WHERE TO STAY
Canyon Ranch Tucson
The weeklong Journey Through Midlife program focuses on the physical, emotional, and spiritual changes women face as they age. JOURNEY PROGRAM, DOUBLES FROM $4,670.
8600 E. ROCKCLIFF RD.; 800/742-9000; www.canyonranch.com
Charles Street Inn
DOUBLES FROM $265
94 CHARLES ST., BOSTON; 877/772-8900 OR 617/314-8900; www.charlesstreetinn.com
Golden Door Spa
Founded by a woman in 1958, the Door still caters almost exclusively to women. SINGLES FROM $6,500 FOR SEVEN NIGHTS
800/424-0777 OR 760/744-5777; www.goldendoor.com
Hotel Teatro
DOUBLES FROM $185
1100 14TH ST., DENVER; 888/727-1200 OR 303/228-1100; www.hotelteatro.com
La Costa Resort & Spa
The Girlfriends' Getaway package includes spa services, a half-day poolside cabana rental, fitness classes, and a personalized feng shui consultation. DOUBLES FROM $430
2100 COSTA DEL MAR RD., CARLSBAD, CALIF.; 800/854-5000; www.lacosta.com
Lady's First
This 28-room design hotel in Switzerland offers the standard accoutrements, but goes a step further by reserving one floor for women. DOUBLES FROM $189.
24 MAINAUSTRASSE, ZURICH; 41-1/380-8010; www.ladysfirst.ch
Lake Austin Spa Resort
DOUBLES FROM $460
1705 S. QUINLAN PARK RD., AUSTIN, TEX.; 800/847-5637; www.lakeaustin.com
Las Olas
This funky surf camp in Mexico includes fresh-fish dinners and rustic-chic villas. No men allowed. SIX-NIGHT SURF SAFARI, FROM $1,995
NAYURIT, MEXICO; 707/746-6435; www.surflasolas.com
Miraval, Life in Balance
Mother-daughter trips and sexuality programs for women, such as the upcoming Awakening Aphrodite. DOUBLES FROM $495
5000 E. VIA ESTANCIA MIRAVAL; CATALINA, ARIZ.; 800/232-3969; www.miravalresort.com
Nine Zero
DOUBLES FROM $289
90 TREMONT ST., BOSTON; 866/646-3937 OR 617/772-5800; www.ninezero.com
TOUR COMPANIES
Adventure Divas
Launching six trips this winter. The company's Web site is indispensable for any female-centric pilgrimage.
206/328-9519; www.adventuredivas.com
Adventure Women
The oldest women-only tour company in the United States. Itineraries include trekking, snorkeling, and horse packing, among other wild pursuits designed for active types 30 and over.
800/804-8686; www.adventurewomen.com
Adventurous Wench
These "soft adventure" journeys combine cooking lessons and spa visits with white-water rafting and hiking.
866/419-3624; www.adventurouswench.com
Chicks with Picks
Armed with ice-climbing tools, girls defy gravity at winter clinics in Colorado and New Hampshire.
$775 PER PERSON; 970/626-4424 www.chickswithpicks.com
Gutsy Women Travel
Tour the winelands of Australia on a Gutsy Gourmet vacation or try a Gutsy Milestone trip for your next big birthday.
866/464-8879; www.gutsywomentravel.com
Luna Tours
Feel like mountain biking through Asia and spending the night in yurts? Two-wheel odysseys in Mongolia, along with other locations in Asia, Europe, and North America.
877/404-6476; www.lunatours.com
Unleashed Adventures
Voyages to out-of-the-way international destinations such as Patagonia, where adventuresses hike, raft, and tour museums and wineries.
914/967-6941; www.unleashedadventures.com
Women's Travel Club
The largest club of its kind in the nation, with 25 excursions a year. Groups average between 15 and 20 people, ages 40-65.
800/480-4448; www.womenstravelclub.com
WEB SITES
Journeywoman
In addition to first-person anecdotes, this site lists destination-specific tips, restaurant recommendations, and shopping guides for major cities from Beijing to Stockholm.
www.journeywoman.com
Women Welcome Women Worldwide
Solo travelers abroad can lodge free with members of this network, which provides connections
in 70 countries and encourages cross-cultural exchanges.
www.womenwelcomewomen.org.uk
Women Travel Tips
Hints to make any trip safer and more enjoyable. Plus, how to plan your first independent voyage.
www.womentraveltips.com
U.S. Department of State
Information for single women travelers. (Note: In Laos, don't invite local men into your hotel roomit's illegal!)
http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips_women.html
GUIDEBOOKS
Gutsy Women
By Marybeth Bond (Travelers' Tales). A range of advice and anecdotes, with special sections devoted to business travelers and mother-daughter trips.
A Journey of One's Own
By Thalia Zepatos (The Eighth Mountain Press). This exhaustive guide neglects nothing: it has thoughtful tips, checklists, resources, and is also peppered with essays.
Unsuitable for Ladies
Edited by Jane Robinson (Oxford University Press). Organized by region, these essays by nearly 200 adventurers serve as a geographic primer and refute the idea that a woman's place is in the home.
Jennifer V. Cole, Amy Farley, and Elizabeth Woodson
Copyright © 2009, American Express Publishing. All rights reserved.