NextTribe: Do women really need a hall pass to travel alone?

Solo travel feminism.

It’s a thing.

Women don’t need permission from the men in their lives to take a trip. Or do they?

A woman who withdrew from our Scotland trip told us her husband got mad at her because it’s a trip he wanted to go on. My partner, Jeannie Edmunds, told me her husband joked that he’d be willing to cross dress if he could go to Vietnam with her in November. He’s a good sport, though, and certainly there are quite a few generous men like him who encourage their women to spread their wings and fly!

But what is it with the men that they just can’t bear the idea of our having fun without them? If you’re partnered with a man, you may have had to put up with some pouting, travel-shaming, and endless curiosity: “What do you all do…sit around and talk about us all day?” Well, in a word, yes…sometimes. But some of us also want to set aside our roles as wives, mothers, caregivers. Or, whether we’re single or not, to have an adventure, to re-discover who we are outside of work, to find new friends.

Even if we’re solo by choice, by death or divorce, sometimes we don’t even give ourselves permission to step into a new experience. There’s that little voice inside of us that says “I couldn’t possibly travel on my own.” or “I can’t find anyone to go with.” or worst of all “I don’t deserve this.”

Yes, you do. And you don’t have to call yourself a feminist to believe you have the right to travel on your own. According to a recent Forbes study which tracks with industry trends, women make 80% of the travel purchasing decisions anyway, why not choose trips for themselves?

The #1 reason women don’t go on their own is safety. But the #1 reason women want to travel solo is freedom and flexibility.

We understand both sides of that equation, but the real magic is in when you can combine the two—be on your own (without family obligations to make everyone else happy) AND be in a safe environment among supportive women who really get us. Smart women. Friendly women. Women who recognize we need each other, and we can help each other, as we did on our trip to Cuba.

I believe the only limitations we have are the limits we put on ourselves. Personally, I’ve found that whenever I give myself permission to stretch my boundaries, that’s where the growth happens.

And that can be powerful.

Jeannie Ralston
Co-Founder and CEO

Don’t Hesitate: Upcoming Trips with Limited Openings

Many of our 2024 trips have sold out! I’ve you’ve been on the fence, time to book the last spots:

• 6 spots for Santa Fe, New Mexico (Sept. 24-27)

• 4 spots for Paris, France  (Oct 14-21)

• 2 spots for San Miguel de Allende, Mexico (Oct 28-Nov 4)

• 1 spot for Vietnam (Nov 5-19)