VBT Offering New Walking Vacations in America’s National Parks

A couple weeks ago, I wrote about how Xanterra Parks & Resorts, the people who run all of America’s national park lodges acquired Austin-Lehman Adventures, now called Austin Adventures. A year prior, Xanterra purchased VBT Walking and Bicycling Vacations. Now we’re beginning to see the results of that acquisition. VBT has just announced that they will be offering walking tours at 5 American national parks in 2014, the first time they have offered walking vacations in the States. Travelers can explore the Grand Canyon, Zion, Grand Teton and Yellowstone while staying in lodges right in the heart of the parks. Vermont-based VBT is also launching a walking vacation closer to their headquarters in Acadia National Park. Walks include one of my personal favorites, Zion’s Narrows, where you walk in the Virgin River through a 1,000-foot-high slot canyon that’s a mere 20 feet wide at times. If you can’t wait until next summer, VBT will offer a 6-day cross-country skiing jaunt in Yellowstone this coming January and February, the most serene time of year to visit the park. Add several nights after the trip to ski downhill at nearby Big Sky.