Executive Suite: Carole Lucca, Huntington

For Carole Celiberti Lucca, a former teacher, her job as tour guide and president of All Around Long Island is part educator, part performer and a spoonful of sugar. (She gives out "a sweet taste of Long Island" at the end of her tours.)

"I guess a little bit I'm still a teacher, and I'm a little bit of an actor too," she said.

Started in 1995, All Around Long Island, based in Huntington, creates tours for libraries, Scout troops, tour operators and other groups.

A recent Gatsby tour, conducted by guides in flapper costumes, toured the Gold Coast mansions, ending in the great room at Coe Hall, where two actors in period dress played F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald.

About 1,600 people participated in tours last year, at $54 to $89 a head.

Lucca insists she isn't a historian but has a history teacher's knowledge of Long Island, which she conveys -- wearing her signature cowboy hat -- with fun, enthusiasm . . . and those candy bars.

"It's a sweet ending, and people leave happy," she said.

SEE PHOTOSSee who got hired, promoted on LI

How did the company come about?

My husband was in banking, and I used to go [to conventions and] on all the spousal tours with him. I realized they didn't have any day tours based on Long Island. The first place we went was the hotels. We thought [they] would love the idea of keeping people an extra day. Nobody was interested! We were devastated! Then we went to libraries, and it took off.

What is the most important element you look for in a tour guide?

You have to be enthusiastic about Long Island and you have to be able to make 45 people so happy they're on your coach, even through [long] days . . . and when you're stuck in traffic.

Are there any tours you won't give?

No casinos and no outlets. We don't take people upstate to spend their money. We want to keep it on Long Island.

How do you market your tours?

Mostly it's word-of-mouth. Again -- it's people. I do try to do fliers at libraries, but it's word-of-mouth mostly.

Tell me about your passion for Long Island.

We are so eclectic out here. We have 13 towns and two cities and loads and loads of hamlets and villages; we are like 50 states under one umbrella. I'm really proud I'm here. I'm just proud I'm from Long Island.

What's with the cowboy hat?

I am not very tall, so the hats were originally so people could see me, but this one became my favorite. I think I bought it at the Hampton Classic.

No holds barred -- if you could go anywhere, what would be your dream tour?

I wish I could be around 20 or 30 years from now to tour outer space. When I think about how far we've come in 40 years and I project how far we will come in the future, I want to be there. Because it's going to be a remarkable world.

CORPORATE SNAPSHOT

NAME: Carole Lucca, president and owner of All Around Long Island in Huntington

WHAT IT DOES: Create and conduct innovative tours of Long Island and elsewhere.

EMPLOYEES: 5, plus occasional freelancers

REVENUES: $120,000