Planning a trip can be a formidable task at any age, but it’s especially daunting for older folks. Those who haven’t traveled in quite a few years may be unfamiliar with recent rules and regulations. Others may have recently lost a loved one but are still interested in experiencing new adventures on their own. That’s where Margo McDonough comes in, with her Blue Skies Travel Center. In business since 2016, McDonough specializes in leading excursions for those 50 and older.
“I’m there to kind of shepherd everybody, and it’s been tremendously rewarding,” she says. “We were on the Mississippi [River] in October. I had a woman who [had] been busy, like many over 55, taking care of a husband who was ill before he passed away. And we [were] out on one of those jazz boat cruises, and she [had] not danced in nine years, and her girlfriends were being stick-in-the-muds. I got up with Joanne, and there [was] joy on her face to be dancing again. So it’s a lot of work—but it’s a lot of fun.”
McDonough has organized domestic and European trips for area organizations, including University of Delaware’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute; Delaware Nature Society; the Food Bank of Delaware, for which she raised $7,200 last year during a fundraising trip to U.S. national parks; the Traditions at Longwood community; and Kennett Area Community Service.
Her group destinations have included the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California; a Paris-to-Normandy, France, river cruise; the Netherlands during tulip season; and the Danube River to see the area Christmas markets. That nine-day river cruise, which McDonough led in November 2024, began in Vienna, Austria, with a culinary tour through the city’s Christmas market, followed by a cruise through the Wachau Valley to Melk. Another Christmas market awaited in Passau, Germany, with a guided tour of Regensburg. The group then learned about Christmas traditions in Nuremberg, concluding the trip in Prague, Czech Republic.
The Danube River cruise was Kathy Janvier’s second trip with McDonough. “One thing Margo does well is she brings in local experts who [don’t] even travel with us,” says the Hockessin resident, who reminisces about making Christmas ornaments and hanging them on a tree with decorations made by strangers who became fast friends. “There’s an educational piece and a bonding piece that she brings to her cruises that I don’t think other people do.”
It was a family tragedy that spurred McDonough to take her business in this direction. “I saw my own mother—my father passed away in his 60s—[who] wanted to go out there and travel and see the world, [but] it’s tough by yourself,” she says. “I’m a good daughter, and I love to travel. …I was so happy to be able to [take] her to Alaska for her 80th birthday. I [sent] her there…and to London. There’s nothing wrong with just [organizing] trips for Disney, but I really wanted to specialize in something that was impactful.”
“I saw my own mother — my father passed away in his 60s — [who] wanted to go out there and travel and see the world, [but] it’s tough by yourself.”
Shortly before each trip, McDonough hosts a pizza party so that upcoming travelers can get to know one another and plan ahead—from what to pack to where to visit. This is especially helpful for those who are not widely traveled or up to date on the latest airport protocols or packing tricks.
“I’ll actually bring suitcases with samples,” McDonough says. “I’ll go through the benefits of packing cubes, which are wonderful.”
Upcoming excursions include Mackinac Island, Michigan; the International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, New Mexico; and the Rhone River in France.
For more information, visit the agency’s website.
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