A multi-day dog-sledding trip in Lapland with husky care and your
own sled is worlds apart from your typical Nordic weekend away.
Plan it right and your trip will coincide with the Northern Lights,
making for multiple nights of marvelling at the sky. After full
days of fresh air and uncountable kilometres conquered, cosy up in
a different cabin every night across the northernmost part of
Finland. Following a good
night’s sleep, wriggle back into your many, many layers before
setting out for more of the same.

A legendary trip to take in the Jammu and Kashmir state in
Northern India, a motorcycle journey to Ladakh can last up to 15
days if your starting point is New Delhi. With stops in Manali and
Leh along the way, it’s a striking adventure through a rugged
mountainscape punctuated by starry nights and ending at the base of
the Himalayas. Make food a priority
on your trek, pausing for samosas, palak paneer and aloo ghobi en
route.

While tackling the full Appalachian Trail takes five to seven
months (and only one-in-four are said to complete it), taking on
just a chunk of the trail is completely doable. Stretching from
Mount Katahdin, Maine to Spring Mountain, Georgia, this trail is the stuff of
American legends. Plan your trip in autumn if you want to explore
the northeastern portion of the hike, or venture out in spring if
you’re looking to spend time in the Deep South. A hike on the
latter section of the trail will also guarantee some fantastic
fried green tomatoes and cornbread as a reward, while the former
will likely end with an enormous stack of pancakes doused in maple
syrup.

A Canadian summer-camp staple, this two-month canoe trip between
dozens of lakes is practically a rite of passage. For those who
don’t have a full summer on their hands, there are also plenty of
itineraries that take just one or two weeks to complete. A group
trip if there ever was one, with lake baths and nightly s’mores
while stargazing, it will take you right back to your childhood
days. This trip will also give you a major sense of accomplishment.
Transporting canoes between lakes during portages and paddling for
hours on end will have you fit for an Ironman race by the end of
it; this trip isn’t for the faint of heart.

Hardcore athletes, take note. There are many options for taking
on a multi-day, cross-country skiing journey in Norway. ranging from two to six
days. In addition to being the workout of a lifetime (you likely
won’t need to exercise for weeks following this trip, save for the
odd yoga class to get all the kinks out), it’s also a spiritually
cleansing experience. Feeling like you’re light-years away from
civilisation (including phone service, for the most part), you’ll
be focused on your day-to-day goals and present state… and probably
your aching legs towards the end of it.

This variant on the conventional

Californian road trip is longer because it involves a number of
components. Pile into a rented Jeep with your crew and set out from
LA until you hit the desert.
Beware of wind fields en route if you have your roof down – though
nothing says adventure quite like having to make a quick repair
stop on the side of the road. Once you’ve made it to your next
Geotag, settle into a few glamping tents in preparation for a
multi-day
hiking holiday.

To catch better snow than any Austrian or French resort has to
offer, head to the untracked powdery plains of Alaska. Only
accessible by helicopter, these pistes ensure you get first tracks
all day long – not to mention the thrill of teetering at the very
top of the mountain before zipping down. Stay in a luxe lodge by
night (think Ryan Reynold’s family estate in The Proposal) and
alternate between evening hot-tub sessions and early mornings
floating above the frosty Alaskan landscape.

At the foothills of the Himalayas, the Rishikesh section of the
Ganges is a world-class location for all rafting levels. With names
ranging from Sweet Sixteen to the Golf Course, encounters with a
range of rafting grades is par for the course (sorry, we had to).
With shallow spots, frothy waves and rocky drops, adrenaline
seekers will be exposed to a range of rafting challenges. Rishikesh
also happens to be a yoga capital, so stretching out after a long
day of paddling is bound to become a late-afternoon ritual.