About iTrip Punta Gorda

About iTrip Punta Gorda

Chris and Wendy Benson own and manage iTrip Punta Gorda. They provide short-term rental owners and guests world-class services in Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte and Charlotte Harbor – all located in the Charlotte Harbor Gulf Island Coast region.

Over the last 30 years, Chris Benson has built a career as a computer hardware/software engineer, manager and executive. In these roles, he solved complex and large-scale problems in the defense, telecommunications and cloud computing industries. Across these fields, he has specialized in creating optimal outcomes for customers, professional partners and his team. Chris is excited to apply these skills to the short-term rental management markets of Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda.

Chris is a Georgia native where he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from Georgia Tech University. Chris and his wife, Wendy, have five children. He is an enthusiastic golfer, loves boating, and is a huge fan of the spectacular sunsets over the Gulf of Mexico.

Wendy Benson has focused on managing complex IT software development projects for large corporations. She started as a software engineer specializing in coding database applications, and during her career gained experience in managing multi-million dollar budgets for IT projects.

Wendy brings her IT integration experience and knowledge to make vacation rentals successful with iTrip. She looks forward to supporting short-term rentals in Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte while providing boutique-level service to homeowners and guests.

In her spare time, Wendy and her sister, Suzanne Kyre, train for triathlons. Wendy started participating in triathlons in the fall of 2012, and by 2016 was a two-time ironman. Wendy brings her determination and fortitude to drive iTrip's business with her husband, Chris, their son, Joe, and her sister, Suzanne.

Suzanne’s previous career was in elementary education, and she retired in 2022 from the Community Christian School in Port Charlotte Florida.

Suzanne has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education from St. Leo University and completed graduate work at Liberty University in Christian leadership. Suzanne demonstrated her leadership, organizational, and people skills by leading her team as a Program Planner and her peers as the Elementary Team leader. Suzanne was nominated several times for Teacher of the Year of Charlotte County and was awarded Port Charlotte AppleBee’s Teacher of the year in 2019.

As general manager of iTrip Punta Gorda, she loves interacting with people and using her skills to meet the needs of vacation rental homeowners and traveling guests. Suzanne and her husband reside in Port Charlotte, Florida, where she enjoys butterfly gardening, triathlons and spending time with her grandchildren.

Joe Benson comes to iTrip with experience as a North Carolina Real Estate Agent and licensed loan originator. He grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina, and graduated from East Carolina University with a Bachelor of Science in Quantitative Economics. After a career as a supply chain analyst, Joe decided to enter real estate to take advantage of his strengths coupled with a personal interest in the industry. He became a licensed real estate agent in 2020, and then joined an award-winning real estate agency in Greenville, North Carolina. In 2021, Joe became a licensed mortgage originator working as a Loan Analyst and Closing coordinator.

Joe is excited to bring his breadth of real estate knowledge and customer service focus to the iTrip team. In his free time, he enjoys training his German Shepard and golfing.

Contact iTrip Punta Gorda to learn more about the full-service rental management program in Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte.