The Savvy Adventure Traveler: 
What to Know Before You Go

By Ellen Dudley

Ragged Mountain/McGraw-Hill 
Softcover,166 pages
ISBN 0-07-018013-X

READ EXCERPT

The Savvy Adventure Traveler is the first all-in-one guide to adventure travel. This unique book is the only single source for everything you need to know to make your trek or tour the trip of a lifetime: How to prepare. What to expect. How to prepare for the unexpected.

Paddling up the Amazon, trekking in the Himalayas, bicycling through Viet Nam...not so long ago such adventures were the exclusive province of intrepid explorers who were not only young and restless, but bold and experienced. But today anyone who’s reasonably fit—teenagers to golden agers—can leave the civilized world behind for an active, exciting journey into the heart of an exotic land.

And they can leave not only the driving but the planning and logistics to the experts. Adventure travel companies provide leaders, schedules, food, shelter, and transportation for small group journeys to some of the most remote and exhilarating landscapes and some of the most primitive but fascinating cultures on earth.

These companies produce slick, seductive catalogs describing their destinations and itineraries, with trips to suit a wide range of vacationers—professionals, retirees, singles, and families. Their lush color photos depict ordinary people in exotic settings having the time of their lives. And most adventure travelers do come back saying, “That was the most incredible trip I’ve ever taken.”

But before you sign up for one of these trips—before you put your money and your life on the line—you need to know if you’re choosing the adventure travel company most likely to keep you happy and healthy—and bring you back alive.

Recent headlines offer graphic evidence of the need to choose your time and your adventure travel company very, very carefully: “Tourists Slain in Ugandan Park”; “Boat Sinks, Couple Drowns in Galapagos”; “Tourist Group Kidnapped in Yemen.” For these vacationers and others—attacked by bandits, kidnapped for ransom—who lived to tell the tale, their “trip of a lifetime’ turned into a tour of terror.

Company brochures say, “Expect the unexpected.” That’s why they call it adventure travel—you never know for sure what you’re getting yourself into. Even with an experienced, well-paid guide, things can go wrong.

To stay safe and comfortable you must know how to choose the right trip and the right company, how to get ready, what to take, how to stay healthy, and how to avoid the problems that can ruin this vacation of a lifetime. Sometimes your travel agent, your doctor, and your adventure travel company can’t—or won’t—always tell you everything you need to know, such as:

• What these trips are like and who goes on them

• Where to go—and when

• Weighing risks vs rewards

• How to save money—and when to spend more

• “Red Flags” that signal potential problems with a tour company

• Questions to ask before you sign on the dotted line

• True life stories of good trips gone wrong     

• How to match your fitness level to your trip choices

• How to find the best trip insurance

• How to avoid plagues and parasites

• How to get in shape during office hours

• Essential little items that could save your life

• Special tips “For Women Only”

• What to take and how to pack it

• Countdown to departure: a vital checklist

• Eco-etiquette and Third World manners

• Coping with emergencies

• Live and learn anecdotes

• Trips for everyone, from teenagers to golden agers

• Places to go “before it’s too late”

Adventure travel involves a lot more than checking into a luxury resort or hopping aboard a tour bus. Traveling in any backcountry is complicated and risky, and venturing deep into developing countries amplifies these risks. Although standard tours baby their clients, adventure travel companies expect a certain level of self-reliance. This book lets you in on the travel savvy and outdoors skills you need to make a successful switch from armchair to outback.

The Savvy Adventure Traveler: What to Know Before You Go outlines the vital steps you need to take to avoid problems and have a safe trip and a good time. It’s an all-in-one how-to guide for adventure travelers—a step-by-step practical handbook full of strategies, checklists, and advice spiced with tales of lessons learned the hard way. Ellen Dudley, an experienced outdoorswoman and adventure traveler, has road-tested her advice on trips to Tanzania, Belize, Morocco, Japan, China, Russia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Guatemala, the Galapagos, the Alps, the Andes, and the Arctic.

So if you’ve been dreaming of trips to remote regions with exotic cultures, The Savvy Adventure Traveler will help you make the best decisions, meet all the challenges, and have the time of your life!