Photo. Adventures on Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. © Tove & Anne, Norway.
It’s a big difference in quality between tour operators around the world offering adventure and expedition tours. What are the main criteria for finding the best tour operator and evaluating them? Read our article about main criteria for tour operators: How to find the best tour operator?
There are a number of untouched places around the world where tours arranged by tour operators are the most practical and safest way to experience them, for example to interesting and exciting places as Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, Brazil, Peru, Malta, Kenya, Amazon, Congo, Papua New Guinea, Iran Jaya, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, China and Kyrgyzstan.
Many people are so busy at work that they simply do not have the time to arrange their own journey, even if they had the desire to do so. Some of them goes directly from their office chair straight out to in the jungle or in the desert.
It’s possible join tailor-made tours by tour operators. First and foremost travellers should find out if the alternative tour operators have a clear adventure profile. What’s their mission, and how do they define an adventure? Are they just promoting tour programmes, or do they have interesting information about opportunities for explorations ancient sites, the culture and life of exotic tribes, explorations of mysteries etc.
How interesting would it be for you to join a tour to a tribe where for example everything is lined up with show just for the visitors? Actually are you going experience something unique, or are you going to a traditional show or theatre?
Other criteria for finding the best tour operator are
- Their knowledge about the region
- Their language and communication skills
- Their interest and knowledge about animals and tribes
Guided tours are recommended, especially when you want to experience the off the beaten tracks. If you're planning a trip to an unfamiliar or unsafe area, you should consider a guided tour.
There are several important questions you should ask tour operators about:
• What’s the size of the group? Do you have to mingle with others, or it`s possible to be in a small group? Small groups make it easier to move around and get in touch with exotic tribes.
• How experienced are the guides? Do they have a particular expertise about the area, or is their main responsibility to lead the group from one place to another?
• How strenuous and risky are the activities? Do you need to climb?
• Ask for references. Do the company have testimonials from other travellers?
• What kind of precautions, food and travel accessories are necessary for the tour?
• Price (what`s included).
Perhaps in the future we have to go to Las Vegas to experience the copy of the world’s wonders. Here we can experience some the biggest wonders in one place. The Lascaus Cave, southwest in France, displaying over 15000 years old wall paintings, is a place where visitors not can have the enjoyment of experiencing the original, but a just a copy.
One of the world’s most popular sites is Machu Picchu in Peru. It’s known as the "Lost City of the Incas". The ruins were discovered in 1911 by Hiram Bingham. The tourist authorities in Peru closed the Inca trail to Machu Picchu in February this year. Now they limit number of tourists to 200 per day along the popular trail. Each visitor has to pay 90 US Dollars in tax to the government. UNESCO has during a longer period threatened to move away the old Inca city from the Word Heritage list due to damaging.
Choose a tour operator who gives you wings so you can fly high!
My advice is choosing a tour operator who gives you wings so you can fly high! Life is full of new impression and challenges. Many things have to be conquered! Before you choose a tour operator you need to make up your mind about what you are going to experience.
Think different! Your thoughts are your potential for doing something creative. You don’t have to go to unknown places to achieve unique travel adventures. Perhaps you have your own perceptions, paradigms, interesting ideas or hypotheses that you want to test out, or you want to do things different than other people who have been there before.
The history tells us that knowledge and truth is just temporary. It come continuously new thoughts, ideas, theories and discoveries. That`s what bringing the world forward. I many cases the history has to be rewritten or new information added. Curiosity, guts, creativity, intuition, skills and stamina are abilities you need to have to get an unique adventure.
Travelling is to live!
Never stop wondering about things, and be open for surprises. As the famous Danish author HC Andersen (1805 – 1875) said: Travelling is to live! Hans Christian Andersen or simply HC Andersen (1805 – 1875) was a Danish author and poet most famous for his fairy tales. Who is going to discover something new things first?
In the future tourist authorities in many countries have to control the number of tourists very strict. Of course they are eager to earn money on tourists, but if they loose their attractions there will be no tourists in the future.
I know there are many interested places where the situation is unstable due to political conditions, conflicts, nature disasters etc. Experience travellers looks for great adventures and they are very updated about the situation where they are going. At the same time they are also willing to take the risk for an unique adventures. For example the Norwegians, they are extremely eager to travel just as their forthfathers, the Vikings. They have the money to realize the big travel dreams, and it`s not without ventures.
Finally I will encourage people with passion for travelling to explore more of the world than just the famous UNESCO sites. Go there before it’s too late. Take your time to search for information and find the most interesting places for unique adventures. Planning your trip is for adventure travellers consist of more than 80 percent of the tour. Take your time and explore the site you visit. Look for off beaten tracks without taking too big risks. Perhaps you can experience something other people haven`t before, and then you can really feel something special!
Stein Morten Lund, 25 September 2006
Additional information
Source for the survey about Adventure Travel:
Heidi H. Sung, Alastair M. Morrison and Joseph T. O’Leary
Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research
APJTR is an official publication of the Asia Pacific Tourism Association
Our global travel guide, Travel Explorations, become establish in 2000 to guide people with passion for travelling towards opportunities for unique travel adventures.
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