10 unique girls’ trip ideas
A girls’ trip doesn’t have to mean spending an entire weekend at a resort, shopping until you drop, or sitting around a hotel room catching up. Those things can be fun, but sometimes the best trips are the ones that send everyone home with a story to tell.
Whether you’re celebrating a birthday, planning a bachelorette getaway, reconnecting with longtime friends, or simply looking for an excuse to escape your everyday routine, there are plenty of ways to make a girls’ trip memorable. From eerie adventures and outdoor excursions to food, music, art, and history, here are ten unique ideas to consider for your next getaway.
1. Take a Ghost Tour
Why settle for a typical sightseeing tour when you can explore a city’s darker side together?
Ghost tours are a fun way to combine history, storytelling, and a little adrenaline. Walk through historic neighborhoods after dark, hear local legends, and learn about the people and events behind some of the city’s most famous haunted locations.
You don’t even have to believe in ghosts to enjoy the experience. Many ghost tours are really history tours with a mysterious twist, making them a great choice for a group with a wide range of interests.
2. Plan a Hiking or Outdoor Adventure
Get everyone away from their phones and into the great outdoors with a hiking adventure.
Choose a destination with scenic trails, waterfalls, mountains, forests, or a beautiful coastline. You could make the outing as relaxed or challenging as your group prefers, from a leisurely nature walk to an entire weekend of camping, kayaking, or backpacking.
For an added element of fun, pack a picnic and designate someone to create a playlist for the drive. The goal isn’t to conquer the toughest trail so much as it is to spend a day experiencing something together.
3. Book a Wellness Retreat
Sometimes a girl’s trip should be about doing absolutely nothing, or at least doing very little. A wellness retreat can provide an opportunity to slow down and recharge. Look for destinations offering yoga, meditation, massages, nature walks, healthy meals, or other wellness activities.
You don’t necessarily need to book an expensive luxury retreat, either. Renting a peaceful cabin and creating your own weekend of meditation, healthy cooking, journaling, and relaxation can provide many of the same benefits. Think of it as pressing the reset button together.
4. Take a History Tour
History becomes much more interesting when you’re walking through the places where it actually happened. Instead of simply visiting a museum, book a guided history tour that explores the stories of a particular neighborhood, community, or cultural group. For example, the Williamsburg Black History Experience offers an opportunity to explore the history and contributions of Black Americans in Colonial Williamsburg.
Look for tours that highlight stories you might not encounter on a conventional sightseeing itinerary. You may discover fascinating local figures, forgotten communities, historic architecture, and stories that completely change the way you see a destination.
5. Go to a Local Live Concert
Skip the giant stadium show and find a local band or musician instead. Check out the city’s smaller music venues, outdoor concert series, jazz clubs, listening rooms, or neighborhood festivals. You may discover an artist you’ve never heard before, and the smaller setting can make the experience feel much more personal.
You can even build the entire evening around the concert: dinner beforehand, live music, and dessert or drinks afterward. Years later, you may not remember what you talked about over dinner, but you’ll probably remember dancing together to a great local band.
6. Challenge Yourselves at an Escape Room
An escape room turns a girls’ night into a team-building adventure. Your group is placed in a themed environment and given a series of puzzles, clues, and challenges to solve before time runs out. Themes range from murder mysteries and haunted houses to historical adventures, spy missions, and elaborate fantasy scenarios.
The best part is discovering how your friends respond under pressure. Who notices the hidden clue? Who solves the impossible puzzle? Who insists they know exactly what they’re doing while everyone else quietly disagrees? Whatever happens, you’ll probably have plenty to laugh about afterward.
7. Take a Food Tour
If your group plans vacations around meals, make food the centerpiece of the trip. A guided food tour lets you sample several restaurants, markets, bakeries, cafés, or specialty shops while learning about the local culinary culture. In New Orleans, for example, a tour such as Big Easy Bayou Bites can introduce visitors to the city’s distinctive food traditions while exploring its neighborhoods and history.
Food tours are especially good for groups because everyone gets to try something different without committing to an entire meal at one restaurant. Come hungry, and wear comfortable shoes.
8. Visit a Vineyard
A vineyard getaway can combine beautiful scenery, good food, and plenty of opportunities to relax and talk. Spend an afternoon touring the grounds, learning about the winemaking process, sampling local wines, and enjoying a meal overlooking the countryside. Many vineyards also offer live music, special events, art, or outdoor activities.
You don’t have to be a wine expert to enjoy the experience. Consider it a chance to slow down, appreciate the scenery, and spend an afternoon somewhere that feels far removed from everyday life.
9. Explore an Art Exhibit
Give your girls’ trip a creative twist by visiting an art museum, gallery, immersive exhibit, or local art festival. Rather than rushing through a traditional museum, choose an experience that encourages conversation. Look for contemporary galleries, interactive installations, street-art tours, sculpture gardens, or temporary exhibits.
Enjoying art could even become a friendly challenge. Have everyone choose their favorite piece and explain why they picked it. You may discover something unexpected about your friends’ personalities and tastes.
10. Go on a Haunted Pub Crawl
Why choose between nightlife and a ghost tour when you can have both? A haunted pub crawl combines local history, ghost stories, and a night out.
You’ll visit historic bars and taverns, learn about the legends associated with them, and have plenty of time to socialize along the way. Cities with long histories—particularly places such as New Orleans, Savannah, Baltimore, and Charleston—are ideal for this kind of adventure.
Just remember to plan transportation in advance. If everyone is drinking, designate a sober driver, use rideshare services, or book transportation for the group.
Make Your Next Girls’ Trip an Adventure
The best girls’ trips aren’t necessarily the most expensive ones. Usually they’re the trips that give everyone something to experience together. Maybe you’ll discover a fascinating piece of history, conquer a hiking trail, taste an unforgettable meal, hear a great band, or spend an evening wondering whether that strange noise in the old tavern really came from a ghost.
Whatever you choose, don’t be afraid to make your next getaway a little different. Pack your bags, gather your favorite people, and choose an experience you’ll still be talking about long after you’ve returned home.
