Doni Belau has had a varied life and career, but 2022 was an especially big year for the Nebraska native.

After raising her two children, careers in television production and political fundraising and co-founding a nonprofit in South Africa helping kids with HIV, she had decided in 2009 to start a women-only travel company, Girls Guide to Paris, as an online guide focusing on what women would enjoy in the city.

Over time, Belau began offering small-group, women-only trips to Paris, then expanded to other parts of France, then Bali, England, Greece and Morocco. Today, Belau and her team lead explorations of more than 50 countries, with 80 trips in 2026. The company was rebranded to Girls’ Guide to the World in 2022.

Another big change that year: She and her husband and business partner

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