About Beth

Hey! 

Beth Whitman here. I’m the founder of WanderTours and am your (mostly) fearless leader.

After my first book was released, Wanderlust and Lipstick: The Essential Guide for Women Traveling Solo, women started asking me to bring them along on my travels.

Wanting them to travel independently–as I had done for nearly 20 years up to that point–I was reluctant at first. But I recognized that not everyone has the energy, time or desire to plan their own travels. So I led my first tour to Bhutan in 2008.

What I discovered through that trip to Bhutan, and through subsequent trips, was the bonding, camaraderie and life-long friendships that develop when women (and men on the co-ed trips) experience these destinations together. Those friendships have blossomed not only between myself and our guests, but also between these once-strangers who have met on one of our tours and who now regularly travel together–many of them returning tour after tour as a reunion of sorts.

All this is to say that after nearly 20 years of leading groups to destinations both near (Seattle, my backyard) and far (Papua New Guinea, India, Tanzania, Peru and more), I truly feel like the luckiest person on the planet. I get to travel with people whom I am genuinely delighted to share time with AND I get to introduce them to new cultures, sights, sounds and food along the way.

Want to know more?
Some people arrive on a tour expecting me to carry a clipboard and pen, and peering over reading glasses checking names off a list.

That’s not me.

I greet you with a hug because, if we’re not already, we’re soon going to be friends. After all, we’re going to be spending some time together, anywhere from 5 to 15 days depending on the destination. I don’t want YOU traveling without a friend and I certainly don’t want to either!

This type of tour isn’t for everyone. And that’s totally fine. I would encourage you to follow me on social media, specifically by friending me on Facebook, following me on Instagram here and here, and listening to me host the She’s Bold Podcast.

I think you’ll get a pretty good sense as to what I’m about and whether WanderTours is for you. If you’re still not sure, pick up the phone and let’s have a chat. I LOVE to talk travel! 206-317-1860

What I do in my spare time…

I’ve traveled a lot and have had what many would consider some pretty adventurous trips.

I’ve traveled to more than 50 countries and am a Million Miler with Delta Airlines.

There are so many highlights from my travels but of particular note are:

  • Completing (twice) the 25-day, 220-mile Snowman Trek in Bhutan (one of the most difficult treks in the world)
  • Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and reaching the top at 19,341 feet
  • Trekking the Inca Trail for four days to reach Machu Pichu
  • Riding a motorcycle solo from Seattle to Panama
  • Driving the AlCan Highway to Alaska (via Jeep) on two occasions

I’ve completed marathons on nearly ever continent (I’ll get there soon, Australia!) after running my first marathon at 50. I’ve since run the Seattle Quadzilla three times (four marathons in four days) and have qualified for the Boston Marathon twice. I’ve completed one 50-miler and shortly afterward ran Epic5 Ultra Run Hawaii (five 50K’s in 5 days on 5 Hawaiian islands).

More recently, I joined a small group of people who have completed the 4 Desert races with Racing the Planet and am one of only eight women in the Grand Slam Plus club. This consists of running 155 miles over six days in four deserts–the Gobi (Mongolia), the Namib (Namibia), the Atacama (Chilé) and Antarctica plus one non-desert race (Georgia). This is all while wearing a 20-pound pack carrying my gear for the week. 🤣

I LOVE being an evangelist for the women’s travel market. Interested in having me speak at your event or office? Contact me so we can discuss!