Best countries for adventure travel – Romania is one of them!

Many tourists like adventure travel. There is also a dedicated association – The Adventure Travel Trade Association. This association – ATTA – publishes each year a study on the best destinations for adventure travel.

Countries recognized by the United Nations are benchmarked in the ATDI and are represented in two groups: Developed Countries and Developing/Emerging Economies. ATDI 2010 includes 28 Developed countries and 165 Developing/ Emerging countries.

Romania occupies 9th place on the Developing countries top. And that’s a great thing, for it is the first time Romania features the top! i’m glad and proud, of course!

The preferred destinations for adventure tourism in my country, Romania, are The Carpathians and Delta Dunarii (The Danube Delta).

The study was realized by The George Washington University, Xola Consulting and the Adventure Travel Trade Association and found that 26% of travelers engage in adventure activities on vacation.

If you are wondering what adventure tourism means, here’s the explanation that we can find included in the study: “Adventure tourism is defined as travel outside a person’s normal environment  or more than 24 hours and not more than one consecutive year. A trip may be classified as an “adventure” trip if it involves two of the following three elements: (1) interaction with nature or (2) interaction with culture or (3) a physical activity, while the core of adventure is a trip which involves all three elements. Adventure travel trips could include a white-water rafting, hiking, and birdwatching trip in Colorado; or mountain biking in Oaxaca, Mexico with visits to local communities to learn about traditional weaving practices. (The George Washington University, ATTA & Xola, 2010)”.

The top 10 emerging/developing countries are:

1. Israel
2. Slovak Republic
3. Chile
4. Estonia
5. Czech Republic
6. Bulgaria
7. Slovenia
8. Jordan
9. Romania
10. Latvia

The top 10 developed countries are:

1. Switzerland
2. Iceland
3. New Zealand
4. Canada
5. Germany
6. Sweden
7. Ireland
8. Norway
9. Finland
10. Austria

You can read the full report here.

Do you practice adventure travel? Which are you preferred destinations?