The combined travel experience of our staff makes us experts in our field.  It helps us select the best and most practical products to make your journey more comfortable, safe and rewarding.  We rely on travelers feedback, so please let us know what products you found most helpful.  .....And don’t hesitate to ask us.

Petra Rousu
Petra was born and raised in Germany and the owner of The Savvy Traveler, has traveled in over 50 countries. Coming from Europe, she is very knowledgeable about European countries and cultures. Petra started and operated 13 travel stores for a large organization before opening her own stores. Years of experience have helped her in selecting the best and most useful travel products. She continues her passion for travel as much as her time allows.

Penny Todd
Penny is a registered nurse involved in ongoing medical missions to Africa. In her travels she has tried many of our products and helps us select the most practical items available. She has traveled much of Europe and has a special passion for Scotland, her ancestral home. Penny has also perfected the art of packing a suitcase and is now teaching thousands of travelers how to choose a wardrobe and pack in a carry-on suitcase that can take you just about anywhere.

Florence Chan
Florence relocated to the town of Edmonds after spending 8 years in Boston. Born in China, Florence immigrated to the United States at the age of 5 and grew up in San Francisco. Florence’s traveling days started while she was in college, spending entire summers bumming around Europe in typical student fashion best described as “adventure on a shoestring budget.” Sleeping on trains and staying in youth hostels, she explored every European country covered under the Eurail system. After graduating from college, Florence spent 8 years working as a Fleet Planner for a charter airline. Using her airline travel benefits, Florence expanded her area of exploration to include Hawaii, New Zealand, and destinations in Asia, as well as returning numerous times to Europe. Her more recent adventures, still on a shoestring budget, include 2 big camping trips to the far north. Twice within the last 5 years, she and her husband have taken one-year sabbaticals to travel into the wilds of the Yukon and Alaska, living for months in a tent, kayaking glacier-fed lakes, hiking the tundra and sleeping atop permafrost! Yes …. true lovers of the cold, Florence and her husband, once spent Thanksgiving in Iceland followed by a Christmas “polar camping” in northern Quebec. “It was so cold my toothpaste froze”, Florence claims, but the experience of sleeping in an igloo and dog-sledding across a frozen lake was an adventure not to be missed!

Jerry Freeland
Jerry has lived in several locations including New York, California, and now in Washington. Her travels have taken her to twelve European Countries, South America, Africa, Asia (including Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand), Mexico and the Philippines. Her favorites include The Galapagos Islands, Kenya, as well as Paris, London and all of Italy. Self-planned and group travel have given Jerry much insight into the nuances of travel both domestically and abroad. She loves to share her experiences and hopes her experiences can enhance your upcoming travel adventures.

Silke Harper
Silke is a native of Germany, is the bookkeeper for The Savvy Traveler. She keeps the office running smoothly with her attention to detail. She holds a degree in Music from the Conservatory in Cologne and was a soloist at both the Wuppertal Opera and the Hagen Opera before moving to Seattle with her husband, where she has been the German language coach for several productions at the Seattle Opera. Silke has traveled extensively in Europe and North America and loves especially Italy and Hawaii.

Alexandra Rousu
Alexandra has traveled extensively for her young age. As the daughter of the owner she has traveled to Europe since she was 6 weeks old and has continued her travels throughout the years to many different countries. She just returned from her 19th trip to Europe and is planning her next adventure to the Middle East. She recently completed her business degree with an emphasis in project management and consumer behavior and is now managing The Savvy Traveler in Renton. She is bilingual with German being her second language. Her visual display skills and travel experience are great assets to the store.

Anita Bennett
Anita was born and raised in the Channel Islands of England. She had toured much of the United States and lived in many different cities. Her extensive retail experience and customer service skills are a valuable asset to the store and our customers. She is extremely knowledgeable in putting together travel wardrobes for any types of travel. She’ll answer all your packing questions with great solutions and suggestions.

Connie BeRoth
Connie’s love affair with travel began at an early age with her first train ride. She lived all over the US before choosing the Seattle area as home. Her first overseas trip elevated travel to a passion. She has traveled extensively for pleasure but luckily her work as Director of Sales Operations with an electronics distributor also allowed her to travel the globe. This makes her excellent at helping customers choose the right items for their travels. Connie’s other passions are remodeling, food, wine, books and music.

Jennifer Orhuozee
Jennifer has a true passion for travel and multi-culturalism. With a B.A in Anthropology from the University of California, she has a strong desire to learn about other parts of the world and expand her world view. Her travels have taken her throughout South America, Europe, the Caribbean and Africa. Reading about travels and other cultures makes her an expert in selecting the right travel book for every type of travel. She has a marketing background in the non-profit industry and enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, walking, reading and of course planning and plotting where she can travel next.