Who is counting?  Walk, ride, sail, gallop or travel by 4×4 in pristine territories in South America via guided explorations

It didn’t take long for people locked down to realize just how important being free and outdoors in nature can be for mental and physical wellbeing. As travel gets going again, those searching for a beneficial outdoor escape will find what they need to suit their sense of adventure with Explora – and the expedition company has the numbers to prove it.

According to Director of Land and Explorations Sebastian Correa, Explora’s travelers spend an average of 4 to 5.5 hours outdoors per day amid remote regions of beauty and preserved nature throughout South America, or a total of from 15.5 to 21.9 hours outdoors over a typical 4-day stay, depending on the destination.

More specifically, Correa’s research found the time travelers spend outdoors at four different Explora destinations averaged:

• Explora Torres del Paine – 5.4 hours/day, 21.9 hours per 4-day stay
   
• Explora Atacama – 5.5 hours/day, 21.1 hours per 4-day stay
   
• Explora Rapa Nui – 4.3 hours/day, 15.5 hours per 4-day stay
   
• Explora Valle Sagrado – 5.0 hours/day, 19.2 hours per 4-day stay

How does Explora keep its travelers outdoors, active, and surrounded by nature? The company’s philosophy of travel has always focused on exploration, with anywhere from 30 to 50 guide-led explorations available for travelers to pick, customize, and enjoy each destination, and a world of options between them including hikes, catamaran sails, bicycle rides, horseback rides, e-bikes, rock-climbing, high mountain ascents, and more.

At Explora Torres del Paine amid the sky-scraping peaks of the Paine massive in Chile, for instance, explorations range from an easy hike of 2 hours to the shores of Mirador Pehoé, to a moderate horseback ride of 2 hours across the Chinas River toward the Mercado estancia valley, to an expert, full-day ascent of Cerro Tenerife with views to the Chacabuco mountain range.

In the lunar-like landscape of the world’s driest desert in northern Chile, Explora Atacama offers explorations including an advanced 4-hour bicycle ride covering 20 miles to view petroglyphs in Piedra de la Coca, and an advanced 4.75-hour horseback ride with trotting and galloping in Cornisas including travel through an oasis and a climb to a ledge in the Salt Ridge. Meanwhile, a full-day, expert ascent of Colorado volcano lasts 8.5 hours and reveals panoramic views to a salt field watershed and Andes plateau.

We could go on and on.

According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, “a mountain of scientific research says spending time in nature is critical to health and increases longevity,” with “being in fresh air, under trees and away from cars and concrete – on a regular basis” tied to lower blood pressure, heart rate and stress hormones; decreased anxiety, depression, fatigue and inflammation; an increase in human anticancer natural killer cells; and more. 
 
Noted Director of Land and Explorations Sebastian Correa: “People can relax by the pool and sip a drink at the bar at hotels and resorts just about anywhere. But as my research reveals, travelers who are ready to dive back into the outdoors for the benefit of their physical and mental health will find all the time they need on an Explora adventure.”