Girlfriend Getaway Garbage
One day, a (male) marketing whippersnapper came up with a genius idea: Create a catchy name for a group of women going away together and sell it as its own travel niche. Hmm, what do women like to do? Why, shopping of course! And spa treatments! And arts and crafts!
Don’t get us wrong – we love a good bargain and a relaxing shiatsu but that’s not all, or even most of what, we’re looking for in a vacation. God(dess) forbid we’d want to experience culture and nature, right? And we have plenty of friends although we usually just call them (shocker) “friends,” not girlfriends. We guess “friend getaway” would lose that whole alliteration wackiness thing they’ve got going on there.
Budget Travel’s recent Girlfriend Getaway supplement featured:
- Trip to France to take part in a perfume education class. Bor. Ing.
- Recipes for Cinco de Mayo taco party. How exactly is cooking for a bunch of people a “getaway?” We can’t quite imagine recipes appearing in any sort of publication focused on men’s travel.
- In Real Deals: 3 arts and craftsy packages, 2 shopping spree packages, 6 spa packages.
- Horoscopes. What, are all women believers in fake science now? Why not a section on phrenology? Or is this simply a women’s mag throwaway a la Cosmo? How about a quiz on “How to know if your surfing instructor is flirting with you?”
- Search for the world’s hottest cabana boy. Guess Girlfriend Getaways aren’t exactly being marketed to the lesbian crowd.
- An actress giving her recipe for a “decadent evening alone” which calls for Toll House cookie dough topped with Duncan Hines icing and a horror movie, among other things. Again, TRAVEL??
- Five-page shopping article. This does not include the multiple ads and other shorter shopping-related articles.
- And finally, drum roll please, a list of recommended chick lit including the nightmarish Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven, describing it thusly: “The memoir looks back on the post-college backpacking jaunt Gilman took with a girlfriend in China, which had just opened its borders. You’ll laugh and cringe at their cultural faux pas.” Well, you’ll certainly cringe. And if this is the standard by which all other “girlfriend getaways” are measured, you’ll never want to go on another again.
Mission accomplished?
Thankfully, one blog comes to the rescue and it ain’t no GG Garbage.
Because all-around women who enjoy culture, arts, nature, sports, AND fashion are allowed to be hot, intelligent and sassy.
My fav in the Budget Travel feature: The search for the world’s hottest cabana boy. I guess that makes us all Desperate Housewives *see the excitement on my face*
Soooo. For a Mindful & Refreshing Girlfriend Getaway blog check this out: http://tourisme-montreal.org/Blogs/Girls-Getaway
Look out for:
1) The post on BIXI in the Featured Post section: talks about the new public bike sharing system and brings you on the best cycling paths for you and your girlfriends. Video + Article #Fun
2) On page 4: The new Jukari Fitness Program by Cirque du Soleil: video + article
3) Also on Page 4: Best exfoliation…fish will feast on your feet’s dead skin. Now this is not BO-RING.
4) See my Girls’ Getaway Guide to Montreal in Elle Magazine http://montreal.elle.com
Hope that satisfies your thirst for a bit more diversity!
Smiles,
T. xx
Good grief! This is the “Lifetime” of travel marketing. Personally, I hate shopping unless it’s at West Marine or REI and I could care less about perfume. I could not agree more with your statement that a recipe would never appear in a men’s travel section, because cooking for a bunch of people is not a getaway.
[...] all know our feelings about so-called girlfriend getaways, so you will not be surprised when we tell you we are [...]
That is such bullshit! Go you!