Adventure travel is a tourism, involving exploration or travel to remote, exotic and possibly hostile areas, where the traveler should "expect the unexpected". Adventure tourism is rapidly growing in popularity, as tourists seek different kinds of vacations. According to the U.S. based Adventure Travel Trade Association, adventure travel may be any tourist activity, including two of the following three components: a physical activity, a cultural exchange or interaction and engagement with nature.

Adventure tourism gains much of its excitement by allowing its participants to step outside of their comfort zone. This may be from experiencing culture shock or through the performance of acts, that require significant effort and involve some degree of risk (real or perceived) and/or physical danger. This may include activities such as mountaineering, trekking, bungee jumping, mountain biking, rafting, zip-lining and rock climbing. Some obscure forms of adventure travel include disaster tourism and ghetto tourism. Other rising forms of adventure travel include social tourism, jungle tourism and overland travel.

Access to inexpensive consumer technology, with respect to Global Positioning Systems, flashpacking, social networking and photography, have increased the worldwide interest in adventure travel.

Tour operators, travel agencies & retailers

Many organizations and companies worldwide cater to adventure clientèle. Some geographic regions are promoted by both private and public agencies as adventure travel destinations, such as the Arenal Volcano in Costa Rica, one of the worldwide leaders.

Disabled

With the trend of increasing accessible tourism, available to disabled persons around the world, some tourism areas are developing adventure tourism specifically for the disabled. Whistler, British Columbia and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada have been taking the lead with the 2010 Winter Paralympics. Adventure travel for the disabled has become a $13 billion USD a year industry in North America.

Notable disabled adventurers include: Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind person to climb Mount Everest; Casey Pieretti, an amputee skater; and Caroline Walsh, founder of the Access to Marine Conservation for All International.

Some adventure travel destinations offer diverse programs and job opportunities developed specifically for the disabled. Esprit Rafting, located in Pontiac Regional County Municipality, in Quebec, Canada, designs rafting trips for people with spinal cord damage.

Media

Some prominent adventure travel personalities, media sources and organizations include:

• Adventures in Travel Expo 1 the worlds largest series of travel events in NY, CH, LA, DC and Seattle
• Adventure Travel Magazine 2, a UK based adventure travel magazine published since 1995
• Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, a program on the Travel Channel that focuses on the adventure of authentic food and experiences in various locales.
• National Geographic Adventure, a subscription TV channel part of National Geographic Channels International.
• National Geographic Magazine, affiliated with the National Geographic Society.
• Outpost, a Canadian adventure travel magazine.
• "Whatever You Do, Don't Run" is a collection of true stories from Peter Allison, who worked as a safari guide in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia.
• Articles & Resources on the Business and Marketing Adventure Travel