Adventure Travel

Finding Nature’s Finest

• Intro |
• The What and Where |
• Safety First |
• Pre-Trip Prep |
• On the Ground Considerations

Of course, not all outfitted trips need be wrapped and paid for before you leave home soil. Adventurous types can always hook up spur of the moment with local operators for everything from a half-day canyoneering to a full day of guided backcountry skiing to a weeklong foray through the Aussie Outback. Again, when you’re trying to get from a city into the country (or rainforest or national parkland or wherever), hooking up with a hip, local operator is a load easier than renting a 4x4, scoring a good map, and heading out on your own—to say nothing of trying to drive yourself out of the bog that’s swallowed your rental up to its axles. As with any pre-arranged outfitted adventure, however, the keys to success always lie in being prepared and asking those questions.

Top-notch guidebooks like those from Lonely Planet, Let’s Go, or Moon Handbooks will usually list recommended outfitters for pretty much anywhere in the world, whether you want to scope a whitewater-rafting trip as a next step from the bustle of Kathmandu, or you’re looking for a fun way to discover the South African bush after a few metro-centric days in Cape Town. Draw up a list of recommended outfitters from guidebooks and the Web before you head, giving yourself some flexibility to decide your next steps after you get your feet on foreign soil. You may miss some of the savings you’ll get by booking ahead of time, but the flip is you have the luxury of arranging your own accommodations or meals and not being locked into any pre-set schedule.

Chatting to fellow travelers in hostels and hotels can’t be highly enough recommended—it’s the traveler’s ticket to the latest and greatest trails, zany off-beat cultural experiences, and, yes, the best in hopping bars, restaurants, and clubs. These locales are a gold mine for practical (albeit anecdotal) advice on the best—and worse—outfitted trips. Some hostels and hotels even have special arrangements with regional outfitters, meaning discounts and a similar philosophical approach to seeing the good stuff. So start asking around at the pubs about the cool things to do in the region… Next thing you know, you’ll be throwing your kit on an oversize Army-cum-traveling-camper truck on your way from South Africa to Tanzania—and beyond.

• Intro |
• The What and Where |
• Safety First |
• Pre-Trip Prep |
• On the Ground Considerations