After realizing that this summer’s box-office lineup revolves heavily around films that feature girls-trips-gone-wrong (Rough Night, Girls Trip, 47 Meters Deep and more), we got to thinking about staging a (non-disastrous) besties’ getaway of our own sometime this summer. And while it’s tempting to default to either Vegas or a winery when planning such a trip—the former if you’re in need of a good story, the latter if you’ve retired from tight dresses and cigarette-smoke inhalation—these aren’t the only two options for a girls weekend. Here, five unforgettable trips to take with your besties, whether you’re in your 20s, 30s, 40s or beyond.
Grab The Girls And Go
These days, it feels as though we are permanently in need of a detox. Day jobs, we feel, are the biggest contributor to our general sense of feeling unwell (aka, hours of sitting while inhaling junk food nonstop). For this reason, we highly recommend hitting up a spa or even a wellness retreat with your girls instead of planning a trip that revolves around cocktails. Here, a list of our favorite spas in the US (we are newly obsessed with uber-luxe Loma de Vida that happens to be in this editor's hometown, as well). If you're looking for a more full-fledged detox experience, try something like the all-inclusive program at Golden Door or, for more balance, a margaritas-and-meditation type of trip, like this one featuring our favorite guru, Kelsey J. Patel.
We don't know about you, but we feel like sometimes it's a waste of our (relative) youth to go lie on a beach somewhere given that we spend 90% of our every-day lives sitting squarely on our bottoms. If you're of this mindset as well, we suggest you and your besties consider instead an adventure trip: Black Tomato has some seriously amazing examples, which you can either book through them or use as inspiration for your own DIY experience. Imagine the Instagram opportunities in Antarctica, for example, not to mention the bragging rights with respect to your grandchildren, who—due to climate change—won't even know what ice caps are.
Who doesn't love to eat with abandon while on vacation? Not this girl. Honestly, our idea of a dream vacation is one in which we only wake up for feedings, like a baby. Now you can, of course, DIY your own foodie trip—Italy and Spain are obvious choices or, for something closer to home, we suggest New Orleans or Charleston—or you can sign on for a pre-planned trip or tour. This trip, for example, is sort of a dream of ours: National Geographic called it the "Tour Of A Lifetime." If you're on more of a budget, we suggest digging into Airbnb's experience offerings, as many have gastrological bents (like this one).
A few years ago, this editor took a recently brokenhearted friend to Rio. The trip was immensely healing, as there's nowhere in the world with more attractive men who will make you feel like the most beautiful woman on the planet—trust us. Brazil isn't the only place where flings are almost inevitable, but we can almost guarantee that a little time in Ipanema will result in romance. If you and your girls are proudly single, newly divorced or anywhere in-between, this type of trip is a must.
When was the last time you and your girls had quality time that wasn't punctuated by texts from boys, needy interjections from kids, work emails and everything else life-related? Nothing, we feel, is better for the soul in 2017 than disconnecting, and given that we can't even imagine spending a whole trip connecting with other humans rather than devices, it might be wise to do this before it's too late. Personally, we're dying to go to Turtle Island in Fiji, where they only offer wi-fi in the guest shop. That property caters more to couples, however, so for a girls' trip we'd recommend something like the Digital Detox package at Nayara Springs which, while still a smidge romantic, could function perfectly for a rejuvenating girls trip, as well. If you can't fully unplug because of kids or work, try to have a no-phone policy at specific times (meals are great for this), and remember—you can always post photos when you get home and are back at work, bored and wondering why you would have ever wanted to stare at a screen while on vacation.
