Montse, Isabel, Pilar and Mercedes are four friends on the verge of retirement who every year park for a few days with their responsibilities to spend some time together. As if it were a ritual, they meet a few months before, discuss laughing, establish a budget and date, decide on the destination and distribute the tasks of organizing the trip, that is, who is in charge of transportation, accommodation, possible itinerary, gastronomy and essential visits…

Female travel has become a form of empowerment as well. The number of travelers has not stopped growing in recent decades, after the recovery of rights that brought about the arrival of democracy. But the phenomenon that has been detected in recent years is that there are more and more women who have lost their fear of traveling alone or who resort to specialized agencies that facilitate female journeys. “A few years ago, mostly divorced, separated, widowed and single women came to us, but more and more married or living with a partner want to travel outside of them,” says Carina Tur, CEO and founder of Grant Your Wishes, a travel agency aimed exclusively at women.

“Sometimes their partners don’t like to travel or their preferences don’t match,” adds Tur. Many of them return and, if they can fit their travel dates, they embark on new adventures together. Friendships are made. We have had groups of eight in which five have adapted to coincide in a next destination ”, she adds.

The same feeling –empowerment-, but a different formula, is what motivates groups of friends –good friends– to travel together. In general, they are short-term getaways, through Spain or Europe, especially on weekends, as a break or as a reunion, although sometimes longer trips are also preferred. The different professionals consulted agree that long trips are still a family preserve. According to Ana Bru, founder of Bru

Ana Bru gives examples of wellness retreats, wellness retreats –nearby or in distant destinations–, exclusive gastronomic routes, cultural trips or active getaways in which to participate in local experiences.

The last “girls’ trip” took Montse, Isabel, Pilar and Mercedes to Bilbao: Guggenheim, the old town, the Museum of Fine Arts, a walk along the estuary… and, of course, good gastronomy. Returning, invariably, a conversation arises that year after year is repeated like a mantra: “And next year, where?”