In recent years, mega travel bloggers have been able to build loyal and dedicated audiences through social media. And after awhile, it’s only natural that their audience would like join them on an adventure! Some travel bloggers have started running group trips so their readers can get in on the action! I’ve followed travel blogger Alyssa Ramos for several years and feel incredibly fortunate to have joined two of her group trips. If you’re debating booking a trip like this, here’s my honest review of My Life’s A Travel Movie Group Trips!
My Life’s A Travel Movie Group Trip Review
The first trip I took with Alyssa was a blogger bootcamp she was running in Bali, Indonesia. I hadn’t officially launched my travel blog yet but I knew I wanted to pursue blogging.
I was thrilled with the experience from start to finish. Daily classes and workshops, thoughtful welcome gifts, a stunning villa in Bali and lots of like-minded travel girls who were interested in pursuing the same thing!
Alyssa gave an incredible wealth of insider knowledge about travel blogging and working in the industry. So after my first group trip, I knew I would be booking another in the future!
Great selection and variety of trips!
So here’s what I love about Alyssa’s group trip options: she literally goes everywhere!
From Bali to Tanzania to Morocco, and even Antarctica- there is no shortage of epic destinations. Upcoming trips include amazing places like Uzbekistan.
And if you’ve followed Alyssa for awhile, it can be really fun to go from watching and reading about her travels to actually being there and getting in on the action!
You can check out the My Life’s A Travel Movie group trips here.
Check out the video from their group trip to Antarctica on Alyssa’s Youtube. It’s serious bucket list goals!
Leading up to the trip
Packing suggestions, Group Facetimes, Constant Support
I think what impressed me most about My Life’s A Travel Movie group trips was the thorough preparation and support leading up to trip. We received detailed packing lists for India, got to connect with the rest of the group before the trip and even had a group Facetime to allow us to ask Alyssa any questions! She was there every step of the way to clarify questions about our visas for India, things we needed to do before the trip, how much cash to bring etc.
Especially for new travelers, it is an awesome way to travel “solo” but still have a some group support.
Payment Plans
When Alyssa announced her group trip to India, I knew I had to join. India was a MAJOR bucket list destination for me but I didn’t want to do it solo. Truthfully, the country intimidated me a bit and I had heard less than favorable things from solo female travelers while in India. So I knew I’d like to experience the country with a group of like-minded people.
But unfortunately for me, she announced the trip while I was traveling abroad and didn’t have the funds to pay for it all upfront. Alyssa was very accommodating and helped me to set up a payment plan so I could still join the trip and pay in increments.
Are the trips just for girls?
Nope! Guys have joined her group trips as well. But on both my trip to Bali and India with Alyssa, we had all female trips.
India Highlights
Sunrise at the Taj Mahal
In true Alyssa fashion, there was plenty of epic inclusions on the itinerary. But easily everyone’s favorite was the sunrise at the Taj Mahal! We managed to be some of the first one’s into this iconic landmark and even were able to shoot some photos here before the crowds arrived.
Read: HOW TO GET A PHOTO ALONE AT THE TAJ MAHAL
5 -Star Hotels
Truthfully when I travel, I don’t normally stay in 5-star hotels. I’m happy to stay in Airbnbs and even the occasional couchsurf or hostel. But our accommodations in India were stunning. I was floored that we stayed at such nice places considering the cost of the trip.
Our hotels often welcomed us with a drink upon arrival. Our bags would be taken to our rooms and the pools and restaurants were all outstanding. In Agra, we even had a view of the Taj Mahal from our bedroom!
Private Guide
In India, it was great to have a local guide and local driver. (It also helps to support the economy directly, which is great!) Our guide was friendly and informative and made us all feel super welcomed.
Air Conditioned Vehicle
The itinerary was based around the infamous Golden Triangle route which includes a couple of long car rides to get between the major cities. We felt very fortunate to have a large van/small bus with air conditioning (which is not always the case in India!) and curtains on the windows. There was space over head for our day bags and suitcases could go under the bus.
The bus rides turned out to be very enjoyable. It was very interesting to simply sit back and watch out the window as we drove through India. We passed through small rural villages, major cities and lush landscapes.
Tiger Safari
While we ended up not seeing any tigers, I genuinely still loved this experience. Cruising around the national park in our matching safari hats and observing wildlife was still very enjoyable despite the disappointment of a tigerless safari. (Which of course is out of Alyssa’s hands, they are wild animals!)
And now I’m hooked! Before our My Life’s A Travel Movie group trip I didn’t even know you could go on tiger safaris. I’ll definitely be looking to go on others in the future.
Read: TIGER SAFARI IN RANTHAMBORE NATIONAL PARK, INDIA: A COMPLETE GUIDE
An emphasis on photography, social media and Instagram
If you enjoy taking photos for Instagram or a blog, you will probably like this trip even more! There was a big emphasis on taking photos which was advertised when the trip was promoted.
However if you were less interested in taking a thousand photos, you could also head off and do your own thing 🙂 When we arrived at famous landmarks, we usually had free time to split off and explore at our own pace. This allowed for some to focus on photography and others to simply appreciate the destination. Sometimes I chose to partner with a girl from the group to help capture some great travel photos and other times, I simply wanted to walk around and explore.
Was it worth it? Yes.
This was a great way to connect with other ladies who were interested in travel, photography and adventure! And the price for the trip was far less than other travel bloggers charge for group trips. Alyssa consistently went above and beyond to ensure our trip was seamless and provide additional support from the moment we booked.
Even after the trip was over, she continued to send us photos she had taken and shared video highlights on social media of the trip. Thank you Alyssa for a great trip!
Follow her group trips on Instagram to stay up to date!
More on India:
- INDIA: YOUR COMPLETE PACKING GUIDE
- WHAT TO WEAR IN INDIA: A WOMAN’S GUIDE TO FEELING FASHIONABLE AND COMFORTABLE
- INDIA: 10 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ANSWERED
- TIGER SAFARI IN RANTHAMBORE NATIONAL PARK, INDIA: A COMPLETE GUIDE
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