Inspiration for a dream trip can come from anywhere. But one of the many obstacles to planning an epic adventure is finding like-minded travelers who are willing to join you. That’s where the right tour operator makes all the difference.
Maybe you started with a photo of the sun rising over an African savanna with the snow-capped silhouette of Mount Kilimanjaro in the background, or a video of someone walking the centuries-old pilgrimage trails of Spain. You file the idea away, and when it keeps popping back up, your personal mission becomes making the journey a reality.
Rather than waiting for a friend’s schedule to align or the perfect travel companion to materialize, you can hand off the logistics to a tour operator member of the United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) and arrive already surrounded by people who chose the same trip for the same reasons. These operators handle transportation and on-the-ground logistics, all secured at negotiated rates that independent travelers can’t typically access. And local guides provide the kind of expertise that no amount of research can replicate, with tour directors available around the clock should anything come up along the way.
Each of these four itineraries comes with all the benefits of traveling with a member of USTOA and centers on a single passion. These trips turn a personal goal into something easy to book on your own and then share with others once you arrive.
Climb Mount Kilimanjaro
Trekking Mount Kilimanjaro
Courtesy of Abercrombie & Kent/Tanzania Kili Sky Studios/David Wilfred Kimaro
Summiting Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, the highest peak in Africa and the tallest freestanding mountain in the world, is a goal for many world travelers. At 19,341 feet, it’s also one of the few mountains of that scale that doesn’t require technical mountaineering skills, making it achievable for most determined hikers.
Finding that same conviction in a travel companion, however, is a different challenge. On the Climb Kilimanjaro: The Machame Route trip, small groups of people sign up for this adventure with the same goal in mind.
The Machame route affords more time to acclimatize than some other routes up Kilimanjaro, allowing climbers to adjust to altitude while enjoying the terrain’s shifts from dense forest to lava-forged highland before the final push to the summit. Guides manage the daily pace, traveling with you throughout the ascent and descent, while porters transport luggage from start to finish, leaving each climber with only a daypack to carry.
Along the route, camps include spacious tents, and chefs prepare meals to keep you fueled. For the traveler who has held this goal for years, arriving at base camp already surrounded by people who share it practically guarantees a natural camaraderie and makes the whole undertaking feel like a collective mission.
Walk the Camino de Santiago with a group of women
Sign postings along the Camino
Courtesy of Backroads
Walking the Camino de Santiago is a dream trip in the back of many travelers’ minds. Yes, it calls for full hiking days, but guided trips like Backroads’ A Taste of Camino de Santiago Women’s Hiking and Walking Tour make it more accessible by bringing together women who share that dream.
For solo female travelers, this active adventure offers the freedom of a solo journey with the reassurance of a welcoming group, while Backroads takes care of every detail. Since it was founded in 1979, Backroads has been a leader in active and adventure travel.
Walking through a vineyard along the Camino
Courtesy of Backroads
This journey attracts many solo travelers, thanks to the way it combines independence and connection. Women can choose to walk independently, in small groups, or a little of both—whichever they prefer at any time. Over six days, the trip traces sections of three historic routes: the Portuguese, Coastal, and French Caminos.
The route begins in Porto, Portugal, a UNESCO World Heritage city known for its tiled façades and Port wine, then winds through the cork forests and eucalyptus woodland of the Labruja Mountains on the Caminho Português. A lunch stop at a villa on a traditional quinta and an evening introduction to fado, the traditional music of Portugal, mark the early days before the route crosses into Spain.
Once in Spain, a coastal stretch of the Camino opens up to views of Galicia’s rugged western seaboard before arriving in the fishing port of Baiona. A private boat excursion to the Cíes Islands (part of a national park with white-sand beaches) is followed by the trip’s memorable conclusion—stepping into the Santiago de Compostela cathedral with hundreds of others who walked there, as pilgrims have for centuries.
Visit Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Phuket on a women’s journey through Thailand
A woman admiring the temples of Bangkok
Courtesy of Goway Travel
Of the many reasons Thailand attracts travelers, the living Buddhist culture is distinct. Saffron-robed monks collect alms at dawn, and centuries-old temples with golden statues anchor communities across the Southeast Asian country. The complex cuisine and lush landscapes deepen the sense of place.
Goway Travel, which has specialized in four- and five-star experiences across some 115 countries for more than 55 years, designed its Spirit of Thailand: A Women’s Journey itinerary exclusively with women’s needs in mind. Single-occupancy accommodation throughout means no one is paired with a stranger or pays a premium for their own room.
The trip begins with two full days in Bangkok, including visits to the Grand Palace, the Emerald Buddha, a solar-powered boat along the Chao Phraya River, and afternoon tea at the Mandarin Oriental. From Bangkok, the route heads to Chiang Rai and the hilltop Doi Tung Temple. Next, travelers walk through the Mae Fah Luang Gardens, created by the Princess Mother to bring European-style floral beauty to the highlands, before continuing to the Golden Triangle border region.
Chiang Mai follows, with a 309-step ascent up the Golden Naga staircase to the temple of Wat Doi Suthep. Then, you can experience a private blessing in the tunnels and caves of Wat Umong, a 13th-century temple.
A full day at the Araksa Tea Garden comes next, where you’ll learn to hand-pick and roast tea leaves. And a visit to a Lanna wellness retreat includes ancient Northern Thai healing traditions and treatments.
The trip closes in Phuket with a private speedboat among Phang Nga Bay’s towering limestone formations and dinner on a farm at Michelin Green Star zero-waste restaurant Jampa (in keeping with USTOA’s commitment to sustainable travel). Guests pick fresh ingredients before a meal made entirely from what the land produced that day.
Cycle Portugal’s Atlantic coast from Porto to Lisbon
Cycling Porto to Lisbon
Courtesy of Exodus Adventure Travels
A week biking along the Portuguese coast—stopping in fishing villages and medieval towns, and working up an appetite for seafood dinners washed down with wine—is an appealing idea for a specific kind of traveler. But it’s also a trip that’s hard to talk someone into if they don’t already feel that pull, and even harder to plan independently when the route and daily accommodations need to align.
The Porto to Lisbon Atlantic Ride by Exodus Adventure Travels solves both problems at once. For more than 50 years, Exodus has been crafting immersive small-group adventures for a range of fitness levels, with an emphasis on moving thoughtfully through the places you visit and supporting the communities that make them worth visiting.
The eight-day route runs along Portugal’s Atlantic coast. It begins in historic Porto, where the Douro River meets the sea, then continues with a gentle coastal ride to Ovar via the seaside town of Furadouro.
Stopping to admire the Atlantic coastline of Portugal
Courtesy of Exodus Adventure Travels
From there, cyclists pass through the protected São Jacinto dunes nature reserve on the way to Mira, with a stop in the coastal town of Costa Nova. The Portuguese Silver Coast carries the route south to Figueira da Foz and then on to the surf town of Nazaré. The journey also passes through whitewashed Óbidos, one of Portugal’s best-preserved medieval towns, before the final stretch into Lisbon and an orientation walk through the city’s historic core.
This kind of trip is particularly well-suited to solo travelers. The logistics are handled, and the group around you is equally enthusiastic about the ride and the stops along the way. By the time the route delivers you into Lisbon, you’ll have earned a farewell dinner in the company of kindred spirits.
For these tours and many more, visit USTOA.com/tournow to find expertly planned itineraries with local access and around-the-clock support that turns a good trip into an exceptional one.
