Adventure Travel, An Authentic, Experiencial Way to Travel the World

Adventure travel is one of the fastest growing industries in the tourism sector. It is experiencial, active, gets travellers off the beaten track and interacting with the local people. You might get invited to a village wedding, be a dinner guest in a family home or spend your time volunteering with the local people. It's the type of travel that exposes travellers to the authentic cultures around the world, and broadens their global perspective. 

There are so many niche markets when it comes to adventure travel. Just to name a few, these are some of the most common:

Multi-sport adventures

Volunteer vacations

Safaris

Trekking Tours

Biking Tours

Backpacking and Camping tours

Over 50 Tours

Mountaineering Tours

Marathon Adventures

Nature Tours

Family Vacations

Wildlife Tours

If you are tired of the all inclusive, week on the beach, consider an adventure vacation. Once bitten, there's no turning back.

Hope to see you on the trails,

Trish Sare

BikeHike Adventures

Savvy Travel Tips To Ensure You Get the Most of Your Vacation

I'm just a few days away from a big European Adventure where I'll be visiting 10 countries in a mere month. Wow..it's making me tired thinking about it, but it will be a lot of fun at the same time. It's not a bus tour, it's an adventure scouting trip where I do all the planning and creating of some of our BikeHike Adventures.

As I'm preparing for this European Adventure, though, it makes me think of a few important tips that will maximize my travel experience in each country, given that I just have a few days in each destination.

1. Never Check Anything in Your Luggage that You Can't Live Without
We have all heard stories of luggage getting lost en route to a destination, and maybe it's happened to you, too. It can really put a damper on your vacation or business trip. Be sure to carry medicine, electronics, valuables, a toothbrush and a change of clothes in your carry on luggage. This small precaution will alleviate the stress of not having everything in your bag right away.

2. If you Have a Long Layover, Get Out and Explore
I have 12 hours in London, and there is no way that I'm staying in the airport for 12 hours. I'm heading out and visiting some of the local sites. I do have the hassle of what will I do with my luggage for all that time. Some of my options are finding a locker at the airport to store my bag (not sure if London still has lockers). I might even find a hotel nearby who will store my bag for a small fee and then I'm free to explore. Hop on Hop off buses are a great way to see a city in a short duration of time. Also sitting on a patio and people watching is a great way to experience a city. Just be sure that you give yourself enough time to get back to the airport, and do consider traffic if you're returning during rush hour.

3. Change Money When you Get to the Destination
It's more economical to wait until you get to the destination that you are traveling to to exchange your currency. If you change it at home, you won't get as good of a rate as you will in the destination. Also, note that if you are withdrawing money on your debit card at an ATM machine, you will be charged a fee for each withdrawl there and then you'll get hit with a service fee on your bank statement, so try to take out enough in one transaction, rather than a few transactions.

Happy and Safe Travels,
Trish Sare
BikeHike Adventures

Calling All Divers - Travel to Belize to Catch the Whale Shark Season

There is still availability in Belize to catch the Whale Shark Season running through June.

Whale sharks visit the Gladden Spit area during the full moon period of March (if the full moon falls towards the end of the month), April, May and June to feed on the spawn of the aggregating snappers. This area of deep lying reef was declared a marine park in 2000, and is regulated by the Department of Fisheries and managed by Friends of Nature.

There are strict regulations in the whale shark area that all operators have to adhere to. The whale shark dives are blue water dives for experienced divers only and all divers are required to do a dive on the barrier reef with Hamanasi prior to venturing out to the whale shark area. A minimum number of 8 divers is required to go out to Gladden Spit, and the legal maximum number of divers for these trips is 12 divers per boat.

Whale sharks are usually spotted a day or two before the full moon and up to 8 or 9 days after the full moon. There is a regulated system for all operators offering tours to Gladden Spit, allocating specific time slots inside the whale shark zone to each operator. A maximum of 4 boats are allowed in the whale shark zone during each time slot of 1½ hours.

Happy Diving,
BikeHike Adventures

Redeem an Adventure Holiday with your RBC Travel Rewards

There are lots of innovative ways to travel during tough economic times. I refuse to let the doom and gloom of the news stop me from traveling.  If you are an RBC credit card holder, you can redeem your travel rewards to purchase an adventure holiday.  For every dollar you spend on one of the RBC reward credit cards, you will earn 1 travel reward which can be allocated towards your adventure vacation. If you spend enough on your credit card, you can pay for both the land and air portion of the trip with your rewards.

You might think that it takes ages to accumulate enough points to pay for a trip, but I do it all the time. Every purchase I make is on my credit card, including a cup of coffee, my groceries, gas, phone and utility bills, no amount is too small. The points start to add up, quicker than you think. Just be sure that you don't overextend and purchase more than you actually have in the bank, otherwise this strategy will work against you, especially with an interest rate of 19.5%. I pay the full visa bill off monthly, so there is never any interest to worry about. The advantage to doing this as well, is it is easier to track where all of the money was spent. The bank actually sends me a statement annually breaking down where my expenses went, i.e. restaurants, travel, etc.

Another tip is that many of the credit cards will actually give you a bonus of up to 25,000 points just to join. That is a very healthy chunk of points towards your next holiday.

Good luck and happy spending.

BikeHike Adventures www.bikehike.com

List of Coastal Areas Under Threat from Rising Sea Levels

Global warming is just beginning to leave its mark on the planet. With Arctic ice melting faster than expected, the threat of rising sea levels is increasing. It's projected that by the end of the century, sea levels will rise by approximately one meter. One meter may not seem like a lot but a rise of this magnitude can have disastrous implications on 10% of the world's population or 600 million people living in low-lying areas. Here are a few areas vulnerable to rising sea levels.

The South Pacific

A number of South Pacific nations are under threat of being consumed by rising sea levels. Most of these islands have been impacted by flooding, stormy seas, and coastal erosion. The South Pacific nations of Kiribati, Cook Islands, Tuvalu, and Papua New Guinea are just a few experiencing these affects. If see levels continue to rise, some nations will be underwater by the end of the century.

Venice, Italy

Considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Venice is another coastal city at risk. Venice has been battling rising sea levels and lagoon flooding for centuries. On top of all that, Venice has been sinking due to natural settling of lagoon sediments. Preventative measures are being taken to prevent flooding. The government is installing a series of steal gates at the lagoons three entrances to protect Venice from rising sea levels.

The Americas

Even some of the world's richest areas will be vulnerable. Most of the United States Atlantic coast will experience coastal flooding and erosion. The areas considered most vulnerable are New York city, Southern parts of Florida, and Texas. Other places that are vulnerable are parts of the Caribbean, Mexico, and Ecuador.

This is just a small list of areas vulnerable to rising sea levels. If you have any to add, please feel free to drop them in a comment.

BikeHike Adventures

BikeHike's Recommendations for Outdoor Clothing

I feel like I have the very best job in the world, working in the adventure travel industry. I spend a lot of my life outdoors, biking, hiking, canoeing and sea kayaking, just to name a few of my elected sports. It does mean however that I'm exposed to the elements of mother nature, being wind, rain, the sun, cold and bugs. Bugs are pests in North America, but those pesty bugs in tropical destinations carry life threatening diseases.

Good outdoor gear is mandatory in the outdoors and huge advances have been made in developing technical gear to keep us warm, dry, clean and protected from the elements. Over the next while we'll be reviewing some of our favorite companies and products that you might want to consider purchasing the next time you head outdoors.

An interesting company to look at is Exofficio. They have a number of innovative products that are moisture wicking, quick drying, wrinkle resistant, light weight and windproof. Some of my favorite Exofficio products are their insect repellent finish that repels flies, mosquitoes and other pesty bugs. Their Sun Guard products that have 30+ sun protection built into their special weaves. And their stain resistant products are another one of their specialties, which I love because of the many times I've been mountain biking through muddy trails and the mud was so deeply entrenched into my clothing that I just couldn't get them clean anymore.

Here are a couple of their innovative products:

Insect Repellent + Sun Guard +30 - Neptune Bandana
A bandana is a great travel accessory that can be worn around your neck or as a hat. This Exofficio Neptune bandana is made from a fabric that has a UPF of 30+ and is also coated with Nanoplex. The most interesting feature about Nanoplex is its anti acarid technology. The substance acts as an insect repellent offering protection from pesky insects.

Sun Guard +30 - Neptune Brim Hat
The Neptune Brim hat has a wide brim so it fully protects the face and neck from UV rays. The fabric offers adequate protection from the sun with a UV Protection Factor of 30+. The fabric has also been treated with Nanoplex, which repels odors, moisture, and is quick drying.

Next time you're heading outdoors and on the lookout for good technical gear, check out Exofficio’s extensive line. Their products are well priced and offer superior style and functionality. Check them out at www.exofficio.com

Happy Shopping,
BikeHike Adventures

Winner of "The Best Job In The World"

On Wednesday May 6th, Tourism Queensland announced the winner of the "Best Job In The World" contest. The winner is 34 year old Ben Southall from the UK. Southall was one of the 16 finalists chosen for the "paid vacation" position. For 6 months, Southall will tour the islands of the Great Barrier Reef and report back to Tourism Queensland. The world can also follow his stories by viewing his blogs, photo diary, video updates, and interviews. Ben begins reporting July 1, 2009.

Since beginning in January, the contest quickly gained international attention with Tourism Queensland receiving almost 35,000 video entries. The videos were narrowed down to 50 then down to 16. The 16 finalists were flown to Hamilton Island where Southall was declared the winner.

Congratulations to Ben Southall. We wish him the best of luck and we all look forward to hearing about his adventures touring around the Great Barrier Reef. If you want to follow his progress, visit the contest's website at www.islandreefjob.com

Happy Travels,

BikeHike Adventures

Tips for Biking to Work

Biking to work is a great way to start your day, outdoors, active and oftentimes can be quicker than driving or taking the bus.  I often hear people say that they'd love to cycle to work, but they soon dismiss the idea because of the hassles of riding on congested roads, poor weather conditions, not having a shower at the office to jump into or not wanting to wrinkle their work clothes by jamming them into a daypack. Here are a few tips to make biking to work an enjoyable experience rather than a hassle.

Take a Change of Clothes to Work

If your job requires a clean, crisp suit, try to gather clothes to take with you for the entire week. That way you don't have to worry about getting your suit dirty during your commute. To avoid getting grease on the cuffs of your pants, tuck the base of your pants into your socks. It may not be the most attractive look but it keeps the cuffs clean.

Know Your Route

Take some time to plan your route, there are always options. Here's a few things to keep in mind when choosing your route:

• Avoid streets with heavy congestion
• Avoid routes with hills. Find a route with gradual inclines.
• Choose a route where your able to warm up your muscles first before exerting them.
  
• Take extra time so you're not in a rush

Try different routes and familiarize yourself with them. When you're ready to bike to work, you will be comfortable with every portion of your commute.

If you're looking to trade in your car for a bike to get to the office, follow these tips to get you started. If you need more information about the safe practices of biking to the office, check out "Tricks and Tips for Biking to Work" at www.biketraffic.org/trickstips.

Happy Commuting,

BikeHike Adventures