The benefits of adventure travel extend far beyond the fun and excitement experienced on the day’s activities. It also helps to build self-confidence.
It’s important to understand that you don’t have to be a daredevil to engage in adventure tourism. It can be as simple as stepping outside your cultural comfort zone and becoming physically active.
1. It’s a challenge
Adventure travel is a popular way to explore destinations and test one’s physical limits. It often involves extreme weather, remote locations and long durations of time away from medical care. Many adventure travelers enjoy mountain biking, bungee jumping, kayaking, and sailing as part of their adventures.
For example, Wild, Cheryl Strayed’s real-life hiking adventure, follows her imprudent decision to hike the Pacific Crest Trail following the loss of her mother to cancer and a messy divorce. She struggles with the challenges of solo hiking, as well as the hardships and cultural differences she encounters while on her journey.
Adventure travel can also be a means to transform one’s life, so try Genuine Adventures. Whether it’s a walking food tour in a new city or a long-distance trek across the world, these experiences can be transformational. They encourage the spirit of adventure in people of all ages and abilities.
2. It’s an adventure
Adventure Travel is a form of tourism that involves exploring remote or exotic destinations and participating in exciting, often physically demanding activities. It can involve a high level of risk and requires specialized skills, equipment, and health considerations.
Whether it’s hiking through dense jungles, sailing across vast oceans, or biking through arid deserts, adventure travel allows you to experience the natural beauty of the world in a way that few people ever get the chance to do. It also allows you to engage with the Earth in a deeper, more meaningful way, and it can help you feel more connected to it.
As a result, adventure travelers tend to have more interesting and meaningful lives than those who don’t take this type of vacation. This is probably because adventure travel forces them to step outside their comfort zones and challenge themselves in ways that many others won’t.
3. It’s a risk
Many adventure travel activities involve a certain level of risk. And because this type of tourism often involves travelling to remote locations, these risks can be magnified. These risks include the possibility of injury and the lack of access to rapid emergency response and/or trauma care.
This is why adventure travel operators have always put great emphasis on safety. And they do this by implementing policies, procedures and values.
These include a commitment to medical and legal protections that ensure confidentiality of health forms, the importance of training, and adherence to environmental regulations and permits. And they also include a strong commitment to responsible practice. This means educating their clients and helping them to understand the consequences of their actions. It also means promoting the value of taking care of natural wonders so that future generations can enjoy them as well.
4. It’s a challenge
Unlike traditional tourism that revolves around planned itineraries and familiar attractions, adventure travel invites spontaneity and discovery. It also focuses on physical challenges and requires a level of comfort with unfamiliar environments and activities.
It builds gratitude and mindfulness. Roughing it in nature makes you appreciate the simple things like hot water and full meals. It also allows your mind to quiet down so you can see and learn about your surroundings.
You’ll have great stories to tell. And when you’re at the water cooler, your coworkers will be envious of the fact that you scaled a mountain or went on a grueling trek. They’ll ask you lots of questions! This is how friendships are made.
5. It’s a risk
The dangers involved in adventure travel are a reality, and participants should always consider the potential risks when choosing an activity. Despite this, many people feel that the benefits of adventure travel outweigh these risks.
As with any kind of travel, adventure trips can cause harm to local communities. For example, they can cause environmental damage by leaving trash or damaging natural habitats. They can also lead to a loss of income for locals.
Additionally, adventure travelers may be exposed to additional health and safety risks while abroad, such as limited access to medical care or unpredictable weather changes. As a result, it’s important to make sure that you train and prepare properly for your trip. You should also check with your doctor to see if you need any vaccinations or medical advice before your trip.
6. It’s a challenge
Most people don’t travel extensively and they have a number of reasons for it. For example, their homes may be their most valuable assets or they might have responsibilities like caring for children or elderly parents that prevent them from quitting their jobs and travelling the world full time.
However, for those who can squeeze the time in, adventure travel is a great way to get away from the stressors and triggers of daily life, whether it’s the traffic jams or the annoying clattering of shoes and bags in your own closet. It’s also a way to challenge yourself physically, mentally and spiritually. And that’s a good thing. Constant stress has been proven to shorten one’s life expectancy.
7. It’s a risk
Adventure travel can be dangerous, especially to people with pre-existing health conditions. These travelers should always consult with their healthcare provider and carry a list of medications, medical history and copies of important documents, such as a chest x-ray or electrocardiogram, with them when traveling.
Many adventure trips involve challenging terrain, extreme weather or remote locales where medical care may not be readily available. CDC recommends that adventure travelers train properly for their trip and be aware of the potential risks, including physical injuries and illness.
It’s easy to understand the appeal of taking a risk to achieve a personal goal, such as what Cheryl Strayed did when hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in her book Wild. However, it’s harder to justify the danger of an adventure for entertainment or as a frivolous tourism jaunt. That’s why the doomed Titan submersible expedition was so controversial.
8. It’s a challenge
Unlike typical tourism that revolves around a planned itinerary, adventure travel takes you to remote parts of the globe to discover natural wonders. Hiking through forests and mountains, sailing on vast oceans, biking or traversing arid deserts, you engage with the earth in a way that is awe-inspiring and profoundly life changing.
This type of travel can have its challenges. In some cases, the influx of adventure tourists can strain local resources and ecosystems. For example, overcrowding during climbing seasons in fragile alpine regions can cause erosion and damage to native vegetation. Cultural insensitivity and commodification of traditions also strain community relationships. Adventure travel is also a challenge for tour operators who must adhere to environmental and safety regulations, while providing high quality experiences.
9. It’s a risk
Taking risks is a big part of adventure travel. It’s about going beyond your comfort zone and pushing yourself physically, mentally and spiritually. It’s about exploring new places and meeting people you may not have expected to meet – such as the person who becomes your fast friend in a hiking group!
It’s also about supporting local communities. Adventure travellers often visit remote areas that are underserved and under-financed. These communities need tourism money to fund anti-poaching efforts, veterinary care, keeping out alien invasive species and other services that are needed for the natural environments we love so much.
Lastly, adventure travel is about getting to know yourself on a deeper level. Studies have shown that constant stress shortens life expectancy – and adventure travel reduces stress by forcing you to focus on something concrete like a physical challenge!
10. It’s a challenge
Adventure travel isn’t for everyone. But for those who are ready to push themselves physically and mentally, it can be life-changing.
It can also be a way to connect with nature in a way that isn’t possible in a car or plane. Traveling with your own power, relying on your own muscles to move you through the landscape is an experience that gives you a unique perspective of the world and its people.
Adventure travel can bring a sense of euphoria that lingers long after the trip is over. It also raises our level of self-awareness and can be a source of new passions, skills and friendships. This is a win-win-win-win kind of activity that makes sense in a time when many are looking for ways to feel more connected and alive. And it’s an opportunity to contribute positively to the places you visit.