Active

Odyssey’s active tours are designed for those mature travellers who enjoy an active lifestyle and would like to keep the same pace during their holidays. The activity level can usually be tailored to the group’s fitness level ensuring all travellers are looked after. Small groups of like-minded people, typically a maximum of 12 people.

Odyssey Traveller offers affordable group tours, suitable for couples and singles, tailored toward varying levels of fitness and are flexible. So, if you would prefer your itinerary to be spending an afternoon sipping tea and watching the world go by, you can. And re-join the rest of the small group guided tour later in the day. Walking tours are fully mapped out, with an itinerary designed to maximize the experience, and are guided by people in the know. Discover the world at a slower pace and get your feet dirty

Odyssey Traveller offers an affordable group tour that is focused on being a walking tour in varied locations throughout the world with a great range of themed vacation packages to some great places with a tour guide for your trip as a couple or solo traveller. We offer a range of Pilgrimage Walks, as well as walks in England and in France.

Exploring on foot, on a guided walking holiday, as a preferred travel style gives you access to more authentic experiences, as you enjoy sights and experiences shared on a guided walk usually reserved for locals including some quaint villages. Discovering a new country and its landscape through walking gives you an incredible sense of accomplishment. The discovery and exploration of ancient forests or olive groves or quaint villages that are hidden, make route notes for a great walking adventure or hike for a future walking trip. Moreover, it is great for your fitness and will make you feel alive! Meet and chat with people, see more, and have your physical work rewarded with secrets you can only uncover from the ground whether on a guided walking tour, self-guided tour, or free walking tour the benefits all remain.

In major cities, Odyssey stays in centrally located 3-4 star hotels, with easy access to public transport. In smaller towns or rural areas, we usually stay in family-run hotels or guesthouses.

Participants must be in excellent health, extremely mobile and live an active lifestyle. Program activities may include up to 6 hours of continuous strenuous, moderate-to-fast paced activities per day on varied terrain, however, The activity level can usually be tailored to the group’s fitness level ensuring all travellers are looked after.

Whether you’re travelling to Europe, Asia, within Australia, or anywhere else in the world, the basic rules of packing your travel essentials remain the same and it all revolves a packing list. You may have refined your packing list over time with the tours taken and have the ultimate international travel checklist, which is great! The secret is being prepared and splitting some things between checked luggage and hand luggage on a long haul flight. So keep some of the prescription medicine in your hand luggage as well some underwear, a condensed toiletry bag and eye mask because lost or delayed checked luggage is inconvenient. A money belt is also a good idea, not for cash, but copies of important documents and a spare credit card or copies of, perhaps though a photo of these on your phone are a better solution. But whatever approach is taken, the best travel advice is to do what you are comfortable with to remove worry. There is no ultimate packing list, but packing light is the number one travel tip.

To help you prepare for any walking program, check out our previously published articles:

• Footwear and walking shoes
• What to pack when travelling.
• Maintaining muscle fitness in senior and mature age travellers
• Selecting socks for walking
• Six great short walks in Britain
• Preparing for a walking holiday
• Walking tours for active travellers

All Odyssey’s Walking tours are designed and scheduled to avoid the busiest tourist crowds. See all our walking tours here.

It’s hard to beat the pleasure of a walking tour. While the comfort and speed of a coach or train has its place, exploring a new place on foot means that, wherever you go, you will properly discover the sights, sounds, and smells. Individual moments will be more memorable, there’ll be time to appreciate the beauty of both nature and You will also likely find yourself chatting with companions.

Odyssey Traveller offers a number of small group European walking tours that appeal to a range of fitness levels.

1. Footwear

2. Hat & Sunscreen

3. Write things down

4. Prepare for unexpected weather

5. Eating & Drinking

6. Fitness Preparation

7. Pack Light

8. General Health Checkup

9. Blister Prevention

10. General Safety

Level 3 – Moderate to Challenging

Participants must be in excellent health, extremely mobile and live an active lifestyle. Program activities may include up to 6 hours of continuous strenuous, moderate-to-fast paced activities per day on varied terrain.

Please do not read into this too much; Odyssey’s tour are developed for seniors, with an inquisitive mind and a good general physical health. We do not expect our participants to be walkers or with great strength or endurance. Our tours are also very flexible due to our smaller groups and we often offer alternative activities for participants who would like to skip an activity/sightseeing, or take a day of rest.

Odyssey’s active tours are designed for those mature travellers who enjoy an active lifestyle and would like to keep the same pace during their holidays. The activity level can usually be tailored to the group’s fitness level ensuring all travellers are looked after. Small groups of like minded people, typically a maximum of 12 people.

Follow this link for all our Walking tours: https://www.odysseytraveller.com/tour-category/active/

Odyssey’s active tours are designed for those mature travellers who enjoy an active lifestyle and would like to keep the same pace during their holidays. The activity level can usually be tailored to the group’s fitness level ensuring all travellers are looked after. Small groups of like minded people, typically a maximum of 12 people.

Follow this link for all our Walking tours: https://www.odysseytraveller.com/tour-category/active/

Choosing the right walking shoes has repercussions beyond fashion. A study in 2005 showed that “incorrectly fitting footwear is common in older people and is strongly associated with forefoot pathology and foot pain.” The study identified foot pain and deformity in 176 people (aged 62 to 96 years), 120 of whom were women, and found that the women “wore shoes that were shorter, narrower and had a reduced total area compared to their feet than men.” Wearing shoes that are narrower than your foot is associated with corns, foot pain, and foot deformity. A 2017 study stresses that “between 20 and 45% of women aged over 65 years of age will develop one or more foot problems, which, although not specific to older women, are more common in that age group than in younger women.” The study also points to inappropriate footwear as one of the causes.

Foot problems will negatively impact your mobility and independence, and the incorrect footwear can cause you to trip, fall, and suffer injury. It can also exacerbate already existing health problems, such as arthritis in the knees and hip. Odyssey Traveller organises numerous walking tours and we are advocates of choosing and using the right footwear—you can click here to read an article we’ve published previously about choosing the right shoes and socks to bring when you travel.

The Saint James Way Small Group Walking Tour is escorted by an Odyssey program leader. Odyssey’s local guides also share with you their knowledge of the medieval pilgrims and the route walked to Santiago de Compostela.

As we understand differences in travel style, our tour is designed to be as demanding as you choose. You or your partner may elect to enjoy a slower day during the tour. Or you might decide to walk the appointed section that day. Odyssey has a fitness program designed to bring you up to a comfortable activity level prior to the tour that we circulate to all participants.