Not too long ago, the travel industry was completely overbooked. If you hadn’t preplanned and prepaid for your trip to that exotic destination two years ahead of time, you were out of luck. Not anymore. These days, you can conceive of, book, and depart on an exciting trip with very short notice, sometimes as short as a month. While many travel experiences can be had on a whim, you still can get the most out of any holiday trip if you employ some advance planning and some suitable strategies.
1. Set your objectives.
The word vacation means something different to everyone. An ideal vacation might be one in which you test your willingness to take risks, volunteer in a Third World nation, or leave technology behind in order to bond with family members.
Anyone hoping to get the most out of a vacation experience might need a consultant to help craft the perfect trip. Adventure travel providers are more willing than ever to provide this assistance, even to those who are planning at the last minute. Dream Outdoors, a travel company based in Aspen, Colo., used to specialize in heli-fishing and heli-skiing trips in remote parts of the globe, but recently CEO Matthew Pfohl unveiled the company’s Return on Commitment Collection (ROC). With this service, Pfohl will meet with extended family members or a group of executives to set out goals for the vacation experience and then design a trip to achieve those goals. "A few months ago, we had a situation where the dad wanted to go hunting, but the kids wanted to hang out at the beach. We found the four or five places in the world where all of that would be possible," says Pfohl.
2. Find something for everyone.
One of you wants to jump on a helicopter and spend a week fly-fishing in Patagonia, while the other would rather spend the week at a spa or sightseeing. Still, there’s no reason you can’t both enjoy the same trip. Top adventure travel companies can accommodate the most diverse expectations of their clients. For example, Nomads of the Seas, a travel company in Chile, specializes in extreme fly-fishing trips to rivers in Patagonia that are accessible only via helicopter. Yet the tour company designs these trips with spouses and nonfishing guests in mind. Every expedition is based from a 150-foot cruise ship named Atmosphere, which the company calls its mothership. Each morning, passengers enjoy breakfast and a spa treatment, after which fishermen depart on a Bell 407 helicopter bound for remote fishing areas. Nonfishing guests can go on their own adventures, which range from whale watching to guided photography excursions to hiking. At the end of every day, a chef prepares a full-course meal, paired with local wines.
3. Ask the Captain.
If touring the world on a chartered yacht seems a bit tame, passengers wanting something a little different, something a little adventurous, still can find it. Some travelers choose the destination and activity and then look for a yacht available for charter nearby. If you want to try an ecotour in Brazil, you can charter the 120-foot Zenith, which is moored in Manaus. If you prefer peacock bass fishing, you can charter its sister ship, Captain Peacock. Other travelers fall in love with a boat and then decide where to take it. In that case, the best advice is to ask the captain. DJ Parker, president of Neptune Group Yachting, a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.–based charter company with a fleet of 30 vessels worldwide, routinely consults yacht captains regarding new and unusual destinations. Recently, a longtime client had booked a charter on his favorite yacht, but he couldn’t decide where to go. The captain suggested a route from Naples to the historic area of Valletta in Malta, a journey the client had never considered. "The captain had a favorite itinerary and knew the area well," says Parker. For this client, the captain became a tour guide of sorts, pointing out his favorite activities.
4. Savor the snow.
Perhaps a trip to the Mediterranean seems like cheating in the chilly winter holiday season. If so, then bring a sled to northern Ontario and expect to travel 1,200 miles on it during a weeklong vacation. Algoma Sled Tours offers five- and six-day guided tours of the Canadian Shield. This cold-weather adventure features sections of riding on well-traveled snowmobile trails as well as on more rugged terrain where no trails exist. This is no pampered vacation trip, but rather a marathon adventure in which you’ll be riding as far as 100 miles between stops for gas and food. Expect to stay in lodges and hotel rooms with modern accommodations—and to be too exhausted from the day’s ride to be much concerned about the thread count of the sheets.
5. Bring the Kids.
The wish to bring young children along on vacation does not mean you have to give up on the possibility of interesting activities or staying at a luxury resort. More and more destinations are allowing, or even encouraging, visitors to bring their children. One of these is Ladera, a lush resort in the southern part of Saint Lucia. Children over the age of 10 now are welcome year-round, and children ages 5 and older are welcome during the holiday season. The resort features just six villas and 26 suites. All of these have one wall missing, which allows young travelers to gaze out into the rainforest by day and see the beautiful Caribbean flora and fauna. At night, they can enjoy unobstructed stargazing and fall asleep to the rhythmic sounds of tree frogs. Kids also can go hiking or ride horses, or learn to scuba dive. While these aren’t traditional adventure travel activities, most kids will find them and the setting a little bit miraculous.