Don't Forget to Ask Before Taking an Adventure Tour

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wicked-good-travel-tips/10-vital-questions-to-ask_b_746191.html

Image source: http://www.rockbrookcamp.com/blog/adventure-camp-kids.html

This article concluded the following 10 important questions to be asked before taking an adventure tour.

1. Can I Speak Directly With a Tour Company Representative?
2. What Physical Strengths and Conditioning Do You Expect of Tour Participants? -- Are There Age or Height Limitations/Recommendations?
3. What Will the Terrain Be Like?
4. What Is the Weather Like During the Time I'm Planning to Travel?
5. What Native Creatures Do I Need to Be Aware of?
6. What Tourism and Industry Organizations Does the Company Belong to?
7. Tell Me About Your Guides; What Are Their Experience and Qualifications?
8. Tell Me About Your Guides; What Are Their Experience and Qualifications?
9. Do You Have a List of Former Tour Participants That We Could Call for a Reference?
10. Do You Recommend Any Advance Preparations, Safety or Medical Precautions?

Image source: http://www.concierge.com/ideas/activeadventure/tours/1729?page=8

I agree with the author that asking questions before actually joining a tour is essential, especially for adventurous tours – which we are exposed to higher risks and dangers! We often rely so much on tour agencies and expect them to arrange everything for us. Well, I don’t see anything wrong with it. We pay for it, we deserve to be taken care of! But the thing is, the agency is taking care of so many different individuals each day, they just can’t put themselves into each and every one of our shoes. And after all, we are the ones who suffer if the trip does not turn out to be what we have expected, so why not ask some quick questions to get ourselves prepared!

The 10 questions cover pretty much most areas though I doubt we might not get honest answers. If we ask the company to tell us about their guides, would you expect them to tell you their guides are not qualified and inexperienced? Another point the writer should have added is that apart from merely getting information from our travel agency, consulting people around us who are experienced in the type of tour we are planning to join is also important. They are the ones who we can get truthful responses from. But it’s never bad to ask too many questions and get yourself slightly over-prepared for exciting trips!

It is overall a good article, it allows readers to share on social networking sites. It also has a button for the print-friendly version which allows you to print it and bring it with you to the travel agency so you don’t have to copy all the questions down. It also has a hyperlink to the numbers of emergency phone call in different areas which makes life easier for readers who want to know it immediately after reading the article. It also acknowledges the source of the photo which is a good practice for online writers.