by Kim Tate and Tamara Gruber
Vacation Mavens is a travel podcast offering practical travel tips and destination inspiration from two moms who know how to plan the perfect trip. Hosted by Kim Tate, from StuffedSuitcase.com, and Tamara Gruber, from YourTimetoFly.com, we have over 40 years of combined travel expertise. We share our favorite vacations from road trips to cruises, European adventures to theme parks. Whether you are planning a family vacation, romantic couples trip, or mom getaway we have the tips and tricks to make memories that will last a lifetime.
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2/29/2016
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April 8, 2025
<p>A mother-daughter trip is an incredible way to bond in ways that you can't recreate in your home environment. This week, Kim and Tamara share their tips for mother-daughter trips and provide ideas for some of their favorite mother-daughter trip destinations (these can also be used for mother-son or father-daughter/son trips too.)</p> <h2>Episode Highlights</h2> <ul> <li>When kids are younger, it is fun to find a theme to base the trip around or pick a destination that is tied to their interests</li> <li>Get your kids involved in the planning or allow them to choose a destination. At a minimum, let them choose activities.</li> <li>Plan to do a side-by-side activity like a cooking class, surfing lesson, rock climbing, white water rafting, etc.</li> <li>When you learn something new or get out of your comfort zone, they see how you handle the situation.</li> <li>Group travel can actually be a great solution for a mother-daughter trip because you can interact with others but then your alone time is even more precious.</li> <li>Talk about your highs and lows for each day or part of the trip while traveling.</li> <li>Recognize your kids as individuals and cater to their travel styles and don't try to push your preferences or travel style on them.</li> <li>Also, think about taking a mother-daughter trip with your mom.</li> <li>These trips help kids learn how to be a traveler, how to navigate, and how to make travel decisions.</li> <li>Plan a hotel or two that offers room service when you are on a long road trip.</li> <li>Some of our favorite mother-daughter trip destinations have been: Peru, Canadian Rockies, Ireland, Iceland, Chicago, NYC, cruising, road tripping through the South, and a spa trip.</li> </ul> <h3>Other Episodes You May Enjoy:</h3> <ul> <li><a href= "https://vacationmavens.com/138-canadian-rockies/">Canadian Rockies</a></li> <li><a href= "https://vacationmavens.com/216-ireland-and-northern-ireland/">Ireland road trip</a></li> <li><a href= "https://vacationmavens.com/120-visiting-civil-rights-sites/">Civil Rights Trail road trip</a></li> <li><a href= "https://vacationmavens.com/277-iceland-windstar-cruise/">Cruising around Iceland</a></li> <li><a href="https://vacationmavens.com/103/">Midwest road trip</a></li> <li><a href= "https://vacationmavens.com/236-plan-a-swiftie-trip-to-nyc/">Swiftie trip to NYC</a></li> </ul>
March 25, 2025
<p>Tamara is just back from a bucket list trip to Peru with her daughter and she shares all about her lodge-to-lodge trek with <a href="https://www.mountainlodgesofperu.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mountain Lodges of Peru</a> and tips for visiting Cusco and Machu Picchu.</p> <h2>EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:</h2> <ul> <li>Tamara “won” this trip as part of an auction that benefits the <a href="https://adventuretravelconservationfund.org/" target= "_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Adventure Travel Conservation Fund</a>that takes place each fall</li> <li>When visiting Cusco and the Sacred Valley, it is best to give yourself 3-4 days to get used to the elevation prior to hiking (Cusco is at about 11,000 feet)</li> <li>You can take Diamox or acetazolamide (prescription) to help prevent altitude sickness</li> <li>Coca tea and coca candies help you with altitude but it also has caffeine so it can disrupt your sleep</li> <li>Machu Picchu and Ollantaytambo are at a lower altitude so ideal you would start there and work your way up</li> <li>Peruvian food has a lot of rice, quinoa, and potatoes. For proteins there is beef, pork, chicken, alpaca, and a specialty — guinea pig! The portions are also very large.</li> <li>You shouldn’t drink the water (even to brush your teeth) and consider avoiding salads, veggies, and fruits that are rinsed in water</li> <li>Tamara and Hannah took a 5 day trek with a small group of six people and one local guide with Mountain Lodges of Peru.</li> <li>The trip was perfect for those that like to hike but don’t want to camp. It includes a mix of cultural activities and hikes but you stay at nice lodges.</li> <li>Some activities included visiting an alpaca museum, a ceremony with an Incan priest, enjoying dancing and music with locals at a weaving cooperative, visiting local markets, exploring Incan ruins, and having lunch at local homes.</li> <li>You need to bring your own hiking poles and need to pack in a light duffel bag or backpack</li> <li>The rainy season is typically November – April and they typically close the Inca Trail in February. However, this year was worse than usual because of El Niño.</li> <li>For the most part you can use credit cards but it helps to have some Peruvian Soles (or some US Dollars) to tip guides, pay for bathrooms, and purchase from local vendors and markets.</li> <li>For the first two nights in Cusco, we stayed at the Andenes Hotel, which was affordable, nice, and great traditional architecture. On our return, we stayed at the Palacio del Inka, which is a part of the Marriott Luxury Collection (which we booked via points.)</li> </ul> <h3>RELATED EPISODES:</h3> <ul> <li><a href="https://vacationmavens.com/101-2/">Machu Picchu with kids</a></li> <li><a href="https://vacationmavens.com/086/">Galapagos with kids</a></li> </ul>
March 18, 2025
<p>On this episode, we are joined by Susan Heinrich from <a href= "https://midlifeglobetrotter.com/" target="_blank" rel= "noreferrer noopener">Midlife Globetrotter</a>. Susan is a Canadian writer living in Denver, Colorado. She is passionate about travel and supporting women in tourism. In 2020, she created Midlife Globetrotter, a website and platform that helps women over 40 follow their travel dreams to new places, with destination guides, practical tips and stories of her own adventures. Susan is passionate about reframing midlife as an opportunity, and explores themes of reinvention and self-discovery in her work. You can follow Susan on <a href= "https://www.instagram.com/midlife.globetrotter/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Instagram</a>and <a href= "https://www.pinterest.com/midlife_globetrotter/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pinterest</a>.</p> <p>In this episode, we talk about group tours and group tour operators, especially those that offer group trips just for women.</p> <p>To learn more, see Susan's blog posts about:</p> <ul> <li>Women's tours around the world: <a href= "https://midlifeglobetrotter.com/womens-tours/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://midlifeglobetrotter.com/womens-tours/</a></li> <li>How to select a small group tour: <a href= "https://midlifeglobetrotter.com/how-to-select-a-small-group-tour/" target="_blank" rel= "noreferrer noopener">https://midlifeglobetrotter.com/how-to-select-a-small-group-tour/</a></li> <li>Croatia group tour with Adventure Women: <a href= "https://midlifeglobetrotter.com/a-womens-sailing-trip-in-croatia/" target="_blank" rel= "noreferrer noopener">https://midlifeglobetrotter.com/a-womens-sailing-trip-in-croatia/</a></li> </ul> <h2>Episode Highlights</h2> <ul> <li>Some things to think about when choosing a group tour include: <ul> <li>What is the pacing of the trip -- is there any free time, how often do you switch hotels?</li> <li>What is the group size? Small group tends to be under 14 people. Small groups have advantages in terms of the type of accommodation and the size of the tour group when exploring cities</li> <li>What is the activity level? Some companies like Adventure Women and Adventures in Good Company specialize in active trips and offer detailed explanations of the activity level involved in the trip</li> <li>If you are traveling solo, you can also look for tours that are only solo travelers</li> </ul> </li> <li>When you are evaluating a group tour, be sure to read the itinerary in detail.</li> <li>You can also call the tour operator and see if they can give you any information on how many solo travelers there might be versus those traveling with a friend or relative.</li> <li>Also look at what the single supplement is. Some companies like Girls Guide to the World have private rooms by default but typically group tours are priced based on double occupancy and if you want your own room they charge a single supplement.</li> <li>Some companies will pair you with another solo travel as a roommate if they don't charge a single supplement.</li> <li>Be sure to read through the documents to understand what is included in terms of transfers and meals</li> <li>Understand who is guiding the trip -- is it a local or a U.S.-based guide</li> <li>Make sure you understand the cancellation policy and buy travel insurance</li> <li>If you aren't sure if a group trip is for you, opt for a private room, start with a shorter trip, feel free to opt out of activities, and maybe start with a trip in the U.S. that doesn't require a more expensive airfare.</li> <li>If you just want to relax or if you don't like having scheduled activities, then a group tour may not be a good fit</li> <li>Good tour operators for budget travelers include G Adventures (now have tours for women and certain age groups) and Intrepid Travel (who have women expeditions to places where you can meet and interact with locals in a way that you couldn't if there were men on the trip)</li> <li>For a luxury trip, Girls Guide to the World is a good fit and Insight Vacations is upscale and have women-only trips</li> <li>For nature and wildlife, Natural Habitat Adventures partner with the World Wildlife Federation and are known for wildlife trips and have women's only expeditions</li> <li>Adventure Women is one of the first companies to get into women only tours and typically offer four-star accommodations with active adventures</li> <li>Backroads is known for cycling and hiking tours and offers some just for women and they have trips that accommodate a variety of activity levels each day</li> <li>There are also group tour operators focused on certain destinations like Viking Women in Iceland</li> <li>Another themed tour is the British Book Club Tour: <a href= "https://thebookclubtour.com/">https://thebookclubtour.com</a></li> <li>Susan is also co-hosting an art-history based trip to Paris this spring</li> </ul> <p>Some women-only focused travel companies and others that have women-only trips</p> <ul> <li>Next Chapter Travel - small group, curated trips in Europe</li> <li>Next Tribe - over 45 women</li> <li>Gals Abroad Getaways - luxury</li> <li>Untethered Expeditions - adventure</li> <li>Adventure Women - small group adventure</li> <li>Adventures in Good Company - active </li> <li>Girls’ Guide to the World - authentic, responsible (luxury)</li> <li>Sisterhood Travels - over 50</li> <li>Country Walkers - walking/hiking</li> <li>Scout Escapes - mother daughter travel and group trips for women over 40</li> <li>Viking Women - Iceland</li> <li>Explorer Chick - hiking and adventure in National Parks and abroad</li> <li>Insight Vacations - upscale group trips some women only</li> <li>Backroads - women only hiking and cycling</li> <li>Road Scholar - educational, some women only, over 50</li> <li>Uniworld - women’s cruises</li> </ul>
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