Women Special Tours

When I saw her name in the itinerary, I whispered a little prayer of thanks to the Almighty. I was meeting my mother after 5 years finally! Courtesy Women Special Tours, a travel agency that custom crafts women only tours, I got to spend a precious and unforgettable 2 week holiday with my mother and a few other women in The Andamans. Thanks to the constant coaxing by my husband to meet my mother and the wondrous coordination by Women Special Tours, I finally relented in sending a message across to my mother living 5000 miles away that I would love for us to spend a holiday together – just me and her. You must be wondering what is so special about this mother-daughter getaway. Special it is and also very overwhelming because 5 years ago my mother broke all ties with me when I married my boyfriend of another faith. She never approved of my relationship with Farhan and let me know about what she thought very vocally. We exchanged some really bitter words at each other the...

I have travelled solo to many places over the world and have gathered a treasure trove of memories beautiful, adventuresome, fearless, and awe-inspiring as well as some scary ones from which I came out unscathed yet emboldened. Juggling my corporate life with the escape artist in me came very smoothly to me in a span of seven years. I loved my work and knew very well not to make it get to the point of mundane, courtesy the advice of my father. He always practiced so called ‘time-outs’ from his hectic schedule as an advocate in the high court with a simple reasoning that ‘your profession too is like a budding romance, you have got to make efforts to keep it alive and blossoming, and for that you have got to pursue a leisure activity that takes your mind off of your job for some time.’ ‘So that when you return, you fall in love with your work all over again.’ That’s been my success mantra of life and my leisurely activity happens to be Travel. Travel gives me the wholes...

I am 58 years old and a travel enthusiast. For many a reason I can claim to be the Generation X Indian poster girl of Women Travelers. For me Travel was a way of life and still continues to be. I used to work hard to splurge on travelling to different parts of the world. As long as I am off to a holiday destination, all is well and beautiful in my world. Imagine the India of mid 60s – especially Mumbai (which I obstinately refer to as Bombay even now and always will till I’m six feet under). I was one of three kids of two famous jazz artists who enthralled the jazz haunts of Churchgate Street (now Nariman Road) with their renditions of famous jazz covers as well as their own compositions. Our house with a coconut grove was always buzzing with jam sessions throughout the day which was a bit of a hindrance during my exams but I got used to it. The moment music played, my annoyance of not having some quite time to study would dissipate into thin air; such was the effect ...

We all have a fair idea what happens when a group of women friends meet over a kitty lunch, bridal shower or a bachelorette. A lot of laughter, some gossip, a lot of teasing, trading prompt repartee and cooking hacks, usual ranting, some subtle hints of jealousy too but overall an amazing sense of camaraderie evolves in this beautiful, sometimes weekly but more often monthly exercise. And when they do this, it forges the bond of their friendship even more. In that one room there is this radiating energy of love, support, intellect, power and beauty emitting out of these women that is so authentic that they all come out as rejuvenated souls. These beings that have renewed their energy comeback home and spread that positive vibe in each family member of their house; thus setting in motion a chain reaction that result in a happy family. Now consider this: What if likeminded women become a community of travelers? We at Women Special Tours are passionate about ‘women travel’ ...

Hello I am Neha. Let me take you back to what I was 6 months ago. I was slogging out the usual rotational shifts from Monday through Friday as a Training Manager in a corporate. If you have ever done rotational shifts you will know what I am talking about. For the uninitiated, rotational shifts are altering ten hour shifts that make your physiological clock terribly twisted like a ‘Jalebi’ or a ‘Pretzel’. You will not know night from day and will look more akin to the zombies in ‘The Walking Dead’ series. (Okay, I stretched the exaggeration a bit too much, but you get my drift ladies!) So by the time Friday rolled by I was like a cruelly wringed out sponge of exhaustion personified. Getting out of bed was like asking me to do something sacrilegious. Even when I do get off eventually, going out to get eggs and bread for breakfast will be someone’s day getting ruined, as I would snap at any random passer-by ogling at me or the grocer asking too many questions. My grocer d...

We Millennial mom’s have travel cravings, admit it. Even when we think about it we feel guilty, admit it. The Xennial mom’s out there; you too belong to the Guilt Flock ain’t ya? Admit it.   The little twinges of ‘I will be a horrible mother if I leave my kids’, ‘the kids schedule would go topsy-turvy’, ‘my husband would go bonkers’,   ‘oh-no-I-can’t –use-the-family-budget-just-for-my-selfish-indulgence!’, ‘what would people say?’. STOP! ………………. Now BREATHE…. What you are about to read will give you some respite from all the bad conscience over your responsibility as a parent and gently nudge you to take the first baby steps to take that much needed vacation. # CTRL+ALT+DELETE that guilt trip : This is the first and foremost thing to do if you plan on debuting on a kids-free vacation. Trust me on this, you going away for a while will teach your kids to understand that their mama also has needs. It gives them the self confidence that they can manage on their own o...

Hello there, I’m a married woman and opposite to what many might think I work both as a professional worker and as a housewife. I was always ambitious since I was a small girl. Today I work in a multinational company and earn a good satisfying salary. The world is changing but when I was a small girl, the thinking of every elder was that girls should start learning household work since the very beginning because that’s what a girl is supposed to do. Thankfully, I had parents who taught me every household work but never told me what I would or should do in the future. I was very competitive about my studies and grades. I earned my degree and got a job that I really aspired to do when I was young. I married at the age of 28 and my in-laws didn’t have any problem with me working out of the house. My husband always encouraged me and supported me through everything. You may be thinking I’m bragging about myself. Well, I’m not. Even though I take pride in what I do but that’...