Every month in her Window Seat or Aisle Seat column family travel expert Kerri Zane shows moms how they can plan trips to create memories, get out of the classroom, and combine learning and travel. Not this time.
Now that the kids are back in schools, here’s how moms can plan a girlfriend getaway just for themselves.
Moms, we have successfully navigated the summer season filling our kids daily calendar’s with one activity or another. We shopped for all the necessary books, backpacks, pencils, and planners to get them geared up and ready for the school season. It’s still warm enough for some outdoor fun, so how about treating you and your mommy gal pals to your own brand of active summer season getaway. Here are a few of my favorite rough and tumble with a touch of luxury escapes.
As an extra bonus for my single mom friends sign up for the single mom superstar webinar and get a FREE Myrtle Beach spring break getaway.
South Carolina
For moms looking to explore the great outdoors without sacrificing a day at the beach, Myrtle Beach has 60 miles of coastline. It also offers plenty of other options: big game fishing, riverboat tours of the intracoastal waterway, kayaking in the back bays and marshes plus a host of more traditional water sports. When you’re done exploring the there are plenty of spa treatments to try and just a few cocktails to drink. Add some variety to your stay and head to the south end of the Grand Strand to check out Brookgreen Gardens, where you can’t miss the sculpture.
Not sure what kind of vacation you want to plan? Visit the destination’s Facebook page to take the quiz. A special added bonus for my single mom gal pals. Enter to win a FREE family getaway. Be the first to sign up for my Single mom superstar webinar.
Wyoming
I love combining a great trip with a good cause. From October 3-6, The Lodge & Spa at Brush Creek Ranch will host the “Cowgirl Up for the Cure.” A Preferred Boutique Hotel and Orvis-endorsed fly-fishing lodge, this independent guest ranch is set amidst a century-old working cattle ranch outside Saratoga in south central Wyoming’s North Platte River Valley. Cowgirl Up for the Cure weekend is ladies-only. Pricing for the weekend is $2,250 per person (all inclusive) with $750 per person being donated to the Denver affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. In addition, contributions made throughout the weekend will be matched dollar for dollar by the Bruce and Beth White Family Foundation (Bruce White is the owner of Brush Creek Ranch). Aside from just giving back, guest can try out a variety of ranch activities including horseback riding, fly-fishing, shooting range, hiking, mountain biking, access to the Trailhead Spa, a challenge ropes course and hipline; educational programs focused on health, and wellness and cancer prevention. There will be nightly entertainment including a Boot Scootin’ Barn Dance; Gourmet Rocky Mountain cuisine, and special guest speakers (to be announced). To reserve your spot log in here.
Georgia
Thirty-two miles south of Atlanta is Serenbe Inn. Set among 1,000 acres, the property has over 15 miles of trails accessible by foot, mountain bike or horse. Horseback riding, canoeing, hiking and fishing are also offered at The Inn. You can also just chill on a swing the size of twin beds. To relax even further, the spa offers facials, massage and yoga classes. Hayrides and marshmallow roasts (with cocktails, of course) around a campfire are also among the highlights. Then after a long leisurely day relax on the outside patio near the fireplace and enjoy a long talk with your girlfriends late into the night. Serenbe is a certified organic farm offering over 350 varieties of vegetables, herbs, flowers and fruits. Farm tours and farm volunteering opportunities abound with cooking classes offered with veggies fresh off the farm. On the luxury side of things, on the Inn grounds is The Farmhouse restaurant, serving farm-fresh organic ingredients grown just steps away on Serenbe Farms.
Kansas
Moore Ranch in Southwest Kansas is a real deal, working guest ranch. They offer a Cowgirl Experience Vacations. You and your girlfriends can experience ranching life by learning riding skills, roping, cooking in Dutch ovens, moving longhorn cattle horseback and watching for wildlife. The ranch also has cattle drives four times a year when they move cattle to new pasture. Although these cattle drives are not limited to just women, bring your friends and drive the longhorn cattle anywhere from 12 – 35 miles over 2 to 3 days. Lodging during the cattle drive is in a cowboy teepee or under the stars in a bedroll. The food is served from a chuckwagon. For ore information, visit the website or call 620-826-3649.
Vermont
Credit: Visit VT Tourism, via Facebook
Trevin Farms is located on 40 beautiful acres facing the Green Mountains and the Green Mountain National Forest in West Central Vermont. In 2008, they opened the farm to guests after purchasing Purebred Nubian Goats. There you and your friends can experience what it is like to live and operate a farm in today’s world. You’ll have the opportunity to make cheese from the goat’s milk using common everyday equipment in the kitchen that most people already have, no special equipment needed. They also feature homemade dinners and an authentic Vermont Country breakfast. It’s a complete 24/7 unplugged experience for you to relax and enjoy the farm, staying away from cell phones, tablets and computers (they have only one TV in the living room that gets two TV stations). You might also choose to relax in the chairs on the front lawn facing the Green Mountains with a bottle of wine and a good book. Trevin is close to hiking, biking, shops, antique stores and most of Vermont’s attractions.
Florida
Greater Fort Lauderdale could be the perfect fit for your Rustic Girlfriend Getaway. There is everything from outdoor adventures with alligators and wildlife to easing aches and pains at a variety of spa venues. Take an exclusive VIP Tour at Billie Swamp Safari, located on the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation. It’s an in-depth eco-tour of the Florida Everglades on an airboat or take advantage of the overnight accommodations in the rustic camping village in a native-style Chickee and live like a Seminole native. After a wild day out relax at the Diamante Day Spa with the Brazilian Deluxe Spa Day Package or stop in at The Atlantic Resort and Spa and try one of their Signature Beer Treatments. Of course, a Floridian getaway requires the right wardrobe and I find dry dudz to be the perfect combination of fashion, function and form. It’s swimwear, active wear and stylish apparel all-in-one. Easy-to-pack and versatile, they transition from a morning swim to an afternoon run to an evening sightseeing. Click here for more information on Greater Fort Lauderdale.
Northern California
Wine, Women and Wildebeest is the theme for a very special kind of Sonoma girlfriend getaway. Safari West will delight you and your friends with Serengeti Serenity. It’s a package that makes for a wild pairing for you gals feeling wild at heart — Exotic Animals and Beautiful Wine! Break away from the workweek, kids, spouses, cell phones, errands and daily routines and step into Serengeti serenity. Friday night is Girls’ Night! The package for two gals includes overnight glamping in one of their luxury tent-cabins, a sumptuous dinner at the Savannah Grill and a wild Safari Adventure to explore over 400 acres of exotic wildlife. To top it all off, they include the most essential girl foods: wine and chocolate! Rates for everything listed above for two women. Gratuity not included. September or October: $518.94. November: $429.05.December: $419.01. Make it a slumber party! Add other female friends for an additional $153.52 per person, up to a maximum of four per tent.
Alaska
Winterlake Lodge is the remote getaway perfect for a girls weekend because it offers all the outdoors adventure of Alaska with award-winning cuisine (thanks to the Le-Cordon-Blue trained chef, Kristen Dixon), a complimentary massage treatment, daily yoga classes, wine and cheese tastings, a hot tub, Frette bathrobes and L’Occitane amenities. The Lodge is located about 198 trail miles northwest of Anchorage on the Iditarod National Historic Trail. You and the girls will travel to the lodge via floatplane or ski plane depending on the season. September is the perfect season for daily adventures such as fly-fishing, rafting, wildlife watching, hiking or helicopter flying lessons. Or get a taste of the real Alaskan outback and visit a nearby glacier camp via helicopter and spend a full day learning to drive the family’s team of sled dogs or trekking on the glacier. For more girlfriend trips, check out:
By Kerri Zane for PeterGreenberg.com. Kerri Zane is a family travel expert and author of It Takes All 5: A Single Mom’s Guide to Finding the REAL One, on sale now. For more advice on health, parenting or Kerri’s exclusive MomEscapes, visit her at KerriZane.com. Feature image credit: George Takei
Sweetening the pot and to help reward single mothers for endlessly caring for others and rarely putting themselves first, I’ve teamed up with Visit Myrtle Beach to put together a three-day, two-night vacation giveaway for the first person to sign up for the single mom superstar webinar. The winner will receive accommodations at a resort of their choosing – including options like Embassy Suites Oceanfront Resort at Kingston Plantation, Myrtle Beach Marriott Resort & Spa at Grande Dunes, and Marina Inn at Grande Dunes – plus a $100 gift card. The giveaway is valid for one year from the date of issuance, and blackout dates may apply. Sign up here!
