Hey Sis!

As you’ve probably guessed from my previous posts, I’m a huge fan of group tripsl Solo travel definitely has its place and I solo travel from time to time. But sometimes either due to safety concerns or just preferring to travel with others, group trips are my go to.

There is no shortage of groups working hard for your travel dollars. There are groups that curate trips for married couples only, groups that host mother-daughter trips and groups that specialize in trips specifically to certain parts of the world. So how do you decide which group is right for you? I have some tips to help you out.

Decide where you want to travel. Or atleast where you don’t want to go. If you’re choosing between several groups, knowing where you want to go should help narrow things down. If you visit the group’s website and you’re not interested in seeing any of the places their offering, then that’s not the group for you. Find a group that’s traveling to a location you want to visit.

Decide the purpose of your trip. Knowing why you’re traveling also helps narrow things down. Are you traveling to celebrate a special occasion? Or is it a relax, relate, release trip? (Shout out to my Different World fans!) You don’t want to book a trip with a lot of physical activity involved if your intent was to relax.

Knowing where you want to go will help narrow down which group to travel with.

Check their social media. If you find a group you’re interested in traveling with, go beyond their website and check out their social media. Most travel companies use Facebook and Instagram to advertise their trips and  these advertisements usually come in the form of photos of guests having a ball on trips. Some important info you can get from the photos are the general ages of the women on the trip, the types of activities and excursions offered and the type of accommodations. So if the photos show women who are more mature and you’re looking for a group that caters to millenials, then that’s not the travel group for you. If you’re into a more low key, relaxing vacation and all the photos you see on their social media are partying and drinking, then this isn’t the group for you. 

Ask previous customers.  The best form of advertisement for any company is from its customers. When deciding which group to travel with, read the reviews. Since some of the smaller, black-owned companies don’t have reviews on Google, you may need to go back to their social media and read the comments posted under the end of trip photos or check out their IG/FB stories. And if you know anyone who went on one of their trips, consider asking them what their experience was like.  

Don’t be afraid to ask the travel company owner any questions you may have. They want to help you.

Ask the company owner. If you’re still unsure whether a group is a good fit for you, reach out directly to the owner. Most travel business owners want you to have a good experience with them. And they also know who their ideal client is. A simple DM or email saying, “Hey, I like X but you only seem to offer Y” can help you save a lot of time and money. 

Listen, you work hard for that little bit of PTO you’ve earned. You deserve to have a great vacation. So do some research before you spend your hard earned travel dollars. It may make the difference between an okay and an awesome vacation! Hope this helps you go somewhere!