Top Spots for Adventure Travel in 2017

What will be the most-desired and most traveled destinations in 2017 for the active traveler?

Three adventure travel companies, who target a range of travelers from the millennial to families to the luxury seeker, offer their insight and current statistics on top locales for the New Year that include: Southeast Asia, the Arctic, Alaska, Morocco and Central and South America.

Southeast Asian
"One thing that might surprise folks (it surprises me!) is that travel to Southeast Asia continues to be strong," says Dan Austin, president of Austin Adventures. "It's not overly crazy, but has shown a slow and steady pace over the last few years."

Geckos Adventures, the first tour operator to solely target millennials, is finding the same interest among its aged 18-29 travelers.

"Southeast Asia is by far our most popular destination and it continues to entice travelers, up 17 percent for the whole region in 2016," says Leigh Barnes, North America regional director for Geckos Adventures. He notes that bookings are up by 41 percent already for 2017 trips.

"Nepal and India have seen a surge in interest over the last quarter of 2016, and we expect a further increase in bookings for the new year trekking season."

The Arctic
From Iceland to Greenland and from Lapland to Norway, Wilderness Travel guests are booking trips to the Northern Realms in droves.

"We are proud to have pioneered some really interesting hiking trips in Norway, both in the fjord country and hiking above the Arctic Circle, and our Expedition to Greenland," says Barbara Banks, director of marketing and new trip development for Wilderness Travel, just named AFAR's World's Best Tour Operator for 2017.

"Travelers seem to be just discovering the wonders 'up north,' with fantastic hiking country, intriguing cultures, great cuisine (with ultra-fresh ingredients), and no security or Zika concerns. The popularity of 'Frozen' and 'Game of Thrones' has also driven interest to these magical lands."

Central & South America
Millennials are choosing trips to Central America. "Central America is our fourth most popular destination overall and has shown 27 percent growth for 2017 bookings from 2016," says Barnes. "While growth increases in 2015 flattened out in 2016, due to concerns about the Zika virus and availability around the Olympics, travelers are coming back in 2017."

Peru continues to show strong growth among Austin Adventures' travelers. "Peru continues to be popular and is such an amazing destination," says Austin. "There so much more to Peru than Machu Picchu and we open up that world to our guests."

Morocco for Millennials
Geckos Adventures saw a 59 percent increase in bookings to Morocco in 2016, and twice as many travelers have booked Morocco for 2017 as they did at this time last year.

"This may be due to some travelers choosing the country over Egypt or other parts of North Africa," says Barnes. "There are short flights to Morocco from the East coast and the country offers incredible culture, food and varied activities like camping in the desert, traveling to the High Atlas Mountains and visiting local villages."