Adventure Travel

What is Adventure Travel?

Adventure travel is a very broad term and means something slightly different to each traveler. It encompasses unusual destinations, extreme sports-focused vacations, and singular one-of-a-kind experiences. What it doesn't mean is ordinary. No tour busses and mega-resorts for adventure travelers. These journeys are customized to meet the strengths and desires of the individual travelers – whether that means exploring the Antarctic coastline or hiking through Provence.

Types of Adventure Travel

Adventure travel comes is many forms and can be to hundreds, if not thousands, of destinations. Among the most common forms of adventure travel are:

• Sports Vacations – This form of travel is centered around a one-of-a-kind sports activity, such as climbing El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, rafting down the Colorado River, or taking a helicopter to a pristine glacier in Utah or Alaska and skiing down to civilization. Sports vacations can also be more leisurely, such as a bicycling trek through Tuscany or horseback riding through Mexico's Baja Peninsula.

• Extreme Destinations – Some destinations are so off the beaten tourist path as to take a singular effort to get to them. The Galapagos Islands off the coast of Ecuador, the hilltop aeries of Machu Pichu Peru (pictured above), the Himalayan country of Tibet, and the spectacular coral atolls of Palau in the South Sea Islands are all such destinations. Just getting to the destination is half of the adventure on these trips, such as taking an ice cutter to Antarctica or a helicopter to the remote glaciers of Alaska.

• Eco-Tourism – The art of eco-tourism, defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as "the practice of touring natural habitats in a manner meant to minimize ecological impact." Said another way, it's leaving the site of your travels in at least as good of shape as you found it. That includes not draining the water supply, dumping non-biodegradable waste, and felling woodlands for hotel sites.

• Family Adventure Travel – An adventure vacation doesn't have to mean leaving the kids at home. Many off-the-beaten path destinations have a lot of educational opportunities. For active travelers, the experience of sharing a hiking trek, a dive along one of the world's colorful coral reefs, or skiing down an uncrowded Alpine glacier can bring a family closer together and be the topic of family dinners for years to come.

Booking Your Adventure

A number of travel operators and agents specialize in adventure travel. The subject is so broad; however, that it is wise to find a company that has experience in the particular kind of trip in which you are interested. Such companies can be found by word-of-mouth, from forum members on online travel sites, and in publications, such as the Specialty Travel Index.