A Hole in the Clouds

Available now at:

Join Maryles Casto in conversation with Elaine Petrocelli

This event, originally scheduled for Saturday, January 22nd, has been postponed.

Book Passage Corte Madera 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera, CA 94925

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About the author

Maryles Casto is a pioneering travel industry executive and entrepreneur, with 48 years of experience in founding and leading companies to profitability. A former Philippine Airlines flight attendant, Casto created and helmed Silicon Valley-based Casto Travel, the largest privately owned travel management agency on the West Coast. She sold the company to Flight Centre Travel Group of Australia in 2019.

She is the founder and owner of Casto Travel Philippines, Inc., and is chairwoman and CEO of MVC Solutions, which provides travel industry businesses with back office support, accounting, and other services. Casto Travel was frequently ranked among the Top 100 Fastest Growing Businesses in Silicon Valley and San Francisco and was also ranked second in revenues in Silicon Valley women-owned businesses by the Silicon Valley Business Journal in 2006.

Maryles has served on many business, civic and philanthropic boards including the Commonwealth Club of California; was International Chair of the Committee of 200, an invitation-only group for the world’s most successful entrepreneur; and is a founding member of the Northern California branch of the International Women’s Forum.

Praise for A Hole In the Clouds

“I was pretty independent most of my life. I had flight guidebooks and would select my own flights. But Casto Travel always did an excellent job of finding hotels and suggesting trips. Eventually, Casto could do a better flight-booking job with their computers than I could do myself, so I used Casto exclusively for any important travel for a decade or two in my life. Casto is the only travel agency that I remember. I struggle to find the personal attention I received from Casto Travel in every aspect of my life these days. A Hole in the Clouds explains how and why they treated me so well.”
Steve WozniakApple Cofounder, Designer, and Engineer
“Poignant, touching and insightful, I enjoyed reading A Hole in the Clouds so much. Maryles is brilliant—a legend, a class act, and an inspiration to women, mothers, entrepreneurs, and humanity in general.”
Charlene Leiss President, Flight Centre Travel Group, The Americas
“Those of us who know and travel with Maryles are witness to all she has built; the lives she has touched; the rich legacy of stories from her childhood; her growth of the business among Silicon Valley legends; her loves and losses, family, and so many friendships. A Hole in the Clouds is the American dream of a young immigrant woman who built a thriving business from the ground up because her eyes saw only the blue sky beyond the clouds, and her heart told her nothing was impossible. “Her business was built on love . . . love of travel, flying, hospitality, and most importantly—family. Her clients, vendors, employees, and all of us lucky enough to be friends with this fearless, charming, and inspiring entrepreneur feel we, too, are family. “Maryles’s life and this book are a master class in what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur.”
Mary HussMarket President and Publisher, San Francisco Business Times and Silicon Valley Business Journal
“WOW. A Hole in the Clouds is a page-turner. So many of us raised kids, managed our careers, and can identify with many aspects of this story. Bravo to you, Maryles. I hope our daughters read this. It is inspiring.”
Mary M. BersotCFA, Bersot Capital Management LLC
“I can honestly say that Casto Travel was an integral part of our success. Without the efficient and accurate travel plans Conner Peripherals would never have been able to keep up with the growth for those ten years. Flights, hotels, and all other travel needs were handled with total pro- fessionalism. My thanks to Maryles and her team for their support. A Hole in the Clouds is a blueprint for how to build a truly customer-first service business.”
Finis Conner Cofounder of Fortune 500 companies Seagate Technology and Conner Peripherals
“Maryles Casto is an inspiration for all of us. Her obsession with excellent customer service combined with her gutsy risk-taking determination produced a remarkable entrepreneur. Her immigrant story, told in A Hole in the Clouds, is about landing in Silicon Valley, but her success is all about seizing its opportunities.”
Connie MartinezChief Executive Officer, SVCREATES
“This is the American story of one immigrant woman’s success that is a model for us all: unflagging efforts to succeed, personal confidence, and perseverance over time. This is a book for anyone who sustains the American dream.”
Judy KochFormer owner of RSP Manufacturing Corporation, founder of the Bring Me a Book foundation, and C200 member
“Maryles not only lives the American dream . . . she is the quintessential entrepreneur! Her passion and energy are intoxicating! Bravo!”
Josie Cruz NatoriCEO and founder of the Natori Company
“It’s early days in Silicon Valley—a wildfire of technological innovation— the doers being mostly white and all male. Into this forbidding neighborhood walks a young Filipina who wants to start a non tech business. A Hole in the Clouds is a tale of a pubescent Silicon Valley and someone who, although checking none of the right boxes, prevails. Maryles has a great story to tell.”
Irwin FedermanUSVP
“In today’s fast-changing world where social inequity, technology acceleration, and disruptive business models place a premium on purpose-driven leadership, Maryles Casto’s journey and insights provide a case study in courage, compassion, and principle-based decision-making. It is a must-read for anyone seeking inspiration and insights for navigating uncertainty, adversity, and the continuous pursuit of the next horizon.”
Brad D. SmithCEO Executive Chairman, Intuit
“Maryles Casto’s amazing immigrant-to-multimillion-dollar-business woman success story is an inspiration not only to all immigrants who have to work harder for equal space in the corporate world, but also to women who strive within an environment mostly occupied by men. She exemplifies what Filipino hospitality is all about with her clients by making them feel at home and part of the Casto Travel family. This is the secret to her success.”
Mona Lisa YuchengcoPublisher, PositivelyFilipino.com
“I have known Maryles for many, many years and have watched her creative business acumen revolutionize the travel agencies as they have been operated. Her commitment to her employees and customers is unparalleled.”
George MarcusChairman of Marcus & Millichap and Essex Property Trust
“Maryles is an inspiration and role model. She is an entrepreneur in the truest sense, having created and re-created herself many times. A Hole in the Clouds can teach us all how to dream bigger, believe in ourselves, and never take no for an answer. She is a true pioneer of the Silicon Valley.”
Naomi KelmanCEO Willow Innovations, Inc.
“Maryles Casto is an important community leader in Silicon Valley, San Francisco, California, and the Philippines. She is also a wonderful storyteller, and she has drawn on her personal, business, and public life to write a fascinating tale!”
Dr. Gloria C. DuffyPresident and CEO, The Commonwealth Club
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A sneak peek of A Hole in the Clouds

“Are you ready for this?”
My brother Gus and I stood on the steps in front of the double doors of Harvard Business School. It was 1997. We had flown from San Francisco to Boston the night before, checked in at nearby hotel, eaten a desultory dinner. After a morning devoted to our separate projects, we had reunited here, in front of the great red brick and white wood colonial-style building, with its four-columned portico and distinctive cupola rising far above us.
Am I ready?

Gus’ question transported me back to our flight to Boston. Buckled into my seat, I had watched the flight attendants move back and forth between the galley and their passengers, pouring drinks, delivering meals, handing out blankets. That was me, I thought. At eighteen years old, during the golden age of airline travel, I became a stewardess, as we were called then, for Philippine Airlines. Suddenly I could see my past as if I were watching a movie: tucked into my smart uniform, commanding the galley, striding the aisles, anticipating each of my passenger’s needs. Now I was in the passenger seat, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur, founder of a global travel company, invited to Harvard Business School, where Casto Travel would be presented as a case study. It was a surreal moment—as if I had blinked and become the person I am today.

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Media Coverage

The Mercury News
SV Chat: Maryles Casto on business travel, Silicon Valley tech titans, the Great Resignation
Read Here
Forbes
Life Lessons From A Flight Attendant Turned Silicon Valley CEO
Read Here
Modern Luxury Silicon Valley
5 Questions With Silicon Valley CEO Maryles Casto
Click Here
Marin Living
How a Local Flight-Attendant-Turned-CEO Became a Silicon Valley Mainstay
Read Here
Nob Hill Gazette
Five Questions: Business Trip And Tome
Read Here
The Beat
Maryles Casto: Guest columnist at The Beat, a travel industry newsletter, on how the tech elite's demands informed her service ethos
Read Here
FilAm Star
A Hole in the Clouds – no pie in the sky
Read Here
Haute Living San Francisco
A Memoir Takes Flight
Read Here
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