Girl Trippin’
Next time you get the urge to plan a vacation, you may want to accidentally forget to invite your husband. If you have kids, forget to invite them, too.
Instead, call up the people who will willingly shop, spend hours by the pool, indulge in lavender salt scrubs, and watch late night screenings of “Steel Magnolias” with you. These people are your girlfriends.
A girl trip offers the chance to reconnect with yourself, your friends and, most importantly, to let loose and have some fun. Destinations can be anything from camping to cooking school to sightseeing in a big city. Just because it’s a girl trip doesn’t mean it has to include wine drinking and spa treatments. (But it probably will.)
Given that money is mysteriously evaporating from the planet these days, you and your gal pals may be planning a trip on a budget. One way to keep costs down is to stay local. For example, get away to one of Colorado’s mountain hot springs. Nothing facilitates good girl talk like a place where all there is to do is sit in warm water and stare at each other. Be sure to pack along some mind-eroding celebrity gossip magazines, blacklisted snacks and a swimsuit (or not, depending on how you roll), and you’re set for a gloriously stress-free weekend. Strawberry Park Hot Springs just outside of Steamboat (www.strawberryhotsprings.com) is sure to please.
Another local option is a visit to the unpretentious wine country on the Western Slope. Pack up your bikes and a sturdy bottle opener and set out for the charming town of Palisade. Pedal from winery to winery, tasting the wares (almost always for the bargain price of free) and taking in gorgeous scenery, all for a fraction of what a similar trip in California would cost. Go in late summer and slurp the juice from ripe Palisade peaches while gazing out over picturesque vineyards.
But maybe you’re longing for a total change of scenery, or just want to leave the planning to someone else. In this case look no further than the First Annual Girls Gotta Get Away Caribbean Cruise, brought to you by Erie-based Gotta Get Away Travel.
Picture yourself on a cruise ship in the Bahamas, surrounded by your favorite gals, sipping fruity drinks and relaxing in ocean breezes. Aaaahhhhh. This four-day cruise starts at the wallet-friendly price of $330 (airfare is separate). For more information contact Shril Garcia at gga.travel@gmail.com.
The truth is, where you go on your girl trip is much less important than whom you go with. With true girl friends, the fun will come just from being together.
