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Phyllis Stoller Honored: Top Influential Women in Group Travel
Phyllis Stoller, the founder of The Women’s Travel Group, was honored as one of the 14 most influential women in Group Travel by Group Travel Magazine. For those solo women travelers who do not know her, Phyllis founded The Women’s Travel Club and The Women’s Travel Group, both catering to women travelers and especially those solo on tours and cruises.
Phyllis’ site is www.thewomenstravelgroup.com and she will personally escort trips to Sicily and India this year. Yes, she will be coming solo!…
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Don't travel with The Times; Travel with Women who Read It
Why go on such overpriced trips as sold by prestigious newspapers, schools and museums? You might go to meet the speakers or be assured that you fellow travelers are informed. The NY Times Travel (probably operated by a generic tour operator) offers Tuscany at $5395 and Peru at $4395: hundreds of dollars more than The Women’s Travel Group does!
But if you look at the prices of these trips, here is what you get:
A possible one time encounter with the speaker. …
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Tips NOT to be Ugly on the Road
Most serious travelers pay little attention to how we look when on the road for vacation. We hate overpacking and the associated burden of unpacking once home. Solo women figure they will never see anyone they know! So here are a few ways not to be UGLY on the road.
Face and Hands: Bring your night cream and consider using it even before/during day flights. When on long trips, pay the fee to use an airport lounge for a shower/freshen up mid-trip.…
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Do Spa and Fitness Trips for Women Require Preparation
Spa and Fitness trips for women require preparation if you want to get the most out of your stay and your $$ investment? Each year we go to Ixtapan Fitness and Spa Resort. several times.
Clothes: This is not a fashion show. Don’t worry about your wardrobe. Bring what is comfortable, especially your shoes and/or walking shoes for rain days. Do not bring brand new sneakers or hiking shoes; you will regret your purchase if they are uncomfortable and you are not near stores.…
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Reading Lists for Travel: Should you Bother?
Not everyone wants to study again and many of us consider travel a non-homework activity. I personally do believe in doing some reading before a trip. There are two kinds of books for travel: travel fiction and guidebooks. The former is just as informative in the way it opens your eyes to subtleties. An example might be what a headdress might mean? Travel fiction is written by women often covers myths or religious beliefs which are hard for us to understand.…
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Five Essential Hotel Must Haves for Women 55+
Women Staff Behind the Desk.
Who wants to discuss concerns with male staff who are ‘5’ years old and look through you?
Shower Caps.
Most of us are not in that daily hair washing routine and want to preserve whatever color we pay fortunes for.
Lots of extra toilet paper and not so rough please.
No comment here
Easy to operate alarm clocks.
Even the PHD’s amongst us cannot set many hotel alarm clocks. That also means they sometimes go off at 4AM because the last guest was on Tokyo time.…
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What to do when Your seatmate is Unruly
Today a SWAir jet had to stop in Omaha to get a crazed passenger off the plane (he tried to open the read hatch). What can you do if someone near you is difficult, odd or actually talking scary? The answer is not really much. My experience was with a man who refused to let me lower my seat back on an 8 hour flight. He was aggressive towards me and then towards the crew.
The answer is here: first ask crew for help.…
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Festival Trips: What Never to Do!
This article was written for The Three Tomatoes site with interesting info and events for women in the NY and LA areas. Subscribe for great fun and good information.
If you choose to go on a tour that includes a festival, there are positives and negatives. Positives are you will see local people in their most colorful and joyous. In Pushkar in India, you witness weddings, dances, tribal clothes and jewelry, camel and other races. In Sicily in December, you will join a procession with lighted candles, brass bands and clergy to walk to the Basilica in Palermo.…
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Preparing for Italy Departure Minus 1 Day
Tomorrow some of our group leaves for Tuscany and our Villa/Cooking trip (the others are meeting a day later). Here is how I organize the day before a big trip:
Eat sensibly adding more salad and yogurt than normal (to balance out junk airplane chow and food impulses at the airport.)
Double check packing list against what was used today and what is actually packed.
Update/refresh all passwords and refile in my secret cave.
Check weather again for both New York tomorrow and for Pisa.… -
Hotel Bars and Do Not's for Women Travelers
After a long day working, don’t you wish the hotel bar were less intimidating and less noisy? Tips to find the right hotel with the right amenities for women:
Living Lobbies: these are lobbies that incorporate the bar into a larger living space. So you can sit away privately from the bar and have your glass of wine.
Magazine and newspaper racks: these say, come relax and read without being bothered.
Armchairs in bar areas: armchairs let you sit alone and enjoy your drink; they insinuate you wish to be left alone.…