Advisor Spotlight: Aaron Guest
This week on the blog, we're sitting down with Aaron Guest, one of our advisors specializing in serving Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing travelers — he's an ASL interpreter and a former Disney and Universal Cast Member who also loves planning for multigenerational families, couples, and travelers who build a trip around great food and festivals. Aaron fell in love with Walt Disney World at eight years old, and two years into his time with Goofy Getaways, he says his favorite part of the job is still watching a family realize their trip was actually built around them. Read on for his favorite type of vacation to plan, his best piece of travel advice, and the Italy trip that changed how he plans every itinerary.
Tell us a little about you!
My name is Aaron Guest, referred to as The Traveling Guest on Instagram and Facebook. I am a former Disney World cast member and Universal team member who loves utilizing my knowledge and love for the parks to make your trip as fun as possible.
I first found my way to Walt Disney World at eight years old. I fell in love. I loved meeting the characters. I loved stepping into the stories I had grown up with. More than anything, I loved those moments when I didn't feel like I was simply watching a story, I felt like I was inside it.
That feeling of immersion has followed me throughout my life.
That love for Disney and the parks brought me back to work as a Cast Member in 2008. I discovered that one of my favorite parts of the job wasn't just performing. It was creating moments for people. Families would come to me with questions, ask for recommendations, or simply want someone to help them navigate their vacation. I loved taking what I knew and using it to make someone's day a little more special. I eventually moved west to California and immersed myself in Disneyland, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Los Angeles as well.
I didn't realize it at the time, but I was already doing many of the things a Travel Advisor does. That naturally led me to Goofy Getaways, where I knew I could formally utilize my skillset to keep the magic going!
I’ve been with Goofy Getaways for two years now, having started at the end of 2024.
What types of trips do you specialize in?
My goal is to specialize in Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line and Universal vacations, particularly for multigenerational families.
I love the challenge of planning for families where everyone may want something different. Maybe Grandma wants a slower morning, the kids want to rope drop, Mom and Dad want a great meal, and someone else in the family is determined to experience every attraction possible.
A great vacation means finding the right balance so that everyone gets to experience something meaningful.
My background in American Sign Language and my connection to the LGBT+ community are also important parts of who I am. I want my clients to know they are working with someone who values accessibility, communication, individuality, and making people feel welcome.
At the end of the day, I want to understand your family, not plan some generic version of a Disney or Universal vacation.
What made you decide to become a Travel Advisor?
After the pandemic, my family moved back east. I wanted to find my next adventure.
I had been looking for a way to return to the world of Disney and travel, but I also wanted to do it in a way that allowed me to be creative and build something special like this. The ability to have my own business, built around building special memories for families, felt like the natural next step in my life.
That's when I discovered Goofy Getaways.
Why did you join Goofy Getaways?
I came across Noddea Skidmore's (another amazing travel agent from Goofy Getaways) post about the agency. The timing felt perfect. I reached out and flooded her inbox with questions. She was so gracious to answer all my questions and introduced me to Amy Blades and the incredible team.
The sense of community and belonging at Goofy Getaways is a big reason why I jumped on board. It’s something I'm incredibly grateful for. If someone has a resource, experience, or piece of information that could help another advisor, we can ask. We share what we know and work together.
What is your favorite type of trip to plan?
Disney Cruise Line:
There is just so much to love. The ships themselves are incredible, and there are so many different options depending on what kind of experience you're looking for. Then you add the immersive storytelling, the entertainment, the food, the itineraries, and the opportunity to explore destinations around the world.
To me, Disney Cruise Line combines two things I love most about travel: Disney storytelling and discovering the world.
You're not simply visiting a Disney destination. You're waking up somewhere new, exploring a different part of the world, and then returning to a ship where that same sense of storytelling and magic continues.
Tell us about one of the BIGGEST travel mistakes you’ve made.
One of the biggest mistakes I've made was on a trip to Italy, when I tried to fit too much into a single day.
We had flights and train rides booked incredibly close together. On paper, the itinerary worked. We were rushing from one thing to the next, barely making our connections, and carrying that stress with us for the rest of the day.
It taught me something I now think about constantly when planning travel: Travel time is part of the itinerary.
When you build a schedule with no breathing room, the entire thing becomes fragile. One delayed train, one traffic problem, one attraction that takes longer than expected and suddenly the entire day falls apart.
And there's another problem: packing too much into a day can create panic within the travel party. Instead of enjoying where you are, everyone starts thinking about where they must be next.
I want to help people build the trip they want while leaving room for the unexpected. Sometimes the most magical part of a vacation is the thing you didn't schedule.
What is your favorite part of helping your clients plan trips?
My favorite part is helping people feel understood. I love to join my clients in their excitement and anticipation of their trip.
Travel planning can be overwhelming. There are so many choices, opinions, tips, tricks, "must-dos," and things you supposedly must know. It's easy to feel like you're already behind before your vacation has even started.
I don't want my clients to feel that way.
I want to learn about you, your family, your interests, your travel style, and what actually matters to you. Then I can take all of that information and help build something that feels personal.
For me, the goal isn't simply for a client to have a great vacation. I want them to look back and feel like the planning process itself was part of what made the trip special. I want them to feel understood, taken care of, and confident that someone was in their corner.
What is the hardest part of your job?
At this point in my career, the hardest part of being a Travel Advisor isn't necessarily the travel itself. It's building the business.
Creating a solid foundation, developing a brand, earning people's trust, and building a client base all take time. There are days when you're putting in the work and wondering if anyone is noticing. It can feel like fruitless labor sometimes.
I've been an actor and a graphic designer for many years, and both of those careers have taught me something important: you have to keep building even when you can't see the results yet.
I want a business that is rooted in trust, knowledge, creativity, and genuine care for people. That takes time.
If you could give one piece of advice to any traveler, what would it be?
If I could give every traveler one piece of advice, it would be this:
Don't try to do everything. Don’t try to study every Youtube video.
You don't have to maximize every minute. Give yourself room to breathe.
Leave space for a slow breakfast. Give yourself time to get from one place to another. Don't be afraid to change your plans. And remember that your vacation is supposed to be your vacation.
There will always be another attraction, another restaurant, another experience, another "must-do." You don't have to do all of them.
Choose the things that matter most to you and your travel party. Build around those things. Then give yourself enough breathing room to actually enjoy them.
Because the goal isn't to come home exhausted because you successfully completed an itinerary.
The goal is to come home with memories.
How can travelers get in touch if they want to book a trip with you?
I currently live in Atlanta, Georgia, with my family. When I'm not planning vacations, working as an actor or designer, or working within the Deaf community as an American Sign Language interpreter and educator, you'll probably find me thinking about my next Disney or Universal adventure.
I'm still that kid who fell in love with Disney at eight years old.
I'm still fascinated by storytelling.
And I'm still happiest when I can help someone else experience a little bit of that magic.
Whether you're planning your first Disney vacation, returning to the parks after years away, dreaming about a Disney Cruise Line adventure, or trying to figure out how to make a multigenerational family vacation work, I'd love to help.
Ready to start planning? Fill out my quote form, and let's start building a vacation that's made for you.
