Adventure breaks have been steadily increasing in popularity for years now. From family friendly activities, to hen parties there are thousands of prospective adventurers looking for excitement on their holidays. From wilderness survival and canoeing, to coasteering and hiking there are so many wonderful activities that are possible in your local area or while in a staycation in the UK.
Increasingly we are seeing the vast majority of people working indoors, rather than in the great outdoors. This has created a fantastic appetite on the part of the public for holidays that will take them away from their desk and into the wilderness, to explore the natural spaces around the UK. The natural world has a healing effect on us and can significantly reduce your stress. Here is a selection of the top ten activities for adventure holidays in Sussex for you to peruse.
1. Hiking
There are so many gorgeous areas to hike in Sussex. With many areas of outstanding natural beauty, this historic area is filled with stunning countryside vistas for you to explore. With highlights including the high weald, coastal paths near chalk cliffs and the South Downs there are many wonderful places to visit. Searching for pub walks online is an excellent way to find a good morning hike. Walking a loop starting and ending at a pub before settling down for a lovely Sunday lunch is a fantastic way to end the week.
If you are interested in more information about places to hike in Sussex follow the link to a blog post about Sussex trails.
2. Aqua Park
Bewl Water offers an Aqua Park experience for birthday parties and holidays. A fantastic family holiday idea or even a birthday party activity, the aqua park is a fantastic time for all ages. The inflatable park is a giant supervised obstacle course, with slides, springboards, as well as towers to climb. The park offers safety life vests to all participants, but please ensure that all the family members you have booked into the aqua park are confident swimmers so we can ensure that the park remains safe.
3. Laser Tag
Laser tag is operated during certain months at Bewl Water. With a dedicated and enthusiastic team and a special laser tag arena for players to enjoy, the laser challenge is great fun. Using special jackets and laser guns we have a series of challenges for our participants to face, such as last man standing, attack and defend and manhunt.
These allow all participants to have an excellent time honing their shooting and using team tactics to beat their opponents. An excellent activity for a variety of ages and abilities be sure to book ahead to assure yourself a place, our laser challenge is quite popular and if you don’t book in advance we may not have many spaces available.
4. Open Water Swimming
Excellent for triathlon training, or simply a new experience for any enthusiastic swimmers, Open water swimming is a fantastic way for adventure seekers to experience the great outdoors.
With trained lifeguards with kayaks patrolling the area in order to keep an eye on all the swimmers, at Bewl Water we work hard to ensure that our open water swimming experience is safe for our visitors.
5. Cycling
With many well maintained routes and cycle paths around our beautiful county (Including here at Bewl) Sussex is a fantastic place to explore by bicycle. If you don’t want the hassle of strapping your own bicycles to the car then there are plenty of places with a bicycle hire service you can use, such as Bedgebury, the South Downs or Bewl Water.
6. Canoeing/Kayaking
Canoeing and Kayaking are a wonderful way to explore the coastline, rivers and reservoirs around the country. With a stunning coastline and gorgeous rivers and estuaries to explore, choosing a boat as your primary method of transport can give you a unique view of the world around you.
The route you decide to take on your kayaking or canoeing experience can depend on how experienced you are and if you have any kids travelling with you. If you and a group of competent swimmers are heading out, then booking a canoe and heading out together without a guide can be feasible if the area you are exploring has relatively calm waters. If you have younger kids with you or are kayaking or canoeing for the first time, then booking as part of a guided tour may give you a little more security.
7. Foraging
In recent years thanks to the demonstrations of many cooking programs such as River Cottage, many are now interested in how to live off the land, with classes teaching gardening and foraging skills becoming increasingly popular. Learning skills such as fishing and foraging for edible wild plants such as blackberries, sweet chestnut and even nettles can be a fulfilling way to spend your time.
Exploring the wild landscape and investigating what is has to offer can be fun for all the family. With a variety of different experiences, such as going lobster hunting on the rocks or searching for mussels and samphire. If you are new to foraging or are looking for plants you haven’t seen before, make sure you go with a tour leader with experience. There are many plants and berries in the wild that can be poisonous if eaten, so be careful!
8. Coasteering
Coasteering is a uniquely British sport that originated in the 1980’s, when surfers in Pembrokeshire explored the cliffs, rock pooling, cliff climbing and yes jumping. The experience has come a long way since then, with accredited guides taking families and groups out to explore the natural coastline in a way most will never get to experience.
Guides will keep an eye on the tide charts and have specific routes they use to be safe. If you are going coasteering make sure you go with a guide and use proper safety equipment. Rock scrambling can become dangerous if you go alone.
9. Climbing
From learning to climb on indoors rock walls to exploring the great outdoors and tackling some cliffs, climbing is the ultimate adventure. There are a variety of outdoor and indoor options for new rock climbers to choose from around Sussex. This can be a very interesting sport to pursue, with speed climbing making its Olympic debut in the Tokyo games.
With a variety of difficulties and levels to try at a variety of different locations, there are a wide array of areas to explore along our coastline for those that are interested in the sport.
10. Paddle boarding
Paddle boarding is one of the fastest growing water sports in the UK and has gained widespread popularity due to its availability for all ages and fitness levels. Many sporting shops near the sea or rivers around Sussex will offer paddleboards and suits for hire for any tourists in the area looking for a new way to explore the local area.
Far more leisurely than kayaking or canoeing, taking a paddle boarding trip is an excellent way to enjoy your day.