At Pure Adventures, we are deeply saddened by the state of the world today. These are challenging times, and as a small, US-based company with team members in the US, Canada, and Mexico, we feel the weight of recent events. Our small team of passionate tour experts and marketing professionals – located across these three countries – are the heart of everything we do. They are talented and compassionate individuals, and we are immensely proud to support them and their livelihoods.

We are angry and frustrated by the actions of the current leadership, which continue to disrupt and devastate. If it were within our power, we would change these circumstances without hesitation. We, too, are profoundly impacted by recent events: soaring inflation, loss of business, and numerous friends, family, and industry colleagues who have lost their government-funded jobs. Combined with the fact that half of our customer base is in Canada, these hardships have far-reaching effects across our entire team and business.

This is not the first time Pure Adventures has faced monumental challenges. The pandemic was ruinous for our small business, pushing it to the brink of survival. We endured years of uncertainty, relying on the generosity of others to feed our family while also mourning the loss of one of our parents to COVID-19. Only recently have we bounced back to pre-pandemic volumes, thanks to the resilience of our team and the trust and loyalty of our wonderful customers.

Through it all, we have remained steadfast in our commitment to making a meaningful difference wherever possible. At Pure Adventures, we proudly support charities dedicated to conservation, homelessness, human rights, and animal welfare. Our team has collectively volunteered countless hours to these causes, and it is these efforts that embody our core values: compassion, the defense of human rights, environmental stewardship, sustainable tourism, and the enduring belief in the power of connection.

When you book a tour with Pure Adventures, you’re not just planning your next adventure – you’re directly supporting our small team of individuals in the US, Canada, and Mexico who work tirelessly to create exceptional travel experiences. Your choice to travel with us directly supports our dedicated team while also contributing to the sustainable travel practices and vital conservation efforts that we, as a tourism-focused company, embrace.

Travel is more than just an escape; it’s a way to bring people together, support livelihoods globally, and celebrate the beauty of our shared planet. By choosing to travel with Pure Adventures, you’re helping to create a ripple effect of positivity and support in these uncertain times.

Thank you for your continued trust and kindness. Together, we can weather these challenges and hold onto hope for a brighter, more compassionate future.

Sincerely,

The Pure Adventures Team

The post Dear Canada appeared first on Pure Adventures.

Due to recent changes impacting the travel industry, we would like to address some new guidelines (below) for our customers in regard to bike tours, trekking/hiking tours, and general travel suggestions.

The tour business has historically been the domain of group guided tours; self-guided tours really only took off in the last 10-15 years. Still, most of the tour options available to consumers are the guided groups where individuals or couples sign up for a fixed departure and set off with a group of friends and a guide. This model has a lot of new work to do to manage virus safety. New guidelines issued by the ATTA were developed with the help of some of the biggest and best-financed adventure operators. They are well done but are most relevant to guided group trips.

That being said, most of that is not applicable to our model of self-guided and private guided bike tours. Pure Adventures, in combination with our local partners, are working to do our part and select the best vendors who are also doing their part to make the safest, best experience for our travelers as they return to exploring the world. Our hotel partners are following their specific guidelines, as restaurants are theirs. Our taxi transfer providers and drivers also have their own ‘industry guidelines,’ including the number of people per vehicle and protective glass between the front/rear cab area. Here are some other initiatives we are putting in place:

1. Orientations and Equipment Fittings: These will be done in a socially distanced way, with all parties wearing face masks (including guests). Helmets, bike bags, and bikes are cleaned and disinfected between uses. You may wish to bring your own helmet and bike bag for more assurance, but note that we always require a helmet to be worn while riding.  More telephone and/or zoom orientations will be available.

2. Luggage Transfers: Drivers will use hand sanitizer before and after handling customer luggage.

3. More Electronic Data: More and more, navigation is moving to an electronic format, along with cue sheets and suggestions for visiting, exploring, etc. Less paper is good in every way.

4.  Travel with a Face Mask: We require travelers to have them on their person at all times but not while riding/hiking/paddling unless you choose to do so.

5.  Communication Support: In case you start to feel sick during your trip you will have local support. This includes advising about contact tracing apps that may be required in the area you are traveling.

6. Off the Beaten Path: We are choosing less busy routes, trails, and villages, whenever possible.

We recommend the following to all travelers:

• Stay up-to-date with covid-related restrictions and requirements by visiting the US Embassy & Consulate Covid website, with country-specific updates.
• Get Travel Insurance and budget for the “Cancel for Any Reason” option – required for all 2022 tours.
• Stay home if you or anyone in your family experiences symptoms of illness.
• Carry your own hand sanitizer and use it frequently.
• Always practice social distancing and always, be respectful of locals.
• Get accustomed to using your smartphone in advance, as well as the applications we send to you.
• Plan to distance when crossing strangers on the trail/path.
• Bring your own gear – as best you can within luggage limits.
• Get in touch if you start to feel ill at any point during your trip and self-isolate; our local support team will advise actions. Note that local contact tracing and testing in each destination may have special requirements.

The post New Adventure Travel Guidelines for Travelers Post Covid appeared first on Pure Adventures.

Re-opening of borders and the conversations for travel are starting to happen! We think it is time to take down our Covid cancel policy and start to talk about the future of travel. While we understand some people will not be ready to travel for a while still, many are ready to go now. Travel in the next 6-12 months is a personal choice and many new safety measures are being put in place or are already there. We have heard about the efforts of the airlines and are learning more about hotels and so on, and we want to communicate this to you as well.

I have been on airplanes lately and I have to report that it was a pleasant experience. I appreciated the efforts of United Airlines to hand out masks and encourage their use as well as handing out disinfecting wipes. Nearly all passengers wore their own masks. An interesting statistic shows airline air to be as clean as hospital operating rooms. Here is an article about air travel in the New York Times.

So, what can you expect once you arrive? Hotels and taxis as well as other transport services all have new and slightly varied systems in place to maintain hygiene and minimized virus exposure. Plexiglass is the new normal; you can expect to find it installed at hotel check-in, airport check-in, and just about everywhere you have face-to-face transactions traditionally. Hotels all vary in their daily efforts but in Portugal for example, the government is issuing a new “Clean & Safe” label to hotels and other service providers who meet recommended operational practices post-Covid. Taxis in Portugal and Italy, and probably all throughout Europe, will limit to 2 persons per car and to the back seat only. So, for larger parties, especially families, it remains to be seen if and what exceptions may be possible.

The Ubiquitous Face Mask:
You will need one. You may be required to wear it in most public places, such as going into shops, restaurants, museums, etc.  You do not have to ride or hike or be active with your mask on.

66% Occupancy:
Restaurants and Transportation are being asked to operate at this capacity number and so tables have been removed. Social distancing will be the norm everywhere.

The next big question is, “Can I arrive to my destination without quarantine?”  This is still somewhat unknown as border openings and who will be allowed to cross is an ever-changing issue. As of today, we know the following to be true:

Austria: Entry without any restrictions is now allowed to all persons from EU except for Sweden, Spain, Portugal and the UK. Travelers from these countries still have to submit a negative PCR test or enter a 14-day quarantine. Travelers from other countries are not allowed to enter Austria.

July 7: Slovenia and Norway are not yet open.

*Update 2022: Slovenia and Norway no longer have any restrictions

July 5:  Spain Ministry of Tourism Published Guidelines for the Travel Industry – our local vendors will be adhering

July 2:  Skift Report and Daily Updates to Reopening of Travel

July 1:  New York Times:  EU Travel Ban Explained

June 23:  New York Times:  EU to initially block American travelers

Norway: https://www.visitnorway.com/plan-your-trip/coronavirus-and-travelling-to-norway/

Spain: https://www.spain.info/en/reportajes/informacion-practica-turistas-covid-19-viajar-espana.html#

France: http://www.atout-france.fr/actualites/deconfinement-acte-3

Paris: https://en.parisinfo.com/practical-paris/info/guides/info-disruption-paris

Croatia:  https://croatia.hr/en-GB/coronavirus-2019-ncov-q-and-a

Italy:  http://www.italia.it/en/useful-info/guidance-standards-for-hospitality-reopening.html

Greece & Portugal Seeking Safest Destination Status

*Update 2022 for entering Greece & Portugal

European Commission Report to Restarting Travel

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Clearly, this is a dynamic situation and the outlook changes daily. Therefore our first recommendation is to take a “watch and wait” approach. While some of our destinations are currently unaffected, others like Italy are under travel advisories. If you have concerns about a trip you’ve booked, we remain hopeful that the efforts of public health officials and governments will bring the spread under control and restore order to a point where travel to affected destinations is once again responsible, relaxing, and fun.

To make the waiting easier, we have been working with our partners abroad to adopt a thirty-day advance notice rebooking and modified cancellation policy. Some airlines too are recognizing the wisdom of this approach and relaxing their rebooking fees. What this means simply is that you can watch and wait up to 30 days prior to the scheduled start of your trip to see if things are good to go as scheduled, or rebook your tour to start later in 2020 or 2021, with no fees. We can in some cases issue a full refund should you wish to cancel altogether.

Our primary hope is that you rebook your trip in the future. This shows support for the many small businesses that contribute to the operation of a trip, across many destinations, and that are adopting more flexible cancellation policies during this challenging time.

If you are considering travel this year and are holding off because of the current uncertainty, we are fortunate that our self-guided model gives us flexibility, so we can work on scheduling trips at the last minute once things clear up, and if you are rescheduling your trip that is already booked we can move it forward even if exact dates are unknown right now.

We are concerned of course for our travelers’ personal safety, but also for your experience of travel to a destination, and in that destination, as well as the return home. If you are to book now for some time in the near future, you have the option of getting added travel insurance, which is time sensitive from the date of booking. We always recommend travel insurance to our guests, but for added cost and peace of mind, you can add the Cancel for Any Reason option offered by our partners at InsureMyTrip.

While we stay in close contact with our partners on the ground, we’d also like to recommend that people watch credible and reputable sources of information. The following websites are useful to everyone concerned:

• The Center for Disease Control and Prevention offers Covid-19 travel updates by country and also has hygiene and prevention tips
• The World Health Organization has daily situation reports
• The United States Department of State offer travel advisories by country

We’re travel experts, not doctors, so the best we can do is to help you make an informed decision, and give you the most flexibility we can for you to make a change if necessary. We have been at this for over 25 years and have been through Sept 11, the 2008 economic crisis, and other smaller events. This too shall pass, and we will be here to help you get out and experience the world!

Sincerely,

Loren, Mar, and the Pure Adventures Team

UPDATE:  April 14, 2020

Since we were very early to bring some clarity to our customers with the above message, the whole world has come under a quarantine of some kind.  Travel appears to be one of the hardest hit industries globally.  As of this writing, the vast majority of travelers who were booked to travel before the pandemic declaration have rebooked to 2021.  A few have cancelled altogether.   Our recommendation to all booked travelers is to rebook, but depending on when you travel – wait to see how business and eventually travel come back.   Fall travelers have a lot of time to wait still.

For those people who rebook, we are applying 100% of trip deposits to the future travel.  We do not need your new trip dates yet.   For those who are cancelling altogether, there are cancel fees which vary from trip to trip.

If you are considering to travel later this year, we encourage you to ask questions, get information – even now as our daily volume is quite slow and it is a good time if you are in the mood to discuss future travel.  We cannot predict how travel will be different, but we do want to encourage people to take your time before making plans and include Cancel For Any Reason travel insurance in your budgeting.  This CFAR coverage will give you all the peace you need when making your decision to leave home again!

The post Coronavirus and Travel: A Message from the Pure Adventures Team appeared first on Pure Adventures.

The historical Patrick was a 5th century Christian missionary whose surviving written record consists of two documents, the Confessio and Letter to the soldiers of Coroticus. The former was largely autobiographical and provides the known details of Patrick’s life. Perhaps the most surprising fact to the uninitiated is that Patrick wasn’t Irish — he was from Roman Britain, the region of present-day UK controlled by the Roman Empire. According to the Confessio, Patrick was abducted by Irish pirates at age sixteen and pressed into slavery as a herdsman. Six years of hard labour later, a mysterious voice told him a ship was waiting. Patrick fled and escaped back home.

Not surprisingly, the experience wrought profound changes in him. Patrick converted to Christianity during his ordeal and continued practicing his faith until another vision told him to return to Ireland. His mission was to convert the locals, who at the time practiced Celtic polytheism. Unfortunately few details on Celtic belief persist today, as the Celts didn’t keep a written record and what documents survive were produced by Romans with a dim view of the culture. Knowing Ireland’s religious makeup today, however, we can safely credit Patrick as a foundational influence on converting the society to Christianity.

His method involved ordaining priests to lead fledgling Christian communities and converting wealthy families. Not everyone was an enthusiastic convert, however — Patrick also records insults, beatings, and robberies. This is probably the kind of toil that earned him his sainthood rather than his deftness with miracles. He never went through the formal process of canonization, as in the early days of Christianity regional churches could declare their holiest figures saints. His legend certainly grew over the centuries. The iconic shamrock, for instance, is purported to be his chosen tool to explain the Holy Trinity. If the historical Patrick ever actually used it, however, he makes no mention of it in his Confessio. 

Even more colourful is the story of his banishing snakes. Ireland’s fossil record shows no proof snakes ever existed on the island, but the legend provides the basis for an enduring pilgrimage. Croagh Patrick, a mountain in County Mayo, is so named because Patrick is said to have held a 40-day fast atop the peak. When snakes disturbed his meditations, he gave them their slithering orders. To this day, pilgrims gather on the last Sunday of July (known as Reek Sunday, from which Croagh Patrick gets its nickname the Reek). While we don’t recommend climbing barefoot like some dedicated pilgrims do, hiking in this region is a profound and beautiful experience year round. Our Hiking the Western Way tour visits Croagh Patrick and the nearby seaside community of Westport. At the summit of the mountain sits St. Patrick’s Chapel. The current structure dates to 1905, though a chapel has stood there since the 5th century. The site’s religious significance stretches back to even before Patrick’s time — archeologists have discovered remains of a Celtic hill fort as well.

However you parse the mixture of history and myth, March 17 is meant to mark the day of St. Patrick’s death, and his influence on Ireland’s culture can’t be overstated. We have several tours that visit Ireland if any of these stories have kindled a desire to visit the Emerald Isle. At the very least, you’ll have a few extra bits of trivia to share if you’re raising a pint in honour of St. Patrick this Sunday.

The post In the Footsteps of Saint Patrick appeared first on Pure Adventures.

Our tours are designed with couples, families, and friends in mind. There are plenty of options out there for traveling with strangers, from the economy-class to the super-deluxe, but our model allows travelers more freedom to customize their journey based on their unique interests. Taking a group of your likeminded nearest and dearest on a biking and dining tour through Catalonia, for instance, fosters an entirely different mindset than a traditional fixed itinerary group tour where you spend a lot of time being herded from place with travelers you just met. A private custom trip often allows for the unexpected and serendipitous moments that become lasting memories. Although you might never share the same hobbies as your sister-in-law, her passion for music could lead you to make a stop at the Czech Museum of Music while in Prague. Suddenly you can tick “play a theremin” off your bucket list. Return the favour with a culinary suggestion that pushes her boundaries, and you’ve got the makings of a unique family experience that bonds rather than bores.

Once the itinerary is settled, we handle the logistic details to create a seamless trip. You as the group leader don’t get bogged down. If you’ve ever played the role of cat herder at a large gathering you know how complicated marshalling groups can be. By keeping your group to around a dozen or so, you’ll minimize unwieldiness while leveraging group purchasing power. You can realize some savings just by taking on an extra member or two, since for every ten guests the eleventh travels free — see our Ways to Save page for details. Furthermore, some adventurous experiences that just aren’t feasible for two are easily affordable for a party of six of more. That also means it’s possible to accommodate varying levels of ability on a more active excursion, thanks to additional guides who provide support and transfers.

Speaking of guides, a savvy local’s recommendation is sometimes the surest way to track down the unscripted moments that make for an “oh, wow” vacation memory. We work with individuals who are passionate about their home and culture and willing to share recommendations a little (or a lot) off the beaten track. After the plan is set based on the requests of the group, we leave room to keep the experience active but properly paced.

If you’d prefer to ‘leave the guiding to us’, we can work with you to design a fully escorted trip with one of expert guides from start to finish.

Whether you’re looking to explore Europe, Asia, or South America, Pure Adventures will work with you to strike an artful balance of independence and support for considerably less than a traditional packaged tour. Providing that fluidity takes a little extra lead time, so it’s worth rallying your travel companions now for a 2019 excursion. Get started by checking out our Destinations and Activities options in the menu above, and then give us call! Private custom group travel is what we do – let us help orchestrate your trip, your way.

The post The Benefits of Private Custom Group Travel appeared first on Pure Adventures.

…ignore that inner traveller for too long, they will start showing themselves in odd ways

After all, there’s always that voice telling you things like “who can afford to travel these days?” “I can’t take time off work” or “Who will look after my pets?” It’s extremely easy to talk ourselves out of any situation. But here’s the thing, when we really want something we always tend to find a way to make it happen, don’t we?

In fact, if you’re not careful and you ignore that inner traveller for too long, they will start showing themselves in odd ways. One day you may catch yourself showing up to work in full on cycling gear because you’ve always wanted to tour the vineyards of Italy, but just never let it happen. Or you find yourself breaking out a gourmet meal at the office because you’ve always yearned for an amazing dining experience at a hidden gem somewhere in Croatia. Deny your inner traveler long enough – they’ll show themselves wether you like it or not.

So, to help you avoid any awkward inner traveler appearances we’ve come up with these 5 Things Your Inner Traveler Is Trying to Tell You. Your job – listen up!

1) Buy Less & Experience More.

Let’s say for a second, being the best version of yourself meant less things and more experiences. It could be as simple as foregoing the purchase of that new tablet, for a weekend family excursion, or deciding to hold off on a small reno to discover a new culture abroad. Whatever “experience” means to you, making personal growth a priority and creating memories, is never a negative. (read full blog!)

2) Travel Will Help You Find Yourself

Everyone has a need to find themselves, and getting out of your comfort zone is the best way to do this. (read full blog!)

3) Travel Will Strengthen Relationships

Lives get in the way and we all get busy. There is no better way we can think of to reconnect with loved ones then leaving your daily routine behind, and immersing yourself in a new culture & experiences. (read full blog!)

4) You’ll Sample The Best Food & Wine Anywhere In the World

Destinations like Hungary, France, Chile, Italy & Croatia have some of the very best food and local wine anywhere in the world. Denying yourself these pleasures just wouldn’t be right! (See all tours!)

5) Your Body & Mind Will Thank You

Whichever travel experience you choose, try to work up a good sweat. Combine that with beautiful views and some quiet time – your mind and body will be re-charged and ready to perform at their peak potential on your return home. (read full blog!)

The post 5 Things Your Inner Traveler Is Trying to Tell You…LISTEN UP! appeared first on Pure Adventures.

But as can be seen from the vast array of different travel-based self-realization stories there is no mathematical formula, no specific type of travel vehicle, and no certain path that predicates self-realization. It is based on spirituality, something that is personal and spontaneous. This blog is no authority on spirituality, but we’d like to think we have a handle on travel. So here are four ways that you can focus on yourself and your own values on your next big road trip. We can’t promise a reinvented you, but we can promise you’ll discover things about yourself that had previously been unrealized.

1) Don’t Overpay for Happiness

Part of modern travel is hyper-organization. We lead busy lives, and many travelers don’t really enjoy coming home from their 9-5 jobs to spend hours planning the most cost-effective routes for their road trip or the 9 different flights that will allow them to see the 27 different wineries they want to visit on their European trip. Many busy people will opt for commercial cruise packages or very tourist-oriented tour packages. While these tour packages will certainly save time and sometimes money, they risk the traveler not being able to see things that they truly want to see – and they sometimes cost much more than just taking the extra time to plan out something completely unique.

Want a mix of unique and pre-destined travel? Opt for smaller, personalized travel agencies like Pure Adventures. Pure Adventures tailors trips to its clients, a feat that allows travelers to save money, see things they want to see, and create lasting connections with places and people.

2) Keep Off Social Media

This one is hard for many, especially millennial-aged travelers. Social media is such an insipid part of daily life that it seems natural to want to put your vacation on Facebook or Instagram immediately. While some of the stricter anti-technology evangelists worry that posting vacation photos could compromise the security of your home, basically letting the entire connected world see that no one is in your apartment, there are more spiritually important reasons to opt offline too.

Social media posts do focus on you, but in reality, they are focusing on presenting a superficial you to a lot of people you really don’t know that well. This is not to say don’t take photos, but take photos without posting them directly to Facebook. This will keep you in the moment and you’ll relive the memories once you get back and go through your photos. Alternately, consider keeping a journal so you can recall the sights, smells, and tastes through your written experience.

3) Travel with a Close Friend or Loved One

I know what you’re thinking. I’m trying to be focused on me, shouldn’t I be traveling by myself? But traveling with loved ones is one of the best ways to get in touch with yourself spiritually. Relationships require a deep self-awareness to be sustainable. They require compromise and reflection. Travel-wise, you both must take into consideration what would make both of you happy and reflect upon all the things that make you close to one another. Additionally, traveling with someone else is much safer than traveling alone, so why not take the stress out of travel and add in some fun with someone you trust?

4) Take the Road Less Traveled

You’ve done your research. You know where you want to go, and chances are that this was largely influenced by many reviews you’ve read on TripAdvisor or some site like that. But then you hit a site you’re interested in. A niche site that you find interesting, like a trail full of petroglyphs, but many others might not. Do you risk it without the safety net of good reviews?

Our opinion is a resounding yes. While the site itself may be a dud, or while you might get lost trying to find it, the experience of getting there is always worth it. While it may be hard to do research of lesser-known places with no prior knowledge of the area, travel companies like Pure Adventures are designed to help with these common travel planning barriers. With their vast local knowledge and their attention to their customers, Pure Adventures helps travelers find the less-known places for optimum adventure.

If there is one thing that we can learn from those many, many travel movies is that stepping out of your comfort zone always leads to something different. Difference or change usually leads to a greater understanding of what makes you laugh, what drives your curiosity, and overall what shapes your being. Embrace change as you travel and chances are you will reconnect with yourself and your life’s purpose, even in an unexpected way.

Denise Bickford was raised in Winterport, Maine, USA and has since traveled and lived all over the Western United States post-graduate school. Denise enjoys hiking, camping, traveling, ghost stories, sampling craft beers, and writing. Denise reads and translates German poetry as a hobby, which has largely influenced Denise’s travel interests and writing.

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Wondering how to fix cycling hand pain? It comes with the territory that we will all experience some aches and pains from cycling, but aches and pains can become repetitive injury when not dealt with properly. There’s lots of areas to cover, but this blog will talk about the hands and how you can keep hand pain at bay.

Suffer from numbness, pain or tingling in your hands and fingers when riding? Here’s what’s hurting you and how to stop it in it’s tracks; let’s get your cycling hand pain fixed!

1) Watch Your Weight

You may need to adjust your ride position. Be conscious of how your leaning when riding and where you are putting your weight when hitting a turn. This alone may be enough to take pressure off your hands, easing pain.

2) Creating A Buzz

Transmission of road ‘buzz’ and vibration through the bars can cause discomfort in the hands all the way to the shoulders. To accommodate for this buzzing through your hands and arms, periodically loosen your grip slightly – this will break up the sensation and ease discomfort.

3) Shorten Your Reach

More often than not, the solution to hand pain is to shorten your reach, that way more of your weight will be borne by the saddle.

4) Good Padding

Cycling hand pain can also be lessened by wearing gloves with gel padding over the ulnar area, plus there are many good padded bar tapes available. Increase the padding and create comfy cushion between you and your bike!

Reference: BikeRadar.com

About Pure Adventures: Pure Adventures has been providing adventure enthusiasts with custom, self guided bike tours for over 25 years! Voted “USA Today’s Best Bike Tour” in 2020 and an overall pioneer within the industry, our experts know the ins and outs of all things cycling. To browse our self guided bike tours, click here. Questions? Drop us a line and we can chat! Contact Us.

The post 4 Ways To Immediately Fix Hand Pain When Cycling appeared first on Pure Adventures.