What better thing to do in September in Las Vegas than plan a hike in the Grand Canyon National Park? It’s a bit far from Las Vegas but renting a car in the city surely gives you a lot of flexibility. Zion National Park is located closer to Sin City and you can enjoy hiking or horseback riding here as well. Or maybe you want to try a mule ride in Bryce Canyon National Park. For a cooler experience – literally – plan a hike in the Great Basin National Park, home to Wheeler Peak, Nevada’s second highest peak. And Death Valley National Park is definitely a place to enjoy if you have a four-wheel-drive vehicle available. If you want to go bird watching or rock climbing, plan to visit the Joshua Tree National Park.

So when you look for airfare to Las Vegas make sure to research more info about the national parks and whatever gear you might night. Always make sure to wear hiking books and if you plan to stay overnight, bring a tent and sleeping bags.

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A good zip line or canopy tour should include round trip transportation to and from your hotel. The staff should be very bilingual, friendly, and very positive. Operators should always start the trip by gearing you up and then following it with an explanation of the safety procedures and how the equipment works.

Whats the Difference Between Canopy Tours and Zip Lines?
Because both terms are used very loosely all around the world, sometime it can be hard to distinguish the two. Generally speaking though, the can be defined in the following way:

• Zip Lines – These tours usually involves a number of cables that very in length an height. You are usually connected to the cable via a harness and pulley system.
• Canopy Tours – These are usually much less adrenaline oriented. They tend to be a series of rope bridges or walkways high in the tree tops. Sometimes these types of tours also include a tram system.

Are They Safe?
In more developed countries these types of tours are extremely safe because they have to pass a number safety inspections and regulations. In many less developed countries, there may not be any sort of regulations. This is another reason its a good idea to talk to other travelers about their experience with a particular operator. All and all, many of these tours have a good track record, as the opposite would b bad for business.

Check out some of these canopy tours in Costa Rica.

Highlights:
There are so many things to do in Ometepe. It’s a haven for budget adventerers. You can hike to a waterfall, bike to beautiful beaches, kayak to see monkeys, or hike up to see a volcano. The people here are amazing. Always willing to help you out and not asking for money in return. I have more conversations here with locals than anywhere else in Central America. Granted, the conversations consisted of passing the Spanish-English dictionary back and forth, but it was fun nonetheless. I had conversations with teenage girls a number of times, and that was always fun. The first thing they always asked me was if I had a girlfriend! They loved the pictures I had to share of my family and girlfriend.

Quick Tips/Suggestions:

When coming into Nicaragua from another country, make sure you have $8 ready for the border. There is a tax for almost everyone to enter the country. Make sure you have your plane ticket or proof of onward travel as well.

The bus rides are bumpy and long, so I suggest some sort of pillow for sleeping or to put under your butt. I brought along a fleece jacket just to use for those reasons. I also brought an inflatable Thermarest to use as a cushion on the bus and as a float for pools and lakes.

Equipment rentals are all for the duration of your stay and are available from the only place to stay in Merdia, Hacienda Merdia. Kayaks $5, bikes $8, and horses $2 per horse.

Best Way to Get Around:

The roads are pretty much nonexistent here. The bikes you can rent work well enough on the rocky roads, but there are a few hills you have to walk your bikes up. There aren’t really towns here, so there are no taxis. The “town” of Merdia has only two stores, which are parts of locals houses. Your best options depend on where you want to go walking and biking.

If you have ever dreamed about flying, and I don’t mean a plane, you might want try your luck at wingsuit flying. Combine the extreme sport of base jumping with a flying squirrel like suit and you have yourself a new sport called wingsuit flying.

Wingsuit flying by definition is:

…the art of flying the human body through the air using a special jumpsuit, called a wingsuit, that shapes the human body into an airfoil which can create lift.

The wingsuit creates its shape by having fabric sewn between the legs and under the arms. Like I said before, picture a flying squirrel and that’s what were talking about here. Hence the reason these suits are sometimes referred to as squirrel suits, but that just dosen’t have the same “extreme” affect as wingsuits.

It dosen’t take much to get these windsuits going. All one needs is ample altitude to glide from. This altitude can easily come from a plane, but its so much cooler when it comes from the side on a mountain.

Some of the more extreme wingsuit jumpers have flow inches away from cliffs as well as only a few feet above the ground. Watch the video to see some wingsuit flyers pull off the above stunts as well flips and nose dives through the air.

Check out the video to see more.

The Who
Nautilus Explorer is a small ship charter that takes customers on a number of unique and exciting trips; one of course being, diving with great white sharks. The company has been exposing people to sharks since mid 2005 and has been a big hit since its first shark encounter trip.

The Experience
If you want to go diving with sharks, especially great whites, the island of Guadalupe is the place to do it. Here, Nautilus Explorer will set anchor for a number of days and prepare you for diving with sharks. While you don’t actually swim with the sharks (that’s just silly)you will be able to see them from a shark cage 15 feet below the surface.

The cages use boat based air, not SCUBA tanks. This means even the most inexperienced person will be able to go diving with sharks. This also means that the amount of time you can spend underwater diving with sharks is almost limitless.

How to Do It
If you are interested in diving with sharks, check out the Nautilus Explorer website for more information about this adventure vacation. Trips to the Guadalupe Island last about six days and include 3 days of diving with sharks.

Sail NZ Americas Cup Sailing Experience – Feel what its like to be on one the New Zealand’s Americas Cup racing sailboats. Find out what it takes to operate one of these well oiled machines. Normally an activity of billionaires and extreme yacht racers, , sailing on one these is better than any roller coaster. After a safety briefing the sails are hoisted and the passengers become part of the crew.

Hanmer Springs Thermal Reserve – After a long day of adventurous exploring, make your way to the Hanmer Springs Thermal Reserve to relax and heal those sore muscles. The springs are a series of several natural hot water springs. The springs are full of minerals which are said to relieve arthritis and other simple pains.

Whale Sightings By Plane – Its fun to look for whales by boat, but to truly appreciate their granger, you have to see them by plane. Take a plane trip around the Kaikoura Peninsula and the Seaward Kaikoura Ranges and you will not only see outstanding views of the scenery, but wildlife as well. See the large sperm whale in its natural environment along with pods of thousands of dolphins and

This book is cram packed full of seasonal jobs all around the world. From helping out on a sailboat to working on a dude ranch, there are all kinds of jobs in this book.

The Backdoor Guide to Short Term Job Adventures book tell you how much each job pays, what the season is, the requirements, and how to get a hold of them. Any traveler would love to have this book for the holidays.