Going on vacation is inarguably the most exciting part of our year – the excursion we spend months saving up for, daydreaming about and planning obsessively. Indeed, last year a third of US households found the time to explore the world a little more!
But if your vacationing plans have gotten a little stale lately, you might be struggling for ideas. There are many different ways you can enjoy a vacation – perhaps the best of which, surprisingly, is the walking vacation. But what’s so good about a walking vacation, anyway?
Types of Walking Vacation
The term ‘walking vacation’, much like the term ‘vacation’, is a wide-ranging one. There are many different ways in which you can enjoy a walking vacation, with something for pretty much everyone; if someone says they wouldn’t like walking vacations, they just haven’t had the right walking vacation yet. The first thing that comes to mind might be a hardcore hike directly up the nearest mountain, but these athletic adventures are far from the whole story.
Often, walking vacations are tailored, designed, even supervised; hiking tours can appeal to the adventurer, but also be much more casual in nature, choosing to take in a variety of cultural or historical points of interest rather than selecting for the most outrageous off-road routes. Others are designed to be more social, taking groups on leisurely ambles and giving them a common interest to get to know one another over. These different kinds of vacation together provide benefits you might not otherwise enjoy when travelling – but what are they?
Connect With Nature
Firstly, and perhaps somewhat obviously, there’s the natural element. Many walking vacations are designed to take you on routes that veer safely from the beaten path, showing you a side of the country you will not have seen yet. You get the opportunity to see incredible flora and fauna, a special boon in far-flung destinations like Central America; you also get exposed to some of the most stunning natural landscapes you will ever set eyes on. This way, there’s something in a nature walk for everyone: wildlife and wildflowers for the amateur biologists, and sublime views for the philosophers and poets.
Physical Benefits
In talking about walking vacations, it is hard to overlook the physical benefits. Self-evidently, hiking trips involve a fair amount of hiking – hiking which can and probably will challenge you, if you are new to such trips. As someone with an adventurous streak, a walking vacation isn’t as likely to test you but is a phenomenal opportunity to put your physique into practice and stay limber.
Social Benefits
Then there are, of course, the social benefits of vacations based around walking or hiking. Where such trips are organized by third parties, there’s opportunity to join a group of like-minded adventurers and enjoy the same route together. This can serve to really get you out of your skin, talking to others and forging potentially long-lasting relationships in the process – a net positive for your mental health.
