I went on a 7-day trip with girls I'd only known for a few months. It felt like the start of an amazing friendship.

16.12.2024 - 14:25 / insider.com

I found myself crafting the perfect itinerary to the South of France, envisioning pristine beaches and dazzling scenery from Provence to the glamorous St. Tropez and Monaco, The dilemma? Though I was planning a solo trip , I realized it was actually the perfect destination for a glitzy girls' trip. The kind you make memories you'll still laugh about years down the line. Yet, as I'm nearing 40, the number of friends I have who can take time to travel as their lives move in the direction of marriage and growing families is dwindling.

So, I took the plunge and tossed my itinerary in a group chat a friend created after we all had a blast together at my birthday brunch, where they initially all met. I was nervous about the possible chorus of, "Love this but can't… maybe next year?" replies. But seconds later, responses like "I'm down!" and "I'd be interested" came rolling in.

Following the enthusiastic replies, we started seriously planning our trip to the French Riviera in another dedicated group chat.

That's when the frustrations kicked off. We were four women with vastly different vacation styles who were now planning a seven-day trip to the Côte d'Azur.

The first issue was the budget. The pings from the group chat were never-ending as we attempted to merge various travel practices and budgets to fit the group.

Initially, it was suggested to fly into a cheaper city and completely rearrange the original itinerary. It became overwhelming, and to avoid headaches before takeoff, we ultimately settled to move forward with what I initially proposed to the group. Once we all agreed on expectations, the next step was to finalize bookings.

From there, we leaned into each other's strengths to round out the finishing touches of the planning. I assumed the heavy lifting in finding the perfect places to stay. Because we didn't know each other well, we all agreed to look for accommodations that would allow everyone to have their own room — and if that didn't work, at least their own bed. We were excited to go on the trip, but also wanted to give each other space to unwind and recharge.

My method was simple: I looked around for spaces that fit the bill, selected my two favorite, and created a poll in the group chat for everyone to vote. It eliminated unnecessary back-and-forth and decision fatigue .

Chelsea, whom I had met in a group for girls who love fine dining, was the group's resident foodie. In a location as splashy as the South of France, it's easy to get lost in the ritzy beach clubs and restaurants and rack up unnecessarily expensive tabs for every meal. To help us avoid this, she did some digging on both the hot spots and local affordable gems. We didn't go a day wondering, "Where should we