Intrepid Travel has expanded its range of women’s-only expedition tours to mark International Women’s Day.
International Women’s Day is celebrated this Friday, March 8.
Intrepid is adding four women-only tours, all led by female guides, in Kenya, Nepal, India and Turkey. It brings the tour operator’s portfolio of women-only tours to seven.
These aim to provide insights into women’s lives in the destinations and learn about their everyday challenges while hearing stories from different women, including Syrian refugees forging a new life in Istanbul.
The move follows the launch of Intrepid’s first three Women’s Expeditions last year, on International Women’s Day 2018, in the Middle East. The operator said the tours were among the most popular in its 30-year history. As a result the number of departures was increased from four to 36 dates within months of them going on sale.
The new trips include experiences not included in Intrepid’s regular itineraries, such as swimming at a female-only beach in Antalya and celebrating the female-only Gangur Festival in Rajasthan.
The tours are an 11 day Women’s Expedition in Kenya; 12 day expedition in Turkey; 13 day expedition in Nepal and 12 day trip in India.
The Kenya exhibition, priced from £2,135, includes a journey with the first female overland truck driver in East Africa out of Nairobi to women-only villages, safaris in lesser known national parks such as Samburu and Mount Kenya, a cooking class with local women, a meeting with Kenya’s female wildlife rangers, and time in Umoja Village, a women-only settlement, which offers sanctuary to survivors of genital mutilation, rape and forced marriages.
Intrepid global product manager Jenny Gray said: “These new tours follow an incredible response to the launch of our first three Women’s Expeditions. The #MeToo era is making its mark on travel; our female travellers want to hear the stories and struggles of women around the globe.
“This year we’ve discovered even more extraordinary stories of female empowerment. These new Expeditions give travellers the chance to hear from people from all walks of life about their personal and collective struggles and triumphs in achieving gender equality. They allow travellers to enter private spaces and foster conversations that would be impossible in mixed gender groups.”
In 2017, Intrepid set a goal of doubling the number of female tour leaders globally by 2020. So far, it has increased the number by 70% and is on track to meet its target in 2020.