11 Girlfriend Getaways To Take This Winter

If you love walkable cities and historic architecture, pack your comfy shoes and head to Alexandria, Virginia. The charm of Old Town—the 18th-century architecture, brick-edged streets, and holiday lights—will have you constantly pulling out your phone for can't-miss pictures (top Instagram spots include The Spite House, the skinniest historic home in the country, and cobblestoned Captain's Row). You'll have a great time, and you'll learn a lot, too. (Win-win!)

Don't Miss: The Lyceum History Museum, Alexandria Black History Museum, Mount Vernon, Alexandria Archaeology Museum, Athenaeum, Fontaine Caffe and Creperie, Vermilion Restaurant, The Majestic, Hotel Indigo Old Town Alexandria

Explore the Biltmore in the snowy season with your besties. From early November to early January, enjoy more than 60 Christmas trees, candlelight tours, and choirs. You'll feel like a local when you make Asheville your home base, because there are plenty of spa services, shops, and breweries in the area for luxuriating, browsing, and sipping to your heart's content.

Don't Miss: Biltmore, The Inn on Biltmore Estate, Zen Asheville Inn & Spa Retreat, The Spa at The Omni Grove Park Inn, Grove Arcade, Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company, Wicked Weed Brewing, The Orange Peel, Rosetta's Kitchen, River Arts District, Asheville Emporium, Captain's Bookshelf, Historic Grovewood Village

Transylvania County will have you swooning the minute you arrive. Take a winter stroll through Brevard's charming downtown, stopping into the boutiques and grabbing a 50s-style soda-shop meal at Rocky's as you go. If it's not too cold, brave the Pisgah Forest for a magical (and snowy!) winter hike.

Don't Miss: Rocky's Soda Shop, D.D. Bullwinkel's, Bracken Mountain Bakery, Brevard Brewing Company, White Squirrel Shop, The Square Root, Blue Ridge Bakery, Marco Trattoria, The Falls Landing Eatery, Jordan Street Cafe

Chattanooga is even more fun in winter. Bundle up and walk beside the river, meander the Bluff View Art District, stop into Rembrandt's for coffee, see a show at the historic Tivoli Theater, explore the Tennessee Aquarium, and while away the afternoon in the area's art museums, like the Hunter Museum of American Art (pictured).

Don't Miss: Bluff View Inn, The Read House, Bluff View Bakery, Tony's Pasta Shop and Trattoria, Rembrandt's Coffee House, The Hunter Museum of American Art, Tennessee Aquarium, Chattanooga Choo Choo, Big River Grille and Brewing Works, Sugar's Ribs

Escape the winter chill and get away to the Florida Keys. There's plenty to do here all year round—and, in case you were wondering, there's just as much to do on land as in the water. We've already planned the perfect Keys road trip for you and your girls this season, so pack your flip-flops and get going!

Don't Miss: Kona Kai Resort, Gallery, and Botanic Gardens, Pines & Palms Resort, Ballyhoo's Historic Seafood Grille, Key Largo Conch House Restaurant, Bahia Honda State Park, Kermit's Key West Key Lime Shoppe, Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory

Winter in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge will keep you and your girls busy all weekend long with plenty of shopping, food, and Tennessee mountain charm. Dollywood is open in winter too (the theme park, not the water park). It's just a short drive from Gatlinburg, and you and your girls will never want to leave.

Don't Miss: Bearskin Lodge on the River, Pigeon Forge Fun Time Trolley, Tanger Outlets, Ole Smoky Candy Kitchen, Smoky Mountain Trout House, The Park Grill, Log Cabin Pancake House, Dollywood, Big Daddy's Pizzeria

Eat your way through foodie-heaven Houston—there's so much good stuff here, you'll want to stay longer than the weekend. Make downtown or the Museum District your home base. Explore the Theater District and go to a musical or concert, or opt for the ballet or an opera. Stop into the Galleria for shopping, and make reservations for plenty of swanky meals. (Or, you know, you can always just grab a few of the addictive tacos at Torchy's.)

Don't Miss: Alice Blue, FM Kitchen & Bar, 1751 Sea and Bar, Bludorn Restaurant, Underbelly Burger, Torchy's Tacos, Hotel ZaZa, The Museum of Fine Arts Houston, The Wortham Theater Center, Jones Hall for the Performing Arts

Road-trip to this Gulf town with your girls for a small-town retreat with plenty of Southern charm, delicious seafood, and unexpected adventure. Shops, art galleries, and lovely architecture dot this stunner on Biloxi Bay.

Don't Miss: The Inn at Ocean Springs, Front Beach Cottages, Walter Anderson Museum of Art, French Kiss Pastries, Government Street Grocery, Mosaic Tapas Restaurant, Maison de Lu, The Shed BBQ & Blues Joint, Davis Bayou Area

Beat the chill and relax on the Florida coast with a girls' trip to the Palm Beaches. Bundle up on the sand or go exploring up and down the coast. There are plenty of photo ops seaside (and the sands will be much less crowded than in summer!).

Don't Miss: Flagler Museum, The Brazilian Court Hotel, The Colony Hotel, Island Living Tours, Worth Avenue Walking Tours, Leopard Lounge & Restaurant, Buccan Palm Beach, City Cellar Wine Bar and Grill

There's plenty to see and do in St. Louis—Gateway Arch included. Explore The Hill neighborhood for world-class Italian cuisine. Make a stop at Charlie Gitto's On The Hill for irresistible dishes amid flickering candlelight, and don't forget to try Zia's Restaurant too.

Don't Miss: Charlie Gitto's On The Hill, Zia's Restaurant, The Muny Theatre, Missouri Botanical Garden, Blueberry Hill, Ted Drewes Frozen Custard, Drury Plaza Hotel-St. Louis at the Arch, Westin St. Louis, Peabody Opera House

Embrace a small town trip with a jaunt to Thomasville, Georgia. Warm up at Grassroots Coffee Company, do some shopping at Firefly, Relish, and The Bookshelf, and enjoy long, leisurely meals at Liam's, Jonah's, and Sweetgrass Cheese Shop. Don't forget to visit the Lapham-Patterson House (pictured), a Victorian marvel near downtown.

Don't Miss: Grassroots Coffee Company, Liam's Restaurant, Jonah's Fish and Grits, Sweetgrass Cheese Shop, Firefly, Relish, The Bookshelf, The Lapham-Patterson House, The Big Oak