Trips that will set your heart pounding, open your eyes, and force you to look again at what surrounds you. Because, in the end, a trip of a lifetime isn't about thread counts, umbrella cocktails, or bragging rights. It's about discovering that there's more to the world—and yourself—than you knew.

The 25 Best Adventure Trips (in no particular order)

East: Read about each trip >>
    1. Kayaking Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam
    2. Climbing the Karakoram Range, Pakistan
    3. Rafting the Mekong River, China
    4. Jungle-Hiking Southern India
    5. Trekking with Kazakh Eagle Hunters, Mongolia
    6. Biking from the Dead Sea to Red Sea, Jordan
    7. Exploring Kazakhstan, Kygyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

South: Read about each trip >>
    8. Overland Sahara Desert Crossing
    9. Snorkeling with Whale Sharks,  Australia
    10. Island-Hopping Easter Island, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn, Tahiti
    11. Diving Madagascar
    12. Viewing a Solar Eclipse, Ghana
    13. Skiing in the Andes, Chile

West: Read about each trip >>
    14. Volcano-Hopping, Nicaragua
    15. Biking Red-Rock New Mexico
    16. Sea Kayaking, Hiking Costa Rica
    17. Climbing the North Cascades, Washington
    18. Sea Kayaking the Mediterranean, Italy
    19. Hiking Monte Rosa, Switerland
    20. Trekking Oaxaca, Mexico

North: Read about each trip >>
    21. Paddling Greenland
    22. Reindeer-Packing Sweden
    23. Cruising Polar Scientist Territory, Norway
    24. Acrtic Safari, Canada

Space: Read about the trip >>
    25. Orbiting Earth


Text by Bonnie Tsui

Photographs by, from left: Olaf Malver/Explorer's Corner; Eric Alan Pritchard

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