Frequently Asked Questions...FAQ...FAQ...FAQ...FAQ...FAQ...FAQ...FAQ...FAQ.........
At a wildlife center in Whitehorse, the Yukon, Canada in 2010.
MindStretch Travel Adventures has been offering kid-sized adventures for decades. We know how to combine the best of travel experiences with the comforts of home to offer a trip that just about every boy can enjoy and feel comfortable participating in.
These aren't camping trips, but boys enjoy the great outdoors with plenty of opportunities to hike and explore some of the greatest natural wonders in the United States and beyond. We often base near major national parks and spend our days getting out beyond the crowds to experience some incredible sites. In the evenings we return to our motel (most with pools) to relax and unwind before having a restaurant dinner.
These aren't camping trips, but boys enjoy the great outdoors with plenty of opportunities to hike and explore some of the greatest natural wonders in the United States and beyond. We often base near major national parks and spend our days getting out beyond the crowds to experience some incredible sites. In the evenings we return to our motel (most with pools) to relax and unwind before having a restaurant dinner.
Q. What ages are suitable for these trips?
A. Our trips are generally open to boys ages 9 or older. Some trips, like the ones to Europe have a minimum age of 11. There are usually boys on any given trip from the youngest on up to 16 or 17 years old. The older boys go as junior counselors, rangers, or trip assistants depending on their age and past participation in a MindStretch Travel Adventure. Many boys do attend for several years.
Q. Are these camping trips?
A. No. While we do all kinds of camping kinds of activities like hiking, rafting, horseback riding, geocaching, and more...we stay in motels and eat our dinners in sit-down restaurants. So no matter what the weather during the day, we always know we'll come back to a comfortable motel room and a nice dinner.
Q. Are these rugged wilderness adventures?
A. Nope. We do experience some of the greatest national parks and natural areas in the US and abroad but our activities are geared to be safe for anyone. We do not take risks. We do hike a lot to get out of the parking lots and into the backcountry away from the crowds, but we choose hikes that most boys can make without too much effort. Other activities are chosen with safety in mind. Basically, these are family-type "vacations" without the family.
Q. How many boys go on each trip?
A. That varies by trip and there's no hard-set minimum or maximum. We've taken trips with as few as six boys and as many as 19. On second thought, I imagine 19 is about the maximum we could take.
Q. Will my son fit in?
A. We do our best to see that all boys enjoy this experience and that means working with the group to see that each and every kid feels comfortable and welcomed. We do not allow bullying of any kind and boys learn before the trip begins that their fun never comes at the expense of someone else's. There's a reason that many boys return year after year and feeling good about their place in the group is one of those reasons. Older boys are partnered up as "big brothers" with the younger boys to make sure that everyone has a buddy right from the start.
Q. Does this mean that this trip is for everyone?
A. No it's not. Most boys do just fine and have a blast. But if your son is extremely nervous about being outdoors, or doesn't like even a modest amount of physical exertion, or if he must know ahead of time what's happening every minute of the day, every day of the trip ... then this isn't the right experience for him. But if he enjoys having new experiences every day with no two days being the same...then a MindStretch Travel Adventure could be just the thing he's been waiting for.
Q. What's to eat?
A. Unlike a residential summer camp, your son gets lots of choices. Breakfasts are either continental breakfasts that our motel/hotel might serve or we'll have breakfast in a fast-food restaurant and occasionally a sit-down restaurant. Lunches are often trail lunches we prepare for our daily treks and this might include crackers, summer sausage, cheese, fruit, gorp, cookies, etc. Dinners are always in a sit-down restaurant and boys get to choose from the menu with just a few restrictions such as no caffeine after 6 PM for the younger boys.
Q. What's your staff-to-participant ratio?
A. We generally have one adult leader for every four or five boys. Older boys help as assistants, rangers, and junior counselors...but they are not considered in that ratio and they are never in charge of your son. The older boys are there to have a great time (most are returning for a second, third, or fourth trip) and their primary role after having fun is to help the adults if requested. Did I say, their real reason for being there is to have fun!
Q. Where do your trips go?
A. Each year we go to a different location. These rotate generally around a three- or four-year cycle. Occasionally we'll go to an entirely new itinerary. Our recent trips have been:
2011 - Colorado Rockies
2010 - Alaska & Canada
2009 - Europe by Eurail
2008 - Wyoming & Montana
2007 - Colorado Rockies
2006 - Wyoming & Montana
2005 - New England & Canada
2004 - Europe by Eurail
Q. How quickly do your trips fill and how far ahead can you reserve a spot?
A. That varies from trip to trip. Generally speaking the trips are about 70% booked a year in advance. That still leaves openings up to a month or so prior to trip departure. Trips usually are officially announced 18 months before departure and boys start signing up then.
Q. Do you offer more than one trip each summer?
A. That is our goal and starting in 2013 we're offering two very different adventures. These trips have until now been pretty much limited to boys from the Asheville, NC area. We've just started reaching out to boys from anywhere. Invite your friends.
Q. How does our son get to us if we don't live in the Asheville area?
A. Trips usually begin with a departure from only one of our area airports and that varies depending on fares and convenience...usually Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP), Asheville Regional (AVL), or Charlotte Douglas International (CLT). If you can't get your son to our chosen airport you have a couple of other options. Your son might be able to travel as an unaccompanied minor to our destination city as long as he arrives after our flight does. Or, you can fly him to our base city (again as an unaccompanied minor) and we can most likely partner him up with another boy for the night before and then he can fly with the group. Of course you can also drive him and deliver him personally to our destination city.
Q. What are your future trips?
A. We're going back to Wyoming & Montana in 2012 for 12 days. Click to see more info. That trip is currently full, but there can always be late cancellations when spring gets here. In 2013 we'll have two trips. We're going to enjoy a seven-day adventure in the West Virginia Mountains in June 2013 and will be returning for another Europe by Eurail adventure in July 2013. This trip will be 19 to 21 days long. Sign-ups are underway for both of those adventures.
Q. How do parents know where we are and what we're doing?
A. Parents will have our lodging itinerary ahead of the trip. Boys are also welcome to bring cell phones though their use is limited to certain times of the day such as early morning or in the evening after we've finished our activities. I try to post photos on our flickr site in the evening or early in the morning each day or two so that you can actually see photos of the boys and their activities and everyone can enjoy our adventures with our blog posts. Parents can also reach Mark by cell phone and/or email.
Q. Why no girls?
A. Well, it's just easier having all boys or all girls. It's fun for "boys to be boys" every so often and not have to worry about impressing the girls. I would be happy to take an all-girls' group and might eventually start adding a trip or two for girls. Parents who want to speed up that day can email me about setting up a particular trip and if you can round up ten girls...we've got us an adventure!
Got more questions? Email Mark at marklevin@windstream.net or go to the contact page on this website.
A. Our trips are generally open to boys ages 9 or older. Some trips, like the ones to Europe have a minimum age of 11. There are usually boys on any given trip from the youngest on up to 16 or 17 years old. The older boys go as junior counselors, rangers, or trip assistants depending on their age and past participation in a MindStretch Travel Adventure. Many boys do attend for several years.
Q. Are these camping trips?
A. No. While we do all kinds of camping kinds of activities like hiking, rafting, horseback riding, geocaching, and more...we stay in motels and eat our dinners in sit-down restaurants. So no matter what the weather during the day, we always know we'll come back to a comfortable motel room and a nice dinner.
Q. Are these rugged wilderness adventures?
A. Nope. We do experience some of the greatest national parks and natural areas in the US and abroad but our activities are geared to be safe for anyone. We do not take risks. We do hike a lot to get out of the parking lots and into the backcountry away from the crowds, but we choose hikes that most boys can make without too much effort. Other activities are chosen with safety in mind. Basically, these are family-type "vacations" without the family.
Q. How many boys go on each trip?
A. That varies by trip and there's no hard-set minimum or maximum. We've taken trips with as few as six boys and as many as 19. On second thought, I imagine 19 is about the maximum we could take.
Q. Will my son fit in?
A. We do our best to see that all boys enjoy this experience and that means working with the group to see that each and every kid feels comfortable and welcomed. We do not allow bullying of any kind and boys learn before the trip begins that their fun never comes at the expense of someone else's. There's a reason that many boys return year after year and feeling good about their place in the group is one of those reasons. Older boys are partnered up as "big brothers" with the younger boys to make sure that everyone has a buddy right from the start.
Q. Does this mean that this trip is for everyone?
A. No it's not. Most boys do just fine and have a blast. But if your son is extremely nervous about being outdoors, or doesn't like even a modest amount of physical exertion, or if he must know ahead of time what's happening every minute of the day, every day of the trip ... then this isn't the right experience for him. But if he enjoys having new experiences every day with no two days being the same...then a MindStretch Travel Adventure could be just the thing he's been waiting for.
Q. What's to eat?
A. Unlike a residential summer camp, your son gets lots of choices. Breakfasts are either continental breakfasts that our motel/hotel might serve or we'll have breakfast in a fast-food restaurant and occasionally a sit-down restaurant. Lunches are often trail lunches we prepare for our daily treks and this might include crackers, summer sausage, cheese, fruit, gorp, cookies, etc. Dinners are always in a sit-down restaurant and boys get to choose from the menu with just a few restrictions such as no caffeine after 6 PM for the younger boys.
Q. What's your staff-to-participant ratio?
A. We generally have one adult leader for every four or five boys. Older boys help as assistants, rangers, and junior counselors...but they are not considered in that ratio and they are never in charge of your son. The older boys are there to have a great time (most are returning for a second, third, or fourth trip) and their primary role after having fun is to help the adults if requested. Did I say, their real reason for being there is to have fun!
Q. Where do your trips go?
A. Each year we go to a different location. These rotate generally around a three- or four-year cycle. Occasionally we'll go to an entirely new itinerary. Our recent trips have been:
2011 - Colorado Rockies
2010 - Alaska & Canada
2009 - Europe by Eurail
2008 - Wyoming & Montana
2007 - Colorado Rockies
2006 - Wyoming & Montana
2005 - New England & Canada
2004 - Europe by Eurail
Q. How quickly do your trips fill and how far ahead can you reserve a spot?
A. That varies from trip to trip. Generally speaking the trips are about 70% booked a year in advance. That still leaves openings up to a month or so prior to trip departure. Trips usually are officially announced 18 months before departure and boys start signing up then.
Q. Do you offer more than one trip each summer?
A. That is our goal and starting in 2013 we're offering two very different adventures. These trips have until now been pretty much limited to boys from the Asheville, NC area. We've just started reaching out to boys from anywhere. Invite your friends.
Q. How does our son get to us if we don't live in the Asheville area?
A. Trips usually begin with a departure from only one of our area airports and that varies depending on fares and convenience...usually Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP), Asheville Regional (AVL), or Charlotte Douglas International (CLT). If you can't get your son to our chosen airport you have a couple of other options. Your son might be able to travel as an unaccompanied minor to our destination city as long as he arrives after our flight does. Or, you can fly him to our base city (again as an unaccompanied minor) and we can most likely partner him up with another boy for the night before and then he can fly with the group. Of course you can also drive him and deliver him personally to our destination city.
Q. What are your future trips?
A. We're going back to Wyoming & Montana in 2012 for 12 days. Click to see more info. That trip is currently full, but there can always be late cancellations when spring gets here. In 2013 we'll have two trips. We're going to enjoy a seven-day adventure in the West Virginia Mountains in June 2013 and will be returning for another Europe by Eurail adventure in July 2013. This trip will be 19 to 21 days long. Sign-ups are underway for both of those adventures.
Q. How do parents know where we are and what we're doing?
A. Parents will have our lodging itinerary ahead of the trip. Boys are also welcome to bring cell phones though their use is limited to certain times of the day such as early morning or in the evening after we've finished our activities. I try to post photos on our flickr site in the evening or early in the morning each day or two so that you can actually see photos of the boys and their activities and everyone can enjoy our adventures with our blog posts. Parents can also reach Mark by cell phone and/or email.
Q. Why no girls?
A. Well, it's just easier having all boys or all girls. It's fun for "boys to be boys" every so often and not have to worry about impressing the girls. I would be happy to take an all-girls' group and might eventually start adding a trip or two for girls. Parents who want to speed up that day can email me about setting up a particular trip and if you can round up ten girls...we've got us an adventure!
Got more questions? Email Mark at marklevin@windstream.net or go to the contact page on this website.
