Soft Adventures Easy on Tourists

The words “soft adventure” and “ecotourism” are new to the vocabulary of travel, being freely used in promotional material even though their meaning isn’t always clear.

Soft adventure is a less strenuous form of adventure travel, with varying parameters. Ecotourism involves travel that relates to environmental/ecological issues.

“The two terms aren’t necessarily related, though soft adventure travel can be part of an ecotourism trip,” said Leslie Jarvie, director of environmental programs for Sobek Expeditions in Angels Camp, Calif.

“Ecotourism travel is designed to educate people on specific subjects and areas, and we use soft adventure experiences as a form of activism to heighten the awareness of people on the areas visited.”

Soft adventure can mean such travel experiences as staying with primitive tribes in northern Thailand, observing sea turtles on Costa Rican beaches, scouting polar bears in northern Canada and sailing to Antarctica or the less-visited South Pacific islands.

One may hike, bike, white-water raft or simply watch wildlife, all the while staying in hotels and camps with special amenities.

“Soft adventure is really striking a balance between hard adventure and more traditional packages,” said Dyanne Durgar of Seattle-based Imagine Travel Alternatives, a firm offering soft adventure programs to such countries as Costa Rica and Belize.

A similar definition came from Charles Kao, vice president of Santa Monica-based Speed Travel, which offers soft-adventure packages to Southeast Asia.

“Soft-adventure trips can be for anyone who likes the outdoors or who wants to see rural life, and not just the familiar big-city destinations, and is in good health,” Kao said. “One doesn’t need an experience or background in the particular activity.”

Some soft-adventure trips also can combine the usual big cities with more off-beat destinations.

Doing without some comforts, though, is often a characteristic of this type of travel. And the degree of exertion needed to participate is another key issue that travelers should resolve before buying such a package.

“Travelers should ask such questions as how much walking or climbing is necessary,” Durgar said. “While accommodations are clean and comfortable, they also tend to be smaller and without all the services of large hotels. So travelers should also ask if they will have private baths and if there will be hot water. Some places might not always have hot water.”

Also, travelers may have to share rooms. “We match people and discourage single occupancy,” Durgar said. “There isn’t even a single-supplement option in our program.”

Although people may want to explore on their own, travelers should understand that they may have to eat and take part in activities on a group basis, Durgar said.

An example of pace comes from San Diego-based Baja Expeditions, which offers such programs as mountain bike touring and sea kayaking in Baja, as well as Sea of Cortez cruises.

“Our literature explains that these mountain bike tours cover 20 to 25 miles a day at a comfortable pace,” said Kent Madin, the company’s general manager.

“The tours are geared for both experienced mountain bikers and beginners. More experienced bikers can cover more miles, which is usually by riding ahead or going off the main road and exploring on their own.”

Other questions to ask about such trips are if there are support vehicles, if there is a base camp and how far from it participants wander each day?

“Travelers should ask what happens if they get tired or want to bail out for some reason and just be a couch potato for the rest of the trip,” Madin said. “We always provide an escape hatch where people can quit if they want.”

Baja Expeditions includes a passenger van that accompanies the cyclists, as well a four-wheel-drive truck to carry equipment.

Travelers should also understand that companies select pictures for their brochures that dramatize and enhance their offerings. “However, the animals and weather don’t always perform on cue,” Madin said. “We can’t control environmental factors, and you can’t always pat a gray whale. The idea of adventure is to be open-minded and not have a preconceived notion of what is supposed to happen.”

The types of travelers going in for soft adventure also is changing, according to Scott Fasken, owner and operator of Idaho Float, which runs outdoor vacation programs.

“We get many more families now,” Fasken said. “This kind of experience isn’t seen as just a macho activity for beer-drinking buddies. Food is still a major misconception, with people thinking they’ll just get beans, franks and hamburgers, whereas we serve a lot fancier food, including steaks, chicken, fresh salads and fruits.”

The level of comfort is also underrated, Fasken said. “While our clients sleep in tents, they have large air mattresses that are self-inflating. We also carry along dining tables and lawn chairs for dining and cocktails. This isn’t camping out Boy Scout-style.”

The subject of ecotourism can also be misunderstood, according to Durbar. “This is a pat expression, so we don’t use it. What it means is an emphasis on travelers being especially respectful of an area and as unobtrusive as possible. Travelers should ask those who use the term how they’re backing up the concept. Is anything concrete being done?”

Questions to ask for ecotourism trips are: What special training do the guides have? Will any specialists or authorities on the subject or area accompany the group during the experience?

To show support for the concept of ecotourism, Durbar said her firm donates 1% of gross revenues for each tour to such organizations as the Costa Rica Conservation League and the Belize Audubon Society.

Baja Expeditions provides aid to research in Baja California and the Sea of Cortez through complimentary shuttle service and equipment to research/conservation teams in the area, and co-sponsoring conferences on Baja subjects.

Sobek Expeditions has begun a policy this year of structuring tax-deductible donations to the Rainforest Action Network, a nonprofit organization working to save the world’s rain forests, for five of its ecotourism packages covering rain forests in Brazil, Indonesia, Nepal, Costa Rica and Rwanda.

“Clients will be donating $250 to $400, depending on the trip,” Jarvie said.