise-Marie is the reason this trip ran smoothly. Sterling Journeys and Lise-Marie went way beyond what I had expected. I will definitely use her again."
BEVERLEY C.
"Expert planning with keen insight and friendly service! Thanks to Lise-Marie for another excellent trip! We had a wonderful time celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary. She worked with us to create the perfect experience, I would highly recommend Lise-Marie!!"
COLLEEN S.
"It was impeccable from start to finish. The trip exceeded my expectations by far! Every detail was thought of and the crew were on the ball all the time. We were treated like royalty! Love love loved it!"
HOPE S.
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