This Is Why a Weekend Getaway Girls Trip Is So Necessary

I recently came to the realization that my favorite way to travel is with a group of girlfriends. In fact, these days it’s the only way I want to travel – though a solo trip is still on my bucket list! But there’s a reason why the movie Girls Trip resonated with so many women. Aside from setting a box office record and being one of the first major female-centered feature films starring four Black women since 1995’s Waiting to Exhale, this picture also touched on the importance of sisterhood and female friendships.

I made a promise to myself that regardless of where I travel to or how many trips I go on, at least one a year will be a girl’s trip. I was fortunate enough to go on one this past August to Portugal with a group of amazing women – including my college best friend and roommate. But I also really wanted to go on a nice weekend getaway sometime in the fall or winter with my good friends Cindy Diaz and Frances Lyons.

The original plan was to go to Cuba sometime in November or early December for a long weekend. But between Trump’s new restrictions on travel to Cuba and Hurricane Maria doing a number in the Caribbean, we decided to postpone our girls trip until April 2018 – that is before Buick reached out to me.

The deal was, that I was going to get to take two girlfriends with me on a weekend getaway to Gurney’s, a luxury hotel and spa resort in Newport, Rhode Island and we were going to get there driving the new 2018 Buick Enclave Avenir. Honestly, how could I say no to this? It was the girls trip we had been wanting and suddenly placed right in the palm of our hands – of course we were in.

Everything about this trip was amazing from the complimentary spa treatments we had done – I’m talking hot stone Himalayan salt massages and full body exfoliation and body wrap treatments to being able to drive a brand new Buick to Connecticut.

Trust me when I say, we had some pretty good times in that car. We jammed to some of our favorite old school songs, because the sound system in that Buick was AMAZING! The active noise cancellation feature made it easy for all three of us to clearly hear each other talking, regardless of how loud it could have been outside of the car. It was super easy to connect to bluetooth with our iphones to the vehicle, which was awesome because our Apple Music and Spotify playlists came on in seconds. It was a seamless trip and a smooth ride.

We spent hours just chilling at the sauna and in the heated indoor pool. The food at the resort was also delicious – I highly recommend the Scarpetta restaurant. And the sightseeing alone was breathtaking.

Photo: Courtesy of Johanna Ferriera

Photo: Courtesy of Johanna Ferriera

But what I really loved about this trip was the soul connections the three of us girls were able to make as friends. All three of us have been through our fair ups and downs this year and getting together for a weekend, not only to heal up but to support each other in our goals, dreams, and visions for the upcoming year, was so magical. In fact, we had what we’d like to call our “Eat, Pray, Love” moment while hanging in the sauna for the last time.

Each of us said out loud the gifts and lessons we received in 2017 along with our dreams and goals for 2018. We then asked each other how we’d like to be supported by one another in these goals. We promised to have each other’s backs through it all and closed off holding hands and praying.

Photo: Courtesy of Johanna Ferriera

This trip was filled with fun, laughter, complete relaxation, honesty, total vulnerability, and a whole lot of love and support and I couldn’t be more grateful for it. There’s definitely something powerful and magical that happens when women come together to support and empower each other and I’ve promised myself to never lose sight of that, even when I enter a serious relationship again, even after I get married and have kids.

Photo: Courtesy of Johanna Ferriera

Girls Trip actress Regina Hall said it best: “Sisterhood is about rooting for each other and loving each other and, even if you can’t, it’s about being honest enough to find a way to be able to encourage and rejoice for another.” I absolutely couldn’t agree more. If you put anything on your 2018 New Year’s resolutions list – make sure to squeeze time and prioritize a girls trip. Trust me and thank me later.

Photo: Courtesy of Johanna Ferriera