Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer

  Hilton Hotel San Francisco Union Square promotes their surgical location in the heart of the City, the 46th-floor sky high Cityscape bar, and extensive meeting facilities--but the Hilton’s longtime engagement with community non-profit organizations most often goes on unnoticed. 

Correspondent Tom Wilmer visits with Frank Manchen, Area Director of Sales & Marketing for the Hilton San Francisco Union Square and the neighboring Parc 55 Hotel about Hilton’s value-added California Road Trip summer packages up and down the California Coast from San Diego to San Francisco.

You are invited to subscribe to the Lowell Thomas award-winning NPR Podcast travel show Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer via: 

Join the conversation with correspondent Tom Wilmer and Ed Svitak, President of Visit Lake Geneva in the heart of Wisconsin. 

Belinda Jones, best selling British author visits with Tom Wilmer in Morro Bay where she talks about her new book Bodie On The Road--Travels with a Rescue Pup in Dogged Pursuit of Happiness.

Kathleen Seeberg, Executive Director of Walworth County Visitors Bureau shares insights about the four seasons attractions of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

A conversation with Grammy Award-winning conductor, Kent Nagano and his daughter Karin Kei Nagano. Nagano grew up in Morro Bay, California and graduated from U.C. Berkeley. 

Join Stephanie Klett, Cabinet Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Tourism and correspondent Tom Wilmer in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin as they share their passion for the state’s welcoming people and distinctive travel destinations.

Join guest host Dan Wang, who just graduated from Xi’an International Studies University in June 2018 and has been serving as an intern with China Radio International Online. Dan is joined in conversation with her friend Ana Mitrović from Belgrade, Serbia. Ana is a Archeology doctoral candidate at Northwest University in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province. 

Join correspondent Tom Wilmer and Mary Rhode, Marketing & Communications Manager at Fox Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau as they visit Wisconsin’s oldest brewpub Stone Arch Brewpub and Angels Forever—Windows of Light on College Avenue.

LA County’s WaterBus is and ideal way to experience Marina del Rey harbor—the second largest man-  made yacht harbor in the world. 

A conversation with Wisconsin Master Cheese Maker Terry Lensmire at Simon's Specialty Cheese in Little Chute, Wisconsin, in the heart of the Fox Cities region.

Historian Jim Gregory shares insights about his new book Central Coast Aviators in WW II. Gregory shares the stories of local men and women who served as pilots and crew during WW II. Stories include how Cal Poly State University was transformed into a Naval aviation pre-flight training center and Santa Maria’s Hancock Field trained thousands of pilots and crew.

Join correspondent Tom Wilmer for a walkabout in Appleton, Wisconsin with the Mayor, Timothy Hanna celebrating his 22nd year in office. Discover why the Fox Cities region has evolved to become a magnet for millennials who find the thriving arts, culture, music, and theater scene alluring draws. 

Within moments of the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th 1941, life in America instantly transformed for the duration of the war. Edith Ross and Art Criddle share their recollections as children during the war years in Morro Bay. 

The USS Alabama (commissioned August 16, 1942) served in the North Atlantic in 1943 and subsequently the South Pacific. With a crew of 2,500 the USS Alabama led the American Fleet in to Tokyo Bay for the formal Japanese surrender at the conclusion of WWII September 5th 1945. 

  Correspondent Tom Wilmer visits with Mark Lamers at his family owned dairy in Appleton, Wisconsin.

The Lamers family started their dairy in a basement back in 1913. 

Join Paul Garvey, owner of Wilmar Chocolates in downtown Appleton, Wisconsin to discover exactly why the family-owned chocolate company has maintained a fond following for more than 60 years.

Wilmar Chocolates is also a discreet example of why businesses in Appleton and around the Fox Cities region are thriving.

Paul Garvey, owner of Wilmar’s Chocolates in Appleton, Wisconsin talks about the company’s passion for handcrafting chocolate bars and treats and how his creations became a hit in Russia and China, with a fond following around America. 

The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, The Milwaukee Brewers’ Class “A” farm team has an incredibly passionate fan base. Appleton, Wisconsin and the entire Fox Cities region consider the Rattlers as “their team” but so do folk from around the state and even Michigan’s Far North Upper Peninsula. 

Soy-based Man Candles are just one of the many enticing products offered at Eco Candles located in downtown Appleton, Wisconsin. 

Xi’an, in Shaanxi Province of the People’s Republic of China is the oldest of the “Four Great Ancient Capitals of China”. It’s the most populous city in Northwest China, and  claims close to 13 million souls in the greater metropolitan area. 

Join correspondent Tom Wilmer as he explores the ancient city of Xi’an and the province of Shaanxi. 

The iconic windmill has been a part of western landscape since the mid 1800s.

Tanya Meadows at the American Wind and Power Center in Lubbock, Texas, and Jim Stark at the Kregel Windmill Factory Museum in Nebraska City, Nebraska share their passion for the iconic windmill that transformed the American West. 

Life was chugging along just fine for Tyrone Taylor, that is until he lost his job when the steel plant closed in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania back in 1983. Drugs and alcohol sped his descent. He eventually wound up spending 20 years homeless on Skid Row in Los Angeles. 

The San Lorenzo County Park in King City, California showcases the agrarian roots of Monterey County’s Salinas Valley. 

Tom Wilmer reports from Salinas Valley where he visits with 90-something Andy D’Arrigo, patriarch of the family run agriculture business D’Arrigo Brothers. It was Andy who served as the model for the company brand created back in 1927 when he was two years old. Andy’s childhood face still adorns the label 80 years later. 

The Hilton Hawaiian Village has been an iconic anchor of Waikiki since 1955 when industrialist Henry Kaiser opened the resort on the grounds of circa-1928 Cressaty’s Court thatched cottages. Join correspondent Molly Blaisdell for an exploration of the Hilton (3,386 guest-rooms), its world-renowned beach, and why the resort remains as a revered 22-acre waterfront destination for vacationers from around the world.

Hawaiian Airlines caters to the needs of international and inter-island Hawaiian visitors and residents. With an 88-year legacy of exemplary Hawaiian hospitality, the carrier's philosophy is rooted in a sense of place and culture.

William Randolph Heart’s old ranch headquarters was constructed in 1930.

Located a mere 11 miles as the crow flies from Hearst Castle. Hearst and architect Julia Morgan’s classic, Moorish/Mission Revival structure, dubbed the Hacienda or Milpitas Ranch House, was sold to the U.S. Army in 1940.

The Hacienda initially served as operations headquarters for Fort Hunter Liggett until the base facilities were constructed in the dawning days of WWII.

The Buffalo National River, situated in Northern Arkansas is free flowing for more than 135 miles. It’s one of North America’s last remaining undammed rivers.

Join correspondent Tom Wilmer on the banks of the Buffalo River for a conversation with National Park Ranger, Joyce Umbach, and Ben Milburn the owner and operator of Buffalo River Outfitters.

A visit to the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum--Executive Director Kari Watkins talks about the deadliest attack in America until 9-11.