Planning a Hiking Holiday in Canada
If you like to hike, there is no better place in the world to go than Canada, as it is a huge country with gorgeous hiking opportunities absolutely everywhere. Whether you are looking to climb mountains, walk along the coast or through the Badlands and Hoodoos, you could hike around Canada forever and still not see half of it. The following are some of the main things you should consider before heading off.
Deciding where to go
Apart from being home to the incredible Rocky Mountains, Canada is also where you will find dozens of amazing national parks, reserves and conservation areas, all of which offer incredible opportunities to hit the trails. The following are just some of the highlights when it comes to Canadian hiking.
Travel Safety Gadgets
Travelling can be a fantastic and exciting adventure, but you need to make sure you are doing everything you can to keep yourself safe. Using common sense will go a long way, though having a safety gadget or two on you can also do wonders to prevent you getting stuck in a bad situation. Whether you are travelling solo or with a group of friends, consider bringing the following safety gadgets along to ensure you and your belongings are kept as safe as possible while out on the road.
Money belt
A simple money belt can be a tremendous safety gadget and potentially save you from losing your money to thieves on your trip. With the majority of your money and important documents hidden away in your money belt, you will be able to survive if you have your wallet stolen, whereas otherwise you may lose the lot.
Guide to Staying Safe While Travelling Solo
While safety is a general concern for all travellers, it’s an even greater concern when you’re travelling by yourself — especially women, for whom travelling solo presents a far greater risk than men. Anyone travelling alone should plan for their safety and security and ensure that they’re as safe as possible at all times. The following tips are good to remember when trying to keep yourself safe.
Get trained
A great way to prepare and get hyped for your adventure is to take a self-defence course a few months before your trip. Even just having a few skills in defending yourself will go a long way towards helping you stay safe — not to mention do wonders for your confidence before heading off on your big trip.
How to Plan a Multi-Day Backpacking Adventure
Once you’ve finished up your schooling and there’s no place you have to be, there’s nothing better than just taking off for a while to relax, let off some steam and explore a little. Going backpacking can be scary and exciting, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed planning your first lengthy adventure out into the world — so relax, get organized, and prepare yourself for the adventure of a lifetime. The following tips will help get you started with your planning.
Good entry and exit
Once you have decided where you want to travel, make sure that you arrange a safe and secure arrival and return trip for yourself and any travel companions. Many countries require that you have a return ticket before allowing you to travel within and through their borders. Knowing that you have a sure way home also allows you to travel with a sense of security and confidence, because if nothing else you know that you can always return.
Checking the Safety Credentials of Your Adventure Tour
Adventure tours are fantastic ways to have a holiday that you’ll never forget, but make sure you pick the safest company to be doing your crazy adventure with. Any decent company will be more than forthcoming with their credentials — if they’re not, you’re better off going with someone else. You may only ever do a tour like this once, so make sure you go with the real experts. The following are some of the important safety credentials you should check for.
Wilderness First Responder
Any adventure tour guide should have training as a ‘Wilderness First Responder’, which essentially means that they’re highly trained in doing first aid in remote areas without much to assist them. You may be heading out into some pretty remote areas, so before you do, it’s a good idea to know that someone in your group will know what to do if there is a crisis situation.
Short Guide to Adventure Travel in New Zealand
If just sitting on the beach at a resort is boring to you, maybe it’s time you tried a different style of holidaying. Adventure travel in New Zealand offers high-energy, adrenalin-pumping adventures that are guaranteed to be everything but boring. Going on a trip where you let loose and burn off some energy may require a slightly higher level of holiday insurance, but you’ll come back far more relaxed, rejuvenated and energised than any other trip you’ve been on before. The following is a short guide to your New Zealand adventure travel options.
What?
New Zealand is one of the world’s best places to go for adventure activities, with some of your options here including bungee jumping, kayaking, white water rafting, skiing, snowboarding, ice climbing, mountain biking and mountain climbing. Any adventure sport you can imagine is probably on offer here, and there is no one better to take you out to do something crazy than a friendly local Kiwi.
A Short History of Backpacking the Hippie Trail
During the 1960s and ‘70s, hippies from all over North America and Europe travelled huge distance on pilgrimages often referred to as the “hippie trail”. While the journeys began everywhere, they all ended up in India. The following is a brief history of backpacking the hippie trail.
The routes
Most hippies started their journeys from either the United States or western Europe, taking many different routes on their way to India. There were two main routes; the first one passed through Tehran, Herat, Kabul, Peshawar and Lahore, before crossing into India. The second major route went via Turkey, through Syria, Jordan, Iran, Iraq and Pakistan, before then entering India. The Ganda Singh Wala border crossing linking Pakistan and India is where most people would enter India, before heading to eastern destinations such as Goa, Kathmandu or even Bangkok. As travellers began to establish new routes, the hippie trail came to refer more to a type of long-distance budget travel than any particular route. While India was always an important destination for every hippie, nowadays places like northern Africa are becoming increasingly popular destinations.
Family-Friendly Destinations In Thailand
Thailand is one of those paradise holiday destinations that everyone dreams of making it to one day, and just because you have a family now, that doesn’t have to stop you. With everything from wildlife to theme parks, Thailand is a place you’ll want to come back to again and again, and so will your kids. The following Thailand destinations are all fantastic options for your next family holiday; it’s just a matter of how many weeks you’re going to want to stay for.
Chiang Mai
Apart from having spacious accommodation that is perfect for families, and being located in an incredibly beautiful part of northern Thailand, Chiang Mai offers your family a fantastic opportunity to learn how to cook Thai food. The Chiang Mai Thai Cookery School offers popular short cooking courses to suit any age. The wildlife here is also sure to provide big highlights for the kids, with tigers, rhinos, lions and crocodiles all able to be seen on the night safari tour. Otherwise, your kids will lose their minds over the Maesa Elephant Camp, where they get to ride an elephant. Even the hardest-to-please kids will have a ball in Chiang Mai, but make sure you get the right kind of holiday insurance to cover all these wild activities.
10 Honeymoon Islands Reviewed
Planning the perfect honeymoon is an important part of getting your new lives together started off on the right foot, and if you were ever going to go all out on a trip, there is no bigger occasion than your honeymoon. So get your travel insurance and choose your own paradise, with the following island destinations all fantastic, guaranteed-to-please options.
Bora Bora
This is as close as you can get to paradise, and with its clear blue water, white sand beaches and lush rainforests, this is the perfect place to relax and really unwind. There are 25 resorts and hotels on the island, and activities include scuba diving, horseback riding and cruising around the island on your rental bicycle. You might want holiday insurance just in case you relax too hard and hurt yourself.
Natural Wonders of the World to See With Your Family
Spending quality time with your family is always important, and nothing is better than having awesome shared experiences, so for your holidays this year, take your family to see something truly breathtaking. Going to see a natural wonder together will be an experience none of you will ever forget, so check out the following options, get your holiday insurance and make this year’s trip amazingly memorable.
Aurora Borealis or ‘Northern Lights’
Taking your kids to see the Northern Lights is a sure way to blow their minds, as this incredible display has been blowing minds since the dawn of time. Your best chance of seeing them clearly is by getting as close to the magnetic pole as possible, which is located in northern Canada. There are lots of tour companies that can accommodate families on trips up there, making it easy for your whole family to able to see this fantastic display.