Whether you’re hiking through the mountains, the woods, across the moors or through the polder, hiking calms the mind. Hiking is perhaps the most natural way to leave your worries behind and get your thoughts back in order. If you are stressed, a short walk in nature is a great way to recharge.
1. Together when you want, alone when you want
Let’s start with a major preconception about group walking vacations: you really aren’t obliged to always walk with the group. If you prefer to walk alone, no one has anything against that. But if you want to walk together, that’s possible too. If you choose a group walking vacation, you have the best of both worlds. Peace and quiet and hustle and bustle, just the way you like it.
2. Shared joy is double joy
We all know the expression: “shared sorrow is half sorrow”. But the opposite is also true. An experience is many times more fun when you can share it with someone else. While walking you can point things out to each other, or you can share with each other in the evening how you experienced the day’s stage.
3. You meet the nicest people while walking
How it works exactly, we do not know. But we do know that it is easier to have a conversation when you are walking side by side than when you are sitting across from each other. One thing you know for sure when you go on a walking vacation with a group is that you have at least something in common. Because just like you, the other participants love exercise, the outdoors and nature.
4. Hiking in a group makes for good conversations
On a hiking vacation, you have countless opportunities to strike up a conversation with someone. In the words of Irish poet William Butler Yeats, “There are no strangers, only friends you have not yet met.”
5. You learn from each other
On a hiking vacation, the conversations quickly go “into depth.” You can discuss serious subjects without it becoming heavy. In this way you can learn from each other in a very relaxed way. Who knows, it may just be that at a beautiful viewpoint you are surprised by a perspective you had never considered before.
6. You help each other during your hiking holiday
Sometimes you might have a tough time during a hiking vacation. Maybe it’s physically tough for a while, or maybe you have to walk along a boring part of the trail. If you do your walking vacation with a group, you can help each other. On the boring parts, good company helps you along because hiking is just a little less lonely. You encourage each other on the difficult parts and you navigate together, which is very handy during your Tour du Mont Blanc hike. And if you travel with luggage, you can share the weight.
7. A group walking vacation results in better pictures
You can of course travel with a selfie stick, but let’s face it: it doesn’t make for very good photos. It often takes several attempts to get a decent picture. One photo shows no background, the other photo is difficult to look at because you cannot find the button. This is not the case when you go hiking with a group. You just hand your phone or camera to your fellow traveler and you get a picture that’s worth having.
8. Hiking together means eating together
After a long day of hiking you’re ready for a hearty meal. If you’re hiking alone, you have to rely on what you bought for yourself. Most people won’t sit down in a restaurant on their own, so you’ll often end up with a simple meal. If you’re on a walking vacation with a group, you can cook and eat together. That’s a lot cozier. And because you can share the weight of your provisions, you often have more ingredients. And that makes the food a lot tastier, too.
A hiking vacation with a group is simply a very good idea. You see, a hiking vacation with a group actually has only advantages. Even the most inveterate loner can find the peace and quiet he or she needs in a group holiday. At the same time, there is contact whenever you need it and a group walking vacation has many practical advantages. Consider walking holidays in Switzerland for your next hiking vacation with a group!