Traveling with strangers. What it’s like on a small group trip

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I took a trip with complete strangers to check out another national park off my bucket list.

I’d already visited Arches and Zion, but was still missing Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands and Capitol Reef from Utah’s Mighty Five, when I spotted Bryce Canyon on an Intrepid Travel itinerary.

The four-day trip also included Zion, parts of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Arizona, Snow Canyon State Park in Utah, and Lower Antelope Canyon in Navajo Nation.

According to Priceline’s 2027 Where to Next? Travel Trends Report, based on a survey of 3,000 U.S. adults, “Most Americans (80%) are interested in pursuing some type of checklist travel goal.”

Here’s what my trip was like and what to know about small group travel.

Getting ready

Unlike the many park trips I’d planned on my own, the only thing I needed to do for this trip was pack and show up.

“You don’t have to think about and organize and plan and manage the experience,” Leigh Barnes, president, North America for Intrepid Travel, told USA TODAY. “Once you know where you want to go and the type of experiences you want to have, using a small group tour operator really means that they’re going to take care of all logistics.”

Small group trips typically include all accommodations, ground transportation, various guided excursions, and most meals.

Intrepid shared detailed plans in advance, along with a list of what to bring.

Essential packing items included:

• Lightweight, breathable clothing that can be layered

• Closed-toe walking or hiking shoes

• Sun protection, including hats, sunglasses and sunscreen

• A refillable water bottle

• Personal travel documents

I also packed recommended items, like my cellphone and an extra pair of comfy shoes, as well as optional items, like a travel pillow and headphones for the drive between destinations.

Our group’s seasoned guide, Wes Michels-Ratliff, also set up a WhatsApp group chat before the trip, to share trip-related announcements. Group members may have been able to introduce themselves too, but I didn’t join the chat until after we’d already met in person.

Getting there

Our trip started and ended in Las Vegas, about a 2½-hour drive from our first destination, Zion. Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport is the closest major airport to the park, and the city is a popular starting point for road trips throughout the region.

I flew in a night early and stayed at the hotel that served as our trip’s starting and end point, a Courtyard by Marriott near the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Michels-Ratliff greeted us there the following morning and invited everyone to share a little bit about themselves before piling into the still new-smelling 15-passenger van that served as our chariot.

“I like to ask unique questions at the first welcome meeting, including questions about their passions outside of work. This often leads to guests asking each other follow-up questions and learning more about their fellow travelers throughout the trip,” Michels-Ratliff told USA TODAY by email, after the trip.

Getting to know each other

There were 12 of us all together: five solo travelers, three couples and Mitchels-Ratliff.

Barnes, who was not part of the group, said most Intrepid trips have 12 people and typically max out at 16.

One traveler came from England, another from Canada. The rest of us were from the U.S.

I didn’t ask anyone’s age, but our group appeared to range from the late 20s to 70s.

Personalities also varied. Everyone was friendly, but some travelers were more reserved, while others were very outgoing and loquacious.

We did have one thing in common, besides our interest in the trip’s destinations.

“The people we’re seeing are not waiting for their friends, their families. They want to go and experience something,” Barnes said.

Girls just wanna have fun. Spouses don’t have to come

Getting around

Michels-Ratliff drove the whole way and suggested we switch seats from day to day, to further get to know each other.

This had the added benefit of giving everyone a turn at the van’s window seats to enjoy the Southwestern scenery.

Some drives were full of conversation, with spontaneous games like guessing movie titles based on one-liners from the film.

Other stretches were relatively quiet, particularly toward the end of the trip when we were tired.

Michels-Ratliff played music the entire time, with songs hand-picked for different parts of the journey, like Sheryl Crow’s “Leaving Las Vegas” when we first set out.

Getting to choose

Intrepid offers itineraries in more than 100 countries.

“It’ll be everything from soft cultural adventure, where you’re really just going to experience the culture of that particular place and understand what it’s like to live there … right through to more harder adventure, where you might be hiking to Everest Base Camp or climbing Kilimanjaro,” Barnes said.

I chose this particular itinerary for its parks, which were even more mesmerizing than I imagined. I also chose it for its moderate level of activity.

“I like to offer easier hiking options when possible, while still making sure guests who want to do longer hikes have the opportunity to do so,” Michels-Ratliff said. “I also find out early in the trip what particular interests guests have, such as photography or geology, and customize the experience with extra stops or information.”

One night, we also had a choice of relaxing at our resort or exploring the nearby town of Springdale, Utah, just outside Zion’s South entrance.

“One of our big focuses has really been around advocating and supporting national parks here in the USA. And one of the really cool things with our trips … is we get into those gateway towns, we eat at the restaurants, we spend money there,” Barnes said. “That’s really a powerful economic driver.”

We ate about half our meals out. Michels-Ratliff prepared the other half with groceries he bought and group members volunteering to help prep, cook and clean.

Getting a break

All three nights of the trip, we stayed at Zion White Bison Resort, which offers glamping in Conestoga-style wagons and other types of accommodations.

Of Intrepid’s four trip styles – basic, original, comfort and premium – the Utah resort fell into the comfort category.

Solo travelers can choose to book a shared room for a lower accommodation rate through Intrepid, but all the solo travelers on this trip, myself included, chose separate sleeping arrangements.

After spending most of each day with others, I think we all appreciated the down time alone to recharge.

It’s worth noting that accommodations are only part of pricing equations. Destinations and trip duration also factor in.

“You can probably go somewhere between $1,000 and $2,000 to get like a 7- to 10-day trip and that’s in places like Vietnam, Morocco, Costa Rica,” Barnes said. The four-day Zion Glamping Adventure starts at $2,575 next year.

Is a small group travel right for you?

“I probably never thought, when I was in my 20s, small groups would be for me,” Barnes said, recalling how he used to plan everything on his own with a guidebook in hand. “I didn’t think I could handle being in a group. I liked being a free spirit.”

But he said he was blown away by his first small group trip to Peru.

“I had such an amazing experience, because I wasn’t doing the planning. It was so much better to be present,” he said.

As travelers consider where they want to go and what they want to do, he encouraged also asking: Where do you need access? Where would you feel more comfortable?

He noted smaller groups can access some experiences big tours cannot. Like other respected tour operators, he also said Intrepid maintains global standards of safety and care, regardless of the destination.

If you do decide to try it out, Michels-Ratliff reminds travelers to:

• Approach fellow travelers with the same level of curiosity as the destination.

• Think of it as an adventure with new friends and leave the planning to your guide for a more enjoyable experience.

• Keep a flexible mindset, knowing that small changes may need to be made due to weather, other guests’ abilities, or other factors.

The reporter on this story received access from Intrepid Travel. USA TODAY maintains editorial control of content.

Eve Chen is a senior consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY, based in the Atlanta area. You can reach her at echen@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Traveling with strangers. What it’s like on a small group trip