Taylor Cranney

Taylor brings a rare, full-spectrum perspective to travel planning. Before joining AdventureSmith, she spent years as a TrekAmerica tour leader, guiding small-group camping expeditions across the U.S. and Canada. She was trusted to autonomously plan, execute and manage multi-week trips from start to finish.

That role shaped her ability to communicate clearly, think ahead, stay flexible and keep things running smoothly even when conditions change. She also gained a firsthand understanding of what travelers need, expect and deserve in order to experience a truly great trip.

Taylor doesn’t panic easily. It’s a composure she’s built through years of fieldwork and pursuing her own high-risk adventures (no doubt helpful during her stint as a puma walker in Bolivia).

Today, her approach is both intuitive and thorough. She listens closely, reads between the lines and often answers questions before they’re asked. The result is strong communication, a natural storytelling style and a cool-under-pressure presence that have made her a trusted voice for both colleagues and clients alike.

How Taylor’s Experience Benefits You

• Nearly a decade with AdventureSmith and a background as a professional expedition tour leader
• Travel to 5 continents and 23+ countries, including reaching the North Pole via luxury icebreaker
• A guide’s perspective shaped by planning, leading and adapting trips in real time
• Clear, proactive communication that anticipates needs
• Calm, methodical problem-solving
• Division I water polo athlete and ocean lifeguard, bringing composure, quick decision-making
• BA in Recreation and Tourism with Emphasis in Systems Management, San Diego State University

Taylor has designed everything from highly customized itineraries to ambitious, long-range expeditions, including a 60-day circumnavigation of Antarctica. She draws from a deep well of personal travel and on-the-ground experience, with time aboard ships ranging from 10 to 264 guests, to help travelers feel informed, prepared and excited at every stage of the journey.

“I approach each client conversation with the goal of answering questions they haven’t even thought to ask yet,” she says. That mindset has helped her build lasting relationships, with many travelers returning again and again or referring others her way. “Each year my list of alumni and referred travelers continues to grow. That’s the biggest compliment I can receive, and a good indicator that I’m doing my job well.”

What are the tenets of your travel? Taylor is ready to listen, ask the right questions and solve the logistics puzzle, to place you in the best adventure possible.

Media Mentions

• The World’s Largest National Park Is 100 Times Bigger Than Yellowstone (Travel + Leisure, June 2026) – consulted on what to expect on an expedition cruise to Northeast Greenland National Park

Credentials & Professional Training

• Alaska Certified Expert – Alaska Travel Industry Association
• Certified Adventurist – UnCruise Adventures
• Expedition 360 Certified – National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions
• IATA Accredited Travel Agent – International Air Transportation Association (IATA)
• Polar Pro Certified – Quark Expeditions
• PONANT Explorer Certified – PONANT

Personal Roots & Hobbies

Growing up with a father in the Navy, Taylor moved often, establishing an early respect for the world and an intrepid spirit. Now based in North Lake Tahoe, Taylor spends as much time outside as possible. “Some might say I have trouble sitting still,” she says. Her days off are shaped by the seasons; mountain biking, dirt biking and camping in the summer, then snowboarding, splitboarding and winter hut trips when the snow arrives.

Her adventures often extend beyond the mountains. She’s ridden her enduro motorcycle the length of the Baja Peninsula and backpacked through Nepal’s Himalaya. Closer to home, she’s a Big Blue Adventure ambassador, and serves on the board of Truckee Dirt Riders, a local dirt bike trail advocacy group helping expand access to outdoor spaces through grant work with the U.S. Forest Service.

Taylor has long been an advocate for adventure, and enthusiastically in pursuit of meaningful life experiences. “I think it’s healthy to stay challenged, stimulated and a little outside of your comfort zone.”