Walking – the 4th Dimension of Travel

A pathway through the heartbeat of a great city: Most of the historic centers of the world’s cities are small enough to survey in a morning walk. The WAI trail through Paris is an all-day event that starts at the Notre Dame Cathedral and finishes at your hotel by the Eiffel Tower. In between you’ll make a head-spinning visit to the Louvre, climb the majestic Arc deTriomph, stroll along fashionable Champs-Élysées, and consider an elevator ride up the Eiffel Tower!

A connection with another culture: Walking forces you out of the confining tourist bubbles – hotels, tour coaches, pedestrian malls, etc. – and allows you to experience local patterns of life that may be intriguingly different from your own. A memorable walk in South Africa’s Zululand starts at Siphosadabletshe High School in the rural bush lands of Nompondo, adjacent to the Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve. You’ll visit first with the teachers and students (looking sharp in their uniforms!), then walk through sweeping African panoramas past farmsteads where the way of life has changed little since the dawn of time.

A ticket to experiencing the monuments of the world: Many of mankind’s greatest achievements are best explored on foot. Hidden in the mountains of Peru, Machu Picchu can only be explored by wandering on foot over its ancient stone steps and through its amazing stone architecture. Likewise, China’s Great Wall offers an incomparable walking experience once you’re away from the main tourist access points. You begin with a fascinating stroll through rural villages, leading to an unrestored portion of the Wall at Gubeikou, where several kilometers of walking atop the Wall provide breathtaking panoramas little changed since the Wall was constructed hundreds of years ago.

A window of interaction with local walkers: Participating in an organized walking event can open different cultural windows than exploring a destination on your own. Walks through the tiny wine-producing village of Mörbisch, Austria are fondly remembered for the warmth and generosity of our hosts, and the glasses of their own vintages they often share. In addition, Italian walking clubs will delight you with their enthusiastic welcomes, and events that sometimes culminate in singing and dancing after lunch!

A moving postcard through nature’s wonderland: Certainly, the wonders of creation are also best appreciated up close and on foot! Examples abound: walking among the geysers and hot pools of Yellowstone National Park, trekking along the south rim of the Grand Canyon, and hiking with the guanacos through the amazing vistas of Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park. Few nature trails can compare, however, with the walk from Kleine Scheidegg to Wengen in the Swiss Alps. Swiss brown cows are grazing, bells a’tinkling, wildflowers outdo one another with colorful displays, and looming over all are the massive, sheer, glacier-bedecked cliffs of the Eiger, Mönsch, and Jungfrau mountains!