We love to travel, and 2020 was supposed to be a big travel year for us. Like the rest of you, that hasn't happened.
We're still dreaming about travel, reading about new destinations, and making (tentative) plans for the future. We hope all of you are well and staying safe... and that you find some inspiration here for YOUR future travels.
With vaccines arriving, let's hope we can be traveling again in 2021!
There seems to be a whole vocabulary for those who sell travel...
Active travel..., Adventure travel..., Leisure travel..., Eco-tourism....
Do you really need to know what it all means?
Not really.
In the grand scheme of things you define your own travel style...
...and it may change from day to day.
You may spend a day in the spa that resort has down in a palm grove and go bike riding the next.
You're active one day and quiet as a slug the next.
You may go to an island and choose to sit on the beach one day, and go scuba diving the next.
But if you are signing up for a tour, you should find out what that particular tour operator means when they say active travel. In general, an active tour will focus more on travel and transportation that requires physical activity... walking or cycling as opposed to riding along in a van or bus.
Most tours that fall into this category have a lot of outdoor activities.
OK, you say, but you can do a lot of walking if you're sightseeing in a big city. You're right, even museum tours or garden tours can give you a workout, but active travel sort of indicates that you will be outdoors and biking or hiking or rafting or even horseback riding.
Some companies spell it out for you pretty well... they'll tell you the activity level that will be required for the whole tour...
Will there be a lot of hiking or walking? For how many hours or how many miles or kilometers. Will there be lots of stairs or hills to climb? They may even have a "scoring" system all the way from easy to difficult... of course, you need to know what their definition of easy is!
A trekking company, for instance, might say Level One, or Easy is 3-5 hours of walking up to six miles a day with low altitude.... While Level Four or Strenuous is 5-8 hours of hiking in mountainous terrain at higher elevations.
When we were planning our trip to Madagascar, we wanted to include a hike in the Tsingy... once we figured out what the Tsingy were...
We got a clue that it might be demanding when they ask us what our fitness level was.
We did get a little nervous when they had us wear climbing harnesses...
We're sure glad we went for it though... what a surreal landscape!
Will you be staying in hotels?
Or mountain huts where you share a bunkhouse arrangement with other travelers?
Or will you be camping.... sleeping in tents?
Your tour operator should give you an idea of the type of accommodations you can expect from rugged or spartan to luxury.
You could be going on an African safari in the middle of the Kalahari, but if you stayed in a tent at Jack's Camp, you would definitely find yourself reveling in the luxury category (evening sundowners and all)... and still be active in your travels.
You may even find that you relieve more "workaday" anxieties and frustrations with active vacations than you would just sitting on the beach, eating and drinking the night away.
Activity is good for you, and sometimes it leaves you just a little tired and more relaxed at the end of the day.
Brochures and websites may use the terms active or adventure travel interchangeably.
We think of adventure travel as a little more of a reach.... something that is more apt to get you a little out of your comfort zone.
Active travel doesn't necessarily do that.... but it may make you break a sweat. And what's wrong with that?
Happy travels... even if you don't travel the world... just remember that life is a journey... embrace and enjoy it! Judy and Mark
Curious about what else we've written about? Search our site for a destination or travel tip.
But... We'd love to have you share this page or comment on it…
Thanks, Judy and Mark
Return to International Travel Tips
Go from Active Travel to MouseToursTravels Home Page
The New Year is here...
And we're ready to put 2020 behind us.
What are your resolutions? To lose weight? To Exercise more?
We're hoping for an end to this virus and the travel restrictions so...
Why not a FUN resolution!
Resolve to TRAVEL!
It's a good time to plan your travels...
We have lists to help....
Custom Tour Planning List
Destination stories....
Europe Travel Tips
Africa Dream List
See America
Travel Planning
International Travel Planning Tips
Guidebooks can help you plan
Don't Forget Valentine's Day
Romantic Weekends
What About Your Passport?
Time to get one... or renew...
Answers about Passports and Visas
Dreaming of Warm Weather or Snow?
Packing for a Tropical Vacation
Cold Weather Packing List
…Or just make a resolution to explore more pages here and get ideas for travel destinations and how to get there.
NOW is the time to start planning for a great trip this year.
Search MouseToursTravels
Travel questions or destination info?
Find our answers faster...
We want you to feel comfortable out in the world and on our pages - so surf away in your own language...
Our 2020 travels were slim. COVID kept us home too. One trip to the Three Guyanas, but dreaming of travel next year.
Love discovering less touristed regions? The three Guyanas are tucked up in the north east corner of South America that doesn’t get much attention.
On our 2019 travels, it was independent travel, a custom tour and a group tour. All work beautifully... just depends on where you’re going and what you want.
Like Our Site Top Left
Like Our Fanpage Below
Thank You!
New! Comments
Have your say about what you just read! Did it help with your travel planning and preparation? Eager to leave on that next vacation? Please leave your tips or comments in the box below.