Score a Better Bod With Your Buds

Three girl-bonding trips that’ll help you get fit

At the moment, I’m somewhat obsessed with the idea of putting together a no-boys-allowed trip with my dearest old girlfriends. And I’m not talking about one of those girlfriend getaways that involve mud masks and finger sandwiches or weekend-long scrapbooking extravaganzas or anything like that. I want adventure. I want something active, something challenging, something exciting we’ll remember long after we leave. That in mind, here are three package deals that’ll leave give any group of girls a reason to forgo the lazy days of daiquiris by the pool in favor of a fresh sort of fun. — Christine Speer, Travel Editor

Ride a Horse, Be a Cowgirl
The cowgirl workshop at New Hampshire’s Farm by the River B&B is tucked away in the picturesque White Mountains, and I can already imagine the hilarity as we attempt to rope a fence post. The Ride a Horse, Be a Cowgirl deal includes five nights lodging, breakfast each day, a trail ride each morning, riding lessons, and an amiable-sounding group BBQ.

Go: $2,000 for two people in one room; two-room suites are also available. June 20th to 25th. 2555 West Side Road, North Conway, NH, 603-356-2694.

Bike the Whites
Another fresh-air excursion that caught my eye is Bike the Whites, a self-guided bicycling tour—self-guided, now there’s the adventure!—wherein one bikes from one charming New England inn to the next (about 20 to 50 miles each day), and spends nights well-fed and bedded down in quaint country B&Bs—The Brass Heart Inn in Chocorua, the 1785 Inn in North Conway and the Snowvillage Inn, also in North Conway. The inns provide you with detailed maps, directions, access to roadside assistance, luggage transfers, even bike rental.

Go: Package rates range from $299 to $429. Brass Heart Inn: 88 Philbrick Neighborhood Road, Chocorua, NH, 603-323-7766; the 1785 Inn, Scenic Vista, North Conway, NH, 603-356-9025; Snowvillage Inn, 136 Stewart Road, Snowville, NH, 603-447-2818.

Surf and Stretch in Bali
Okay, this one might take a little longer to plan—and to save for—but eight days and seven nights at this girls-only yoga and surf retreat will be well worth the effort. You’ll stay in a postcard-perfect luxury villa, enjoy surfing lessons, a video of your surfing excursions, yoga, your pick of any two-hour spa treatment, gourmet meals (plus fruit baskets and snacks all day), and your choice of cooking classes, scuba diving, bungee jumping, rafting … in other words, pretty much one awesome dip into paradise. And who hasn’t wanted to be a surfer chick at one point or another?

Go: $2,595 per person, 888-726-9763, surfgoddessretreats.com

Psst: Don’t be jealous, guys. We’ll discuss dude-bonding trips soon, so stay tuned!

Image: Courtesy of Farm by the River Bed & Breakfast with Stables