David Rodriguez

CMO/ Co-Founder

Born in California, raised in Mexico - A true traveler since day one!

Growing up in the beautiful paradise of Playa del Carmen, a mecca for world-class tourism in Latin America, he began his first steps in the industry as a certified archaeological tour guide for the family business - Alma's LDS Tours. Providing people from all over the world, amazing experiences at world-famous sites such as Tulum, Chichen Itza, and, Palenque; while raising a young family, and pursuing a degree in Marketing at the University of the Riviera.

After serving as a missionary in Mexico City for the Church of JesusChrist of Latter-day Saints, he developed a tremendous passion for reading the scriptures and comparing them with the history and archaeology of Mesoamerica. In 2020, he joined a group of friends and scientists on an expedition to Oman to visit the proposed locations for the Land of Bountiful.

He considers himself a travel addict. His passion for adventure has taken him to visit amazing places all over the world such as Egypt, Oman, Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Peru, Costa Rica, and more.

After years of exploration and travel and perfecting routes, logistics, team building, and travel itineraries, David became the co-founder of Alma's Expeditions and the head of the Marketing team for the company.

Miguel Rodriguez

CFO/ Co-Founder

He's an officially licensed tour guide, Miguel has a degree in Anthropology with an emphasis in Mexican History. His passion is the study of Mesoamerican culture, language, and rituals.

He also has a Business Bachelor’s degree from the University of Quintana Roo. Miguel is fluent in English and Spanish and is also a certified scuba diver. Throughout the years he has conducted hundreds of tours through Central and Southern Mexico such as the Yucatan Peninsula, Chiapas, Puebla, Oaxaca, and Mexico City.

Having served as a full-time missionary in the Puebla, Mexico Mission where he developed a great love for the Book of Mormon and the archaeological sites of Mexico. He enjoys the symbolism of the scriptures, believing that understanding the symbolic meanings of the scriptures enables their practical application.

His studies and experience help him show interesting parallels that can be found in the Book of Mormon, the Bible, and also in the beliefs of the ancient inhabitants of the Americas.

Jennifer Barrera

Guatemala City Guide/ Trip Leader

Her name is Jennifer Barrera, and she is the funniest person you will ever meet in Guatemala City. Her amazing sense of humor and her incredible people skills will make learning about history a fun experience.
Born and raised in Guatemala, which many consider it the country of eternal spring, she is proud to call this beautiful place her home.

Throughout her life, she became passionate about sharing with the world the beauty that nature offers through hiking in various mountains, valleys, and cities, which led her to obtain a degree in Eco-tourism.

She gets her inspiration from traveling to every corner of Central America - discovering a different perspective of life. She has traveled and explored every single country that is part of Central America, and has also lived in the United States where she learned fluent English.

Dedicated to sustainable tourism for more than nine years, she has specialized in Mayan culture, history, and is currently learning new fields of research such as ornithology.

Thanks to tourism, incredible opportunities have opened up for her, such as meeting new cultures, faiths, beliefs, and thoughts.
Jennifer is always ready to share her time and travel experience with people who desire to get to know the real beauty of Guatemala.

Raquel Barbosa

Graphic Designer/ Brand Manager

Originally from Mexico City, Raquel left the bustling concrete jungle to pursue a “happily ever after” at the beautiful beach town of Playa del Carmen; and to start her own family. Her passion for art and design began since she was little as she starts an early career as a ballerina at the National Center for Arts at the Capital city. Today Raquel is a mother at day and a graphic designer at night. Her delicate taste and refined graphic skills become the perfect combination to bring the Alma’s Expeditions brand to life.

Raquel is the creator and guardian of how our travel brand looks and feels. Whether it’s browsing our website, reading our newsletter, or seeing a digital ad, she is the one that makes it all feel like a cohesive user experience.

Nefi Gomez

Belize Guide/Trip Leader

Nefi Gomez is a descendant of the Mayas from a group called the “Icaiche” who once inhabited the lands near the border between Belize and Mexico. As such, he was born in the lands that his ancestors once inhabited, now known as Orange Walk, Belize; where he resides full-time and raises a beautiful family of 3 children. He has a passion for Mayan archaeology and every time he visits a Mayan site, it is with great pride and a high sense of belonging that he walks where his ancestors once walked which makes him feel a deep connection with them. It is that pride and passion that propels him to be the best guide there is. He has become the go-to guide for the Mayan site of Lamanai a place he holds dear to his heart. His most fondest memories as a child, was when him and his brothers would visit this site with their parents.

After serving as a full time missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ, in the Ecuador Guayaquil North Mission, Nefi returned and got married to Melina Rosado, whom he had a long time crush. Melina also served a full time mission in the El Salvador West Mission. Together they have three children Nephi, Hailey and Sariah.

By utilizing his vast experience and knowledge, he offers guests a unique and exclusive glimpse of Belize. No one knows Belize better than Nefi, and no one can tell a story like he does!
He is a genuine people’s person, a natural storyteller and a true asset to Alma’s Expeditions. His ability to communicate with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures has enabled him to lead tour groups with great success, many times making those tours the highlight of the entire trip.

Nicholas Sicay Mesia

Lake Atitlan Guide/ Trip Leader

Nico, as we all know him, is our local native Tz'utujil guide at Lake Atitlan, Guatemala. Born and raised at Santiago Atitlan, the largest town around the lake, he grew up learning the traditions and customs of his ancestors. He remembers his family hosting many "Maximom" wakes at home and learning how to dress the "Maximon" idol for the holidays properly. His tribal name is "Aklaax", but everyone outside his town calls him "Nico".

His first language was "Tz'utujil", one of the 27 Mayan dialects currently spoken in Guatemala, and also speaks perfect Spanish. Since 2009, Nico became an official tour guide and it had always been his dream to learn to speak English so that tour agencies could hire him more often. He started by reading articles in English and listening very carefully to people speak it. In 2010, he began listening to missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ at his home and realized their need to learn the local dialect, so he made them a deal they couldn't resist, he would teach them tz'utujil, if they taught him how to speak English. So, since 2011, Nico has begun to offer tours in English to people visiting the lake.

In 2013, Nico had his first child, named Jacobo, and in 2015 his daughter Maria was born. In 2017, he decided it was time to continue his professional studies at the San Carlos University in Guatemala City to obtain a degree in Sustainable Tourism and obtain a license as a General Tour Guide, which gives him the knowledge and ability to guide tours throughout all of Guatemala.

Sandy Espinoza Bell

Reservations Support

Born in Texas and raised in San Luis Potosi - Mexico. Sandy is a true adventurer at heart and an amazing asset to Alma's Expeditions.

She speaks perfect English and Spanish and is always ready to help customers answer all their questions before they pull the trigger booking a trip. Part of her assignments includes speaking to customers over the phone, replying to emails, following-up on reservations, overall making sure your first impression with us is a positive experience.

She is also a professional photographer and has a degree from the University of San Luis Potosi in Photography and Communications.

She enjoys photographing memories at weddings, birthdays, baby showers, and all sorts of private events, and especially landscapes.

Griselda Pacheco Cupul

Operations Manager

From the beautiful island of Cozumel, she is currently our Operations Manager.

Griselda is our behind the scenes gal responsible for making everything run smoothly during a trip. We often refer to her as our Wonder Woman. She takes care of all tedious and annoying steps of planning and executing a trip that you don't need to worry about.

From verifying that all the hotel reservations are made accordingly, to ensuring we have assigned the right vehicle for each group. She will make sure that the execution of your trip is a seamless and smooth experience.

She is also a fulltime mother to a young boy of 4, and is a retired lawyer with a degree in law from the Universidad Interamericana para el Desarrollo.