A perennially popular island hotspot for Australian travellers has been named the world’s number one destination for a summer girls’ trip.
Bali has topped a new global ranking of the best destinations for a summer girls’ trip, finishing ahead of Phuket and Crete.
The study from small-ship cruise company Sail Croatia scored 10 destinations across five factors: safety, outdoor activities, spas and wellness centres, Instagram hashtags and daily cost.
The index combined how secure women feel walking alone, the number of available tours and recreation, relaxation options, social popularity by Instagram hashtags and daily cost spanning accommodation, food and travel.
For Australian travel advisors, the result lands squarely on home turf: Indonesia is consistently the top outbound destination for Australians – with Bali its busiest gateway.
Why Bali came out on top
Bali recorded a perfect score of 100 with more than 2,600 outdoor activities, from surfing and jungle treks to rice terrace walks and waterfall chasing, plus over 2,000 spas and wellness centres.
Its safety score sat at 53.6, lower than several rivals, but the study found its combination of activities and low cost outweighed the gap.
Daily costs came in at USD$142.84 (around AUD$203) per person, the cheapest in the top 10.
Where the other top destinations landed
Phuket finished second with a safety score of 73 and nearly 800 open-air experiences, from island hopping to Muay Thai classes, at about USD$191 (around AUD$271) per person, per day.
Crete took third place with 658 outdoor activities and a higher daily cost of almost USD$294 (about AUD$417), followed by Kotor in Montenegro, which posted the highest safety score in the top five at 92.
The Azores in Portugal rounded out the top five with a safety score of 84 and 421 outdoor activities across nine volcanic islands.
Tulum in Mexico finished last on cost with daily expenses above USD$440 (around AUD$624) and fewer than 150 wellness centres, roughly a tenth of Bali’s tally.
The findings show that a great summer girls’ trip balances safety, activity options and daily costs that fall within an affordable travel budget, offering value for female travellers.
KARRYON UNPACKS: Two of the top three on this summer girls’ trip list, Bali and Phuket, are destinations Australians already book in volume, and the female group angle is ready-made for selling multi-share villas, wellness add-ons and small-group touring.
