Mary2Go

I have often thought it would be fun to take a trip with a couple of my "girlfriends" and do the things that my husband and sons despise doing on vacation...shopping, spa treatments, going to tea, etc. I mentioned it once to my husband and he wasn't to taken with the idea of separate vacations. I am curious about you other Fodor gals taking trips with "the girls." Where have you gone, what have you done and what did your hubbies do while you were gone without them?

Fodorite018

I've done this a few times and its great! Went to Red Mountain Spa with about a dozen girlfriends from all around the country as well as from Canada. Then went to Sunriver Resort in Oregon with an old girlfriend. We are planning the next trip already. The husbands manage just fine...even the ones with small children at home. My dh was a tad nervous the first time, but now thinks its great...and he and another husband and kids get together while we are gone.

bonniebroad

I go almost every year to the mountains of North Carolina with about five other girls. We stay in a big mountain cabin with deck overlooking the lower hills. We take food, wine, liquor, movies, games, books......... each one does a dinner and a breakfast. We only leave the premises one day.....for a major shopping spree in Boone, Blowing Rock, etc. and lunch out. Otherwise, many days we never get out of our muu-muus or pjs. It's a lovely, big, long PJ party, one of the most fun trips I take.

emd

I have a very close girlfriend and I go hiking w/her for along weekend every year. We go to the Oak Creek/Sedona area, although this year we have a trip planned to Zion/Bryce. I happen to also be business colleagues w/her (I am self-employed and she happens to be one of my biggest clients) but the trip is primarily based on our long 20 yr. friendship and love of hiking.
I have other long-term female friends, but I have never planned a trip like this w/them. This one friend is just so comforatble and easy to be with, no matter what is going on in our lives. Some of my other close friends can present hassles in various ways, and I just choose to travel w/this one friend.
BTW- my husband and I take one vaction a yr. together without the kids(long weekend) and we vacation together w/our faimily, but he also takes one long weekend every spring to go to spring exhibition baseball in Florida w/his best male buddy. He deserves it also. And it is very healthy for us both to have separate experiences w/our friends. We are fortunate enough to be able to afford it.

ilovetulips

Hi! Before I was married I went with 3 girlfriends to New Orleans one weekend. We did Bourbon St., took a walking tour of the Garden District, had beignets sp? at Cafe du Monde. We had a great time. I remember spending both nights at Pat O'Brien's in the piano bar. It was an experience I will always remember.

ski4me

I have gone on trips "with the girls" several times. The first was when my husband and I were still dating, so he was already used to it by the time we got married. I have gone to the beach, Hawaii, the lake, Dallas to shop, and others. Most are short, but the Hawaii trip was 10 days. For the last 3 years my sister has lived out of state so I go on vacation at her house. My husband doesn't care because he works for himself and it is hard for him to take off. (No paid 2 -4 week vacations for him!!) This summer I am going with my daughter, one of her friend's, and the friend's mother and sister to the beach. The other mother's husband is in the same situation where it is hard for her husband to go on vacation during the summer also. It makes me a much happier person to go on a vacation and relax after working hard, so I will take a girls trip anytime I get a chance. Then if my husband gets a chance to go on a vacation I get to go again! Lucky me!

BowenLinda

My husband and I have been together for 30 years, and I've been off on girlfriend holidays since year one. I live outside of Vancouver, and I've been off with girlfriends to local spots like Victoria, Whistler and the Okanagan Valley, slightly farther away to Seattle, off to San Francisco and L.A., Hawaii a few times, Mexico once, and last fall to Italy. This fall I'm off with a good friend to Paris, Venice and Tuscany.

I like Europe and big cities, and he likes sailing and remote coastlines. Each summer our family, including our two sons, heads off sailing for 3 weeks, and my hubby grabs other sailing trips with the guys throughout the year.

I organize the kids' schedules to the nth degree which my husband and kids promptly ignore, but everyone is happy. He gets to really get close with the kids and I get to take a deep breath.

Try it out, Mary2Go!

Cheers,
Linda

BAK

Last Saturday I met a group of six women in downtown Toronto who were away for a "girls' weekend" all the way from Oakville, Ontario, which is about 30 miles away. I took a group photo of them while they were shopping. They had tickets for The Producers that night, and told me their kids were probably just fine, as were their husbands. I did get the feeling the dads and kids were probably eating in restaurants, but were enjoying each other's company.

Another woman I photographed recently told me about going from Toronto to Montreal with half a dozen other women. Biggest problem was the two-hour woman; she took this long to get dressed to go out in the evening, and after twonights of this the rest decided to just leave her behind, and call her cell phone an hour later to tell her where to meet up with the more prompt members of the group.

Knowing where there are good shoe stores was an important element, I was told, by both groups.

BAK

dfrostnh

My friends from high school and I have been going on long weekends together for 25 years. Originally we tried to stay in touch by having our families get together but one year a husband complained about having to hear those old school stories AGAIN. So it was announced that next year he wouldn't be invited and neither would any of the husbands. We tend to do things our husbands wouldn't like to do. Since we live in the northeast we started out with a visit to Boston but our trips have included all the New England states, Montreal and Washington DC. This year we're planning a trip to New Orleans. The weekends give us a chance to re-connect, share advice and do things we might ordinarily miss. We take turns planning the trips.

Dreamer2

Travel with the Girls is a definite DO!
It's so much fun to have time away for "girl stuff," and for catching up with friends. I wouldn't do it, however, if it were my only vacation each year. I think it's nice to have a family vacation each year, plus a long weekend with the hubby, plus a long weekend with the girlfriends. It keeps you sane!
While you're gone, husband takes care of the kiddies. (Just like you do when he's on his own trip for business or guy stuff!) You can leave him a couple meals, or gift cert for the kids' fav restaurant. If he has family in the area, he'll probably bring the kids there for a visit! Or maybe his Mom would want to stay with them for the weekend. You can also rent a couple good action movies for him to see while you're gone, or get tickets for him to take the boys to a sports event. My husband often does house projects that he hasn't been able to get to while I'm away.
Great girl trips for shopping, spa, and tea: Newport, RI, Nantucket, Montreal or Toronto, Santa Fe, and of course NYC. Also Orlando (but how do you go without the kids?) and New Orleans (but how do you go without the husband?)!
Hope you can make it work and have fun!

karens

I have a group of girl friends at the gym that I would love to get together with and go somewhere. Haven't had the energy to organize anything that big yet.
I do have one girl friend I've been away with 2x for a long weekend. We go to places my husband would be thrilled NOT to go! Once we spent a long weekend at the Greenbrier Spa and once we spent a long weekend in Boston to see the Monet exhibit. (My husband likes Boston, but goes there all the time b/c his company is HQ'd there). My friend's mom calls me her daughter's "art friend" b/c we go to art museums or do garden tours and stuff like that together. And she just agreed to accompany me to an ultimate art destination - Paris!!
My husband has always said I should go to Europe with a girlfriend so he wouldn't have me begging to go with him and then drag him to art museums, which he hates. But as soon as I told him I was going, he said, You owe me, big time. Huh. He travels for business and he's been on several solo ski weekends, so it's not like he doesn't go away a lot on his own. On "business" trips he's been to Atlantis, skiing in Utah, Barcelona and CA. My sons are not thrilled I will be away for so long (9 days), but I know they will survive. Not that I won't worry and won't miss them!
For starters, try to organize a long weekend trip to a spa or other girl-y thing. Your husband may be thrilled he's not going!

suzanne

I couldn't live without separate vacations! In the seven years I've been with me man I've taken 7 beach weekends at the Jersey Shore (Avalon), 1-2 week trips to Ireland, Portugal, Greece, Mexico and Scandinavia, and four weeklong beach vacations, all with a girlfriend or several girlfriends. If I had to wait for my guy to get permission to take time off, I'd never get to go anywhere! An don't tell anyone this...but vacations with the girls are MUCH more fun!

laurelt

The last trip I took with girlfriends was to Vegas. Only 3 nights but LOTS of fun. I highly recommend it -- even if you don't gamble.

Mary2Go

Thank you all ladies! I am lucky because I don't have small children to worry about, only one teenager still under the roof! I am going to start plotting something right away. I think I will start talking about some destination that the hubby will have no interest in seeing and then by time I make my plans he will be relieved he doesn't have to go! He works all the time and since he runs his own business we usually don't get away more than once a year unless it involves a business trip with a few extra days for personal time thrown in. Thank you all for the inspiration, even if I don't make it I can live vacariously through you!