Ultimate Adventure: National Geographic Ultimate Adventure Sourcebook

Rating:
Summary: Excellent source for adventure outfitters
Review: I just received this book and it is great. It covers many types of adventure travel - moutaineering, diving, rafting, safaris, trekking, cycling, skiing and many more. It lists outfitters with phone numbers and web addresses and gives you an idea what it will cost. There are also recommedations for books, magazines, and videos.

This is a great place to start to plan your next adventure.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent source for adventure outfitters
Review: I just received this book and it is great. It covers many types of adventure travel - moutaineering, diving, rafting, safaris, trekking, cycling, skiing and many more. It lists outfitters with phone numbers and web addresses and gives you an idea what it will cost. There are also recommedations for books, magazines, and videos.

This is a great place to start to plan your next adventure.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing adventures, and then more...
Review: Where do I start ? This book is an amazingly detailed compilation of useful details, addresses, numbers and the like for a wide variety of adventures and yet somehow remains fun to read as well. This is probably in no small part due to the extraordinary color photographs that are found on just about every other page. Not only are many visually stunning, but most make you want to go there, right NOW !

The book is broken down in chapters, each covering a specific type of activity, e.g. safaris, trekking, ballooning, fishing, scuba, soaring, skydiving etc, providing general advice as to where to go and what to do and how, often with the basic technical knowledge to help one understand better what the adventures involve; and then it also manages to get down to the details necessary to help one finalize one's plans, with plenty of phone numbers, addresses, costs -and numerous web sites- etc, and all the advice and little nuggets that make the difference between a successful trip and the forgettable ones. The organization by type of activity is very attractive as it allows the reader to immediately focus on the adventure of choice without having to wade through countless listings of locations and activities of little personal interest, as in some other volumes. (Not that there is any adventure in this book that I would not be thrilled to engage in, but there is only so much vacation time -unfortunately- and one has to be selective.) Basically, you pick what you would like to do, and then the book gives you choices as to where to go and how to go about it. There are plenty of suggestions that will fire up your imagination too. This is a very comprehensive volume, with thousands of places and activities listed, and enough adventures to last one a lifetime, ranging from the (semi) sedate family adventure (like dude ranches) to the hair-raising experience one should not tell one's Mom about (like... well, I'll leave that one up to your imagination).

A useful feature is the objective reviews of outfitters and guide services that one may be hard-pressed to find in other places. A very comprehensive listing of outfitters and a good index help also to navigate through the mind-boggling amount of information the author has somehow managed to collect. (Where do I sign up to go and get some of the info first hand for the next edition ?) You want classic adventures ? They are here, from rafting the Grand Canyon to trekking the Annapurna. You want whimsy or downright exotic ? It's there too, and try the Miscellanous Madness chapter. And for those who think they have done it all, try the selected "extreme adventures" that pepper the book. (How does Shark Diving sound to you ?) All of the above with recommended guides, outfitters, and prices.

So, get the book, grab yourself a good chair, your favorite snack or drink, and enjoy ! Not only will you have wonderful dreams for many nights to come, but this little gem will help you make them become reality too. (And then -not to get too materialistic, but eh, I'm saving for a looong trip and anything helps- the book purchase will allow you to benefit from discounts from top outfitters that will more than pay for the book itself. How can you go wrong ?) Well, off to getting my equipment ready...

Did I say I liked this book ?

Rating:
Summary: Amazing adventures, and then more...
Review: Where do I start ? This book is an amazingly detailed compilation of useful details, addresses, numbers and the like for a wide variety of adventures and yet somehow remains fun to read as well. This is probably in no small part due to the extraordinary color photographs that are found on just about every other page. Not only are many visually stunning, but most make you want to go there, right NOW !

The book is broken down in chapters, each covering a specific type of activity, e.g. safaris, trekking, ballooning, fishing, scuba, soaring, skydiving etc, providing general advice as to where to go and what to do and how, often with the basic technical knowledge to help one understand better what the adventures involve; and then it also manages to get down to the details necessary to help one finalize one's plans, with plenty of phone numbers, addresses, costs -and numerous web sites- etc, and all the advice and little nuggets that make the difference between a successful trip and the forgettable ones. The organization by type of activity is very attractive as it allows the reader to immediately focus on the adventure of choice without having to wade through countless listings of locations and activities of little personal interest, as in some other volumes. (Not that there is any adventure in this book that I would not be thrilled to engage in, but there is only so much vacation time -unfortunately- and one has to be selective.) Basically, you pick what you would like to do, and then the book gives you choices as to where to go and how to go about it. There are plenty of suggestions that will fire up your imagination too. This is a very comprehensive volume, with thousands of places and activities listed, and enough adventures to last one a lifetime, ranging from the (semi) sedate family adventure (like dude ranches) to the hair-raising experience one should not tell one's Mom about (like... well, I'll leave that one up to your imagination).

A useful feature is the objective reviews of outfitters and guide services that one may be hard-pressed to find in other places. A very comprehensive listing of outfitters and a good index help also to navigate through the mind-boggling amount of information the author has somehow managed to collect. (Where do I sign up to go and get some of the info first hand for the next edition ?) You want classic adventures ? They are here, from rafting the Grand Canyon to trekking the Annapurna. You want whimsy or downright exotic ? It's there too, and try the Miscellanous Madness chapter. And for those who think they have done it all, try the selected "extreme adventures" that pepper the book. (How does Shark Diving sound to you ?) All of the above with recommended guides, outfitters, and prices.

So, get the book, grab yourself a good chair, your favorite snack or drink, and enjoy ! Not only will you have wonderful dreams for many nights to come, but this little gem will help you make them become reality too. (And then -not to get too materialistic, but eh, I'm saving for a looong trip and anything helps- the book purchase will allow you to benefit from discounts from top outfitters that will more than pay for the book itself. How can you go wrong ?) Well, off to getting my equipment ready...

Did I say I liked this book ?