Meet Our Luxury Travel Planning Team
Think of us as your well-traveled friends who happen to know all the best spots and love sharing them with you.
Meet Salt & Wind Travel
Founded in 2014 by culinary and hospitality expert Aida Mollenkamp, Salt & Wind began as a food and travel company and expanded into travel planning in 2017. Today, Salt & Wind Travel is a California-based, woman-owned luxury travel planning agency creating bespoke journeys rooted in food, culture, and local connection.
Our small team brings together hospitality expertise, firsthand destination knowledge, and longstanding local relationships to design exceptional trips that reflect each traveler's interests, priorities, and preferred pace.
Helping You Travel Better
One of travel's greatest luxuries is the freedom to enjoy it. That means having time to explore, opportunities to connect, and the peace of mind that comes having experienced professionals handled the details.
From finding the right accommodations and introducing you to trusted local experts to coordinating transfers, reservations, and activities, we bring the pieces together so you can spend less time managing your trip and more time experiencing it.
Our Expertise
Our team specializes in carefully selected destinations, including California, France, Hawaii, Mexico, Italy, Switzerland, and Spain. We regularly spend time on the ground researching hotels, exploring neighborhoods, meeting local experts, and understanding what makes each destination distinctive.
Our recommendations come from firsthand experience and relationships developed over years of working with local guides, artisans, producers, and hospitality professionals. We design each journey ourselves, collaborating with trusted local specialists when their expertise adds value.
That combination of personal knowledge and local connection helps us look beyond the obvious and match travelers with the places and experiences that genuinely suit them.
Our Philosophy
We believe the best part of going somewhere is the part you can't get anywhere else.
For us, luxury isn't simply about a hotel's star rating or a trip's price tag. It's about feeling understood, having access to exceptional people and places, and enjoying the freedom to be present rather than worrying about the details.
We plan journeys with a thoughtful rhythm, balancing memorable experiences with time to linger over a meal, explore a neighborhood, or follow a recommendation from someone you meet along the way.
Whether you prefer active days filled with adventure or a slower pace with room for spontaneity, we believe the best itineraries leave space to connect with a destination rather than simply check it off a list.
Does Travel Planning Feel Like Work Instead Of Wonder?
In just 15 minutes, we'll shift that energy.
Your Discovery Call is where the stress melts away and excitement takes over — we’ll explore your travel style and the adventures waiting for you. No commitment, just conversation.
Meet The Salt & Wind Travel Team
Founder, CEO, & Luxury Travel Planner
Aida Mollenkamp is the founder and CEO of Salt & Wind Travel, a California-based luxury travel planning company specializing in bespoke journeys rooted in food, culture, and local connection.
A graduate of Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration and Le Cordon Bleu Paris, Aida began her career in hospitality, including interning at Hotel Bel-Air and working in the Ernst & Young's Hospitality Advisory Services division. She later became Food Editor at CHOW Magazine, hosted culinary television shows including Ask Aida and FoodCrafters, and authored the cookbook Keys to the Kitchen.
In 2014, Aida founded Salt & Wind and began leading small-group culinary journeys through Italy and Mexico, developing longstanding relationships with local experts. In 2017, she expanded the company into bespoke luxury travel planning. Today, she leads the company's strategy, destination research, and partnerships, drawing on more than two decades of culinary, hospitality, and travel experience.
Aida regularly researches destinations throughout California, Hawaiʻi, Italy, and France. Based in Mammoth Lakes, she also brings the perspective of someone who lives in a tourism-driven community, championing slower travel, locally owned businesses, and experiences that preserve what makes each destination distinctive.
Her recipes and firsthand travel guides are published on Salt & Wind, and her full professional background is available at AidaMollenkamp.com.
Chief Operating Officer
Chris Kalima is the Chief Operating Officer of Salt & Wind Travel, where he oversees the technology, operations, and business systems that support the company's luxury travel planning services.
A graduate of Harvey Mudd College with professional experience in Silicon Valley, Chris brings a technology-driven approach to hospitality. At Salt & Wind, he has built systems that help the team share its firsthand expertise, streamline operations, and deliver highly personalized service.
A Native Hawaiian raised on Oʻahu, Chris grew up experiencing the benefits and challenges of tourism. That perspective shapes his belief that exceptional travel experiences should go hand in hand with cultural preservation, environmental responsibility, and benefits for local communities.
An accomplished endurance athlete and outdoor enthusiast, Chris is an avid skier, surfer, bodysurfer, and runner. He is also a Six Star Finisher of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, having completed all original major marathons. His passion for outdoor adventure informs his appreciation for active, experience-rich travel, while his curiosity about other cultures fuels his interest in learning languages, including German, French, and Italian.
Chris works alongside his wife, Salt & Wind founder and CEO Aida Mollenkamp. Together, they regularly return to Hawaiʻi to visit family and maintain relationships with local partners.
Luxury Travel Planner
Rachel Vermiglio Smith is a luxury travel planner at Salt & Wind Travel, specializing in bespoke journeys through Italy, France, and Switzerland. Having lived in Italy for more than a decade, she brings an insider's understanding of the region's culture, food, art, and everyday life to the itineraries she creates.
Originally from Arizona, Rachel studied Italian Renaissance Art at Scuola Lorenzo de' Medici in Florence and holds a degree in Italian Language and Literature and a Master's in Art History from Arizona State University. Since 2014, she has worked as a writer and consultant specializing in Italian culture and lifestyle.
Rachel's expertise extends beyond Italy to France and Switzerland, where she draws on extensive firsthand travel experience to design thoughtful, personalized journeys. She particularly enjoys helping families discover places at a slower pace, from cultural landmarks and regional food traditions to lesser-known towns and local experiences.
With family roots in Puglia and strong personal ties to Tuscany, Rachel especially loves planning trips through Central and Southern Italy. She divides her time between Arizona and Tuscany with her husband and their two children, returning regularly to research destinations and maintain local connections.
Rachel also contributes destination guides and travel articles to Salt & Wind's editorial site, sharing the knowledge she develops through her travels and work with clients.
Follow Rachel at The Italianista.
Sales and Content Consultant
Kristen Kellogg is a Sales & Content Consultant at Salt & Wind Travel, where she helps prospective clients navigate the travel planning process and creates video content showcasing the destinations and experiences that make Salt & Wind journeys distinctive.
A filmmaker, digital storyteller, and travel expert, Kristen has created content for brands including HotelTonight, Rosetta Stone, Visit California, and Visit Los Cabos.
Kristen earned a bachelor's degree in Communication Studies from San José State University. Her hospitality experience includes working in food and beverage operations on Nantucket, and she has lived in California and Mexico and traveled extensively throughout Hawaiʻi, Italy, and Switzerland.
Having previously helped design bespoke itineraries for Salt & Wind clients, Kristen brings firsthand destination knowledge and an understanding of the company's planning approach to her consultations with prospective travelers. She particularly enjoys Italy's Val d'Orcia, the California coast, the Island of Hawaiʻi, and Mexico's Oaxaca region.
Kristen is also a certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach and has passed the Level 1 examination at the School of Applied Functional Medicine. She splits her time between the United States and Todos Santos, Mexico.