About

Hi…bonjour…ciao…guten tag! My name is Margaret Cassady and I’m a passionate traveler, dedicated mom, insatiable reader, and faithful optimist. I took lots of art history and French courses and (ironically for my future career) majored in American Civilization at Brown University. Then I hopscotched from job to job (waitress, museum secretary, ski bum) and across the US (Seattle, Boston, Aspen, Phoenix) before heading to Europe with my backpack, hostel card, and Rick Steves’ books. My life-changing, three-months-on-$300 adventure made me realize travel should be my career, not just my hobby. In 1991 I found my niche at Europe Through the Back Door (now Rick Steves’ Europe).  All these years later I still get great satisfaction out of teaching the skills of “back door” travel, and great joy out of sharing the beauty and wonder of this world with my tour members, family, and friends. Let’s go…