about Happy Trail Tours

About Us

Meet the Happy Trail Tours Family!

Happy Trail Tours, primarily a motor coach vacation company is nestled way up in the northeast region of beautiful Minnesota in Forbes ... a small rural community surrounded by evergreen trees, rivers, lakes and taconite mining companies. The office has been located in the home of Grant and Marge Ellis since 1983 when the "Happy Trails" story began blazing it's adventurous trails!

First off ... let's introduce you to the Happy Trail Tours family.

Marge Ellis, sole owner of the company since 2000 delights in every little detail of the travel business. Her self motivated drive is not easily matched by many men or women her age and it's no wonder she's the business woman she is today. She handles all the financial aspects, is quite skilled on the computer, loves escorting tours and brings great destination ideas that add to the mix of the many vacation tours that they plan. Marge is a great "storyteller" and delights in visiting with her clients when they call. We think it only adds to the personal touch that Happy Trail Tours has become known for.

Next, there's Diane Olds, Grant and Marge's daughter.

Diane came on board nearly 18 years ago. In the late 80's, the company started to grow quickly and Diane began helping in the office. Before long ... she was escorting the tours! Today Diane designs and creates the tours and writes the tour brochures. She spends hours on the computer looking for neat places to go that offer new and exciting travel experiences that are often unique just to Happy Trails! When she needs a change of scenery from the office and the computer ... she jumps on board one of those big beautiful motor coaches and escorts the group on one of the tours she's created!

Then there's Lynnie Aro.

Lynnie joined the Happy Trail family in August 2005 and has really been a vital part of the business. She handles the office with ease, always busy with endless tasks, enjoys visiting with customers as they call in and is one of our top motor coach escorts. After Lynnie's first time escorting experience to Branson, Missouri ... it was evident that the travel business was her "calling". Lynnie is also a delightful storyteller ... so if you happen to be on one of her tours, you're sure to have a wonderful time.

Let me introduce you to Gloria Hegg.

Gloria is from Bear River, MN and escorted her first tour on New Year's Eve in 2006 to Chanhassen, MN. It's no wonder the customers enjoy her because she, too, is a storyteller, has a great sense of humor and thoroughly enjoys the people that she meets through this business. We're excited about bringing Gloria into the Happy Trails fold.

Please meet John Feth, who joined Happy Trail Tours in the spring of 2008.

With his joking personality and easy going spirit, great reviews and comments from our customers always follow each trip John takes out. John and his wife, Deb, live on a small farm in Cotton and have seven children (five of which are girls, and all grown up) and two teenage sons.

Where would a motor coach company be without good drivers? Ours are the best of the best .... very professional, courteous, caring, friendly ... all this plus a fun sense of humor to boot!

Carl Schleinitz

Carl has been driving for the Shubat Company, Hibbing, for 15 years. He’s a great driver with a great personality and a love for driving and seeing the countryside. He balances his motor coach driving between maintenance and carpentry work in the area (He‘s a man of many talents). He and his wife, Diane, live in Hoyt Lakes.

Rick Raimo

Rick was a fire-fighter for the city of Duluth for over 20 years then retired and decided to begin another new career … “a motor coach driver” for MN Coaches! He’s an excellent driver and really enjoys all the travelers! He and his wife, Sue have three grown children and two grandchildren. They live in Duluth.

Dave Wheat

Dave spent over 20 years in the Navy as a F-4 fighter pilot. He retired in 1984 as a Lieutenant Commander. Dave then began teaching shop classes in the Duluth School District with a second retirement to follow. There was one more journey in his career life he still wanted to do and that was to drive one of those great big buses. And now you know the rest of the story! He joined the Happy Trails family in the late 1990’s. Though some what retired, he still drives occasionally for us. He and his wife, Ginger make their home in Duluth and have three grown children and two grand children.

Bill Osjonicki

Bill’s delightful sense of humor and fun-spirited personality is contagious on every tour he takes out. He’s our longest running driver. He joined us in the early 90’s and has become part of the Happy Trails family ever since. Even the customers ask for him when registering for trips. Bill has grown up and lived in Duluth all his life and drives for MN Coaches.

The coaches chartered are newer models from 2000 to 2007 - Prevosts, MCI's and Vanhools.

They have from 48 to 56 reclining seats fully equipped with restroom, televisions, DVD & CD player and reclining seats!

You might say they're fully loaded!

The drivers take great pride in keeping them spotlessly clean throughout the tours and people notice when those beautiful coaches travel through their communities.

Another family member we want to mention is Grant, Marge's husband and Diane's dad. Without him, we'd be lost on a little dirt road headed to "no where". Grant is one man Happy Trail Tours couldn't do without! Sometimes Grant calls himself the "janitor" and occasionally even answers the phone but he's more like a computer service specialist that repairs and keeps everything up and running in the office.

When Happy Trails first began, Marge would ask Grant to join her on bus trips she'd be escorting and he always said, "I'm not taking a bus trip ... I've got plenty of K.P. duty to do while you're gone." Then in 1994 Grant retired. It was a short time later that he took his first bus trip to Washington DC and he's been traveling ever since. Customers call the office to see what Grant has signed up for so they can join him on the same trip!

It takes a lot of commitment .... a genuine care for people .... and a love of travel to successfully own and operate this type of business. Our escorts and drivers make every tour that blazes a trail a memorable one. Join us and see for yourself. Hopefully while reading this, you've been drawn in a little closer to the Happy Trail Tours family. Perhaps you'll join us in the near future. So, whether you've been with us many times or just considering a bus tour for the very first time ... we would like to extend a warm welcome to the fold.