The best surprise travel companies in the U.S. for every type of traveler

Competitours is a surprise travel program described as The Amazing Race for normal people. Operating trips in Europe, Central America and the United States, all you know is your start and end point. You go with a team of two on a public trip and compete against other groups over the course of a nine- or 10-day trip. It’s great for couples, two best friends or maybe even your siblings.

Compete is a loose term, though. The experiences can include what founder Ari Charlestein tells Time Out could consist of the chance to “dive into special effects makeup design in Hollywood” or take part in a workshop on “how to become a fudge maker in Michigan.”

For international trips, they’ve had experiences like building an earthquake-proof tower of Legos in Denmark and herding sheep in the Netherlands. Competitours' upcoming U.S. trip is August 15 to 25, and starts in Philadelphia, PA. and ends in Little Rock, AR. Beyond that, let your imagination run wild or, of course, you can sign up and find out for yourself.

Prices range from $4,000 to $4,500 for the whole trip.

Pack Up + Go focuses solely on domestic trips. Unlike Competitours, it’s not a pre-planned competition. This is a bit more free-form. It’s just for you and your travel companions. When planning a trip, you'll complete a pre-trip survey to let their travel planners know about you, what you want to do and what you’re not up for.

Based on your budget, they’ll take it from there. The Pack Up + Go team will book the flights and lodging. They’ll even add some planned activities for you to enjoy. Pack Up + Go also offers a guide to the destination, so you can always check it out at your leisure if that’s more your speed. The company will send you a packing list a week before you set to depart, but you won’t know the specifics—like where you’re flying to—until you get to the airport.

For those who just need a nudge in the right direction, Guess Where Trips might be the best option for you. This guide helps you plan a road trip—no airport required. Guess Where Trips are very inexpensive and require no pre-planning, just a suggested itinerary.

It’s perfect for the indecisive who may need a bit of a nudge to come up with a plan. Customers can make themes as the company builds its itinerary, including "Historic Haunts;" "Hops, Hikes & History;" or "Country Farms & Furry Friends". They’ll send you a box with your plan for $65 and you can get a digital version for $39. Unfortunately, gas and food are not included.

“I have always had this major bucket list item where I show up at the airport with nothing but a passport in hand and pick a destination off the board and just go. Well, that's the feeling we're creating—but you have a 4-star hotel booked when you land,” Bridget Scotti, founder of Whym Travel, tells Time Out. 

The company offers opportunities for couples, solo travelers and much more. Like Pack Up and Go, Whym includes a pre-trip consultation to help its team develop the plan. Seven days before your trip, you’ll get a confirmation email, the day before you’ll get basic flight information like the time and where to show up, but you’ll only know where you’re going 2 to 3 hours before you leave. Their itineraries include guides as well as pre-booked dinners and other surprise experiences.

Started in 2019, Journee is a surprise travel program that allows people to customize their experience to their respective budget, date and weather preferences, so don’t worry about going somewhere cold if that’s not your thing. Offering solely international trips, it focuses on destinations you may haven’t been to yet. Journee will only take up 10 minutes of your time with a questionnaire.

Your experiences could vary. Founder Ed Tribe says those could range from cooking in Seville, Spain to paragliding in Slovenia.

Although based in the U.K., it expanded its departing airport options to include JFK and Newark Liberty International in the New York metropolitan area, as well as Washington Dulles, Boston, Miami, Dallas/Fort Worth International and Chicago O’Hare. Journee gives you a little advance notice about the details of your trip: You’ll get a full week to study up.