Record numbers of tourists are set to tackle challenges like scale Mount Everest and exploring Antarctica. Sometimes they die.
Source: Sub deaths highlight “extreme tourism” boom as travelers chase thrills
In making this web site I learned how out of touch I am. All of my contemporaries and peers have already traveled much of the world. I am far behind.
Folks who have already been everywhere are now seeking greater “adventure” and more exotic locations. And they apparently have the money. “Extreme tourism” is a $300 billion/year business now, and is expected to reach $1 trillion per year. This seems more like entertainment than what I think of as travel, but it is what it is.
My own, late in life, travel goals are modest. I am not chasing a country count – I have doubts that I will reach ten countries. But I am looking for opportunities to learn, and to become globally and culturally aware. Rather than a countries list, like many pursue, my goals are that before I’m gone I will have spent 5 to 10 months outside the U.S. This is comparable to a young person who has done a semester or year study abroad. Sort of – unfortunately, I have not yet identified a way to have the social connections and interactions in another country, which occur naturally by studying or working abroad.
I hope that perhaps within 2 years I can stay in one country for at least 2 months on an extended stay. It is generally not possible to stay for more than 90 days in a 180 day period. There are extended stay options for younger people but those options are generally not available to older adults.
One thing I will be looking into is an extended stay language immersion training program. I’ve been studying – on my own – Norwegian and Spanish. But to really learn a language requires immersion. Of those two, there seem to be more study options available for Spanish.