Many women we heard from say there's nothing like a weekend with the girls to keep the laughter alive. Tour companies and resorts are heeding the call by offering women-only specials and girlfriend retreats. Here's a sampling:

Close to home: The Gambill Mansion Bed & Breakfast in Blaine, Ky., an 18-room, three-story brick home built in 1923, has a Ladies Day Spa package that includes a manicure/makeover, 30-minute therapeutic massage, bubble bath in an antique tub, light lunch, and vintage photo. Cost: $150 per person for one to three women; $125 each for four or more. Add overnight accommodations for $25 to $65. (800) 485-3362, or Web site

Take over: The Ivy House Bed & Breakfast, Fortville, Ind., has a Girlfriends Getaway Retreat Package that allows you and five friends to reserve the entire inn. There is an early check-in to make the most of the inn and its amenities, a pizza delivery, evening cocoa or tea, and a full breakfast by candlelight. Cost: $70 per person, six-guest minimum. (888) 456-1489 or Web site.

Those "deer" husbands: The Ramada Plaza Hotel in Wilmington, Ohio, has a weekend getaway for women coinciding with the opening of deer-hunting season, Nov. 15-16. Women get overnight accommodations, champagne tea, a Saturday night dinner banquet, lunch at Jeffersonville Prime Outlets, a shopping discount book, a cosmetic bag, and a shopping bag, breakfast the next morning at Max & Erma's, and entertainment. Cost: $119 per person for double occupancy; $159 single. (800) 654-7036 Reservation deadline is Nov. 7.

Love to shop? The Reading & Berks County Visitors Bureau has a Girlfriends Getaway that gives you a weekend to shop at the Original Outlet Capital of Reading, Pa.; hotel accommodations; a gift package including chocolate-covered pretzels and a Girlfriends nightshirt; and coupons. Packages start at $95. Call group sales at (800) 443-6610, Ext. 211.

Clear choice: The Finger Lakes area of New York is the backdrop for a women's weekend that includes two nights' accommodations, two breakfasts, one dinner, admission to the Planetarium in Rochester and the Rockwell Museum of Western Art in Corning, a gift basket, and admission to the Corning Museum of Glass, where you'll have lunch and make a glass piece. Cost: $199 per person. Call Finger Lakes tours at (607) 792-3663.

Minnie calls: Go to Orlando, Fla., but leave the family at home when you book the Girlfriends Getaway Package at the Windsor Palms Resort. Package includes a five-day/four-night stay in a three-bedroom town house with private pool, four passes to Universal CityWalk, and coupons. Cost: $561 per town house. (888) 464-6353 (must ask for Girlfriends Getaway Package) or Web site. Valid through March.

Michele Day