Some of us like luxury on our travels. They wish to be pampered, they want a cocktail in their hand 24/7 and they want nothing more than to relax. Others like a bit more active holiday, exploring new places and discovering new experiences. The third type of holiday-maker are those people who want their vacation to be an adventure, something that will test their bodies and minds and that will leave them with a feeling of accomplishment (and exhaustion).
Adventure holidays, due to their specific nature, require a bit more preparation than your average holiday. You need to be well-prepared in order to avoid injury, illness or something even worse. And that is what we will be talking about today – preparing for adventure holidays the smart way.
Doing your Homework
One of the worst things that you can do when going on an adventure holidays is going in blind. It is not cool and adventurous; it is stupid. You need to learn about the place you will be visiting and about the adventure that you will be undertaking. Do you need warm clothes? Are there inoculations that you need to receive? Are there political tensions in the area? Should you learn a bit of the language? These are just some of the questions you need to answer before you leave for your destination.
If you do not do your homework, you are risking quite a bit. You might get injured, you might find yourself in a situation where you are not sure how to behave or you might come down with an illness that could have been prevented very easily.
Getting Yourself in Shape
Most adventure holidays will involve quite a bit of physical activity. Even if you are going on a holiday where you might not have to trek for hours or ride a mountain bike till the cows come home, it is highly likely it will be a physical challenge. You cannot afford to be out of shape for such a holiday. It is irresponsible and you are not only endangering your health, but also the health of people with whom you will be sharing this adventure.
Purchasing Travel Insurance
Yes, the words insurance and adventure holiday are not terms that go well together, but you should still consider taking out some serious insurance before you go on your holiday. You never know what might happen and you need to make sure that someone will take care of you if anything should happen. Every vacation comes with its risks, but adventure holidays come with even more, in form of injuries, illness and plenty more. You should not worry about unimportant things. Travel insurance takes care of this.
Packing Like a Pro
For every job, you need the right tools. And while adventure holiday is the furthest thing from a job, you will still need to be prepared equipment-wise. If you do not have everything you should bring, you will only be a burden to the others. No one likes that person who always needs to ask for everything and who is just obviously ill-prepared.
Before you even start assembling your equipment, talk to people who are organizing the holiday or who already have experience with this type of holiday. Listen closely to what they have to say and then get a hold of all the equipment you will need. If you want to save some money, you should check out an online store like Peters of Kensington where you can get all kinds of traveling supplies.
Traveling Light
Everyone who has ever been on an adventure holiday has seen one of those people who look as if they packed their entire household in their ginormous backpack. They are always the ones who are lagging behind, dragging everyone with them and effectively ruining the experience for other people. You do not wish to be this person. You want to be as light and as mobile as possible.
Of course, this does not mean that you should sacrifice a key piece of equipment just so that you can bring your smaller backpack. However, if you thinking whether you will need three sports jackets on your sailing trip around the world, you probably do not.
Getting to Know the People
These days, it is easier than ever to get in touch with the people with whom you will be sharing the adventure. For instance, it is always a good idea to form a relationship with the guide beforehand. Ask them anything that comes to your mind. They will be glad to respond and they will like the fact that you are being involved even before the holiday starts. If you know other people from the group, hit them up on social networks, ask them how they are preparing, inquire about their previous experiences.
Closing Word
All in all, you need to be as prepared as possible. This ensures that you encounter as little problems as possible, problems that might ruin your adventure holiday. Who needs that?
Oscar Waterworth is a writer from Sydney, Australia. A father of two and a working man, he somehow manages to find the time to write up an occasional blog post. In his free time he likes to travel, play futsal and build stuff with his kids.
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