Hiking tours are a kind of adventure tourism. Generally speaking, these vacations will focus almost entirely on hiking from one place to another. There may be some time spent using vehicles to get to particular hiking spots, and that will vary depending on the overall schedule and the type of hiking tour. Hiking tours can be done as a group activity or alone, and some people rely on guides, while others prefer to go it alone.
There are many different approaches to organizing hiking tours. Some people like to go out into the wilderness and travel over long distances from one spot to another. An example would be traveling over a long section of the Appalachian trail in the US. There are also hiking vacations built around traveling from one small town to another, and people often stay in hotels overnight before traveling to the next place on the following day.
Guides can make hiking trips safer and more focused. Some hikers prefer to take hiking tours without guides due to expense or because they may take some of the danger and mystery out of a hiking vacation. Generally speaking, guides are often considered a better option for less experienced hikers, while unguided tours might be more appealing to veterans.
Hiking is often a very good form of exercise, and hiking tours can potentially help people get in better shape. They’re also a relatively inexpensive sort of vacation because there is usually less time spent on money draining activities like shopping. Hiking can be especially inexpensive when people choose to go on unguided tours and camp out instead of using hotels, but those options also offer lack the safety net that many people need.
The activity can be very taxing on the body, and people who are new to hiking may be concerned that they aren’t physically capable of handling steep climbs or other difficulties. Sometimes it can be helpful for individuals to go to the doctor and make sure it’s safe for them to attempt a difficult hike. If someone has heart disease or something similar, hiking could be potentially deadly, especially in the case of more challenging hikes.
Another aspect of preparing for a hiking tour is getting the necessary gear together. This could include everything from water bottles to backpacks and even survival equipment like knives and fire-starting tools. How much gear is needed will generally depend on the exact type of hiking tour someone is undertaking.