I’m Jill, the founder & guide of Vérité Travel Company. 

Before creating Vérité, I have spent the last 24 years working in hospitality — most recently, as a chef, restaurant owner, wine bar owner, and dedicated student of wine.  Simultaneously, I’ve always had a deep love of travel. In fact, the day after I graduated from The Culinary Institute of America, I was on a plane to Australia, headed to a fine dining restaurant in Melbourne, Australia that had agreed to hire me.  I’ve backpacked through Central and South America, traveled solo in India and New Zealand, and even filled a whole passport with stamps before it expired and had to get a new one — a personal triumph!  Vérité combines all of my passions into truly one-of-a-kind trips.

Our world is changing so quickly — and in ways that we’re far from certain about.  As our lives become increasingly more digital, I believe there is something deeply valuable about connecting face-to-face with the people who grow, craft, and create the things we love.  Those experiences spark curiosity, foster community, and help us better understand a place and its culture. Vérité Travel Company was born from a desire to share those moments.

I don’t build trips around the usual tourist checklist. My itineraries are shaped by years spent in the hospitality and wine industries, relationships I've cultivated, and a genuine appreciation for the independent businesses that give a destination its character.