If you’re in the market for the traveler’s middle ground---exotic, but not dangerous, experiences; out-of-doors activity, but with all the creature comforts---then you’re a good candidate for “soft-adventure” travel.

Soft-adventure trips are the newest hybrid travel experience. They combine exciting physical experiences in culturally and environmentally stimulating settings. They offer activity any reasonably fit traveler could perform comfortably for two to four hours a day. Soft travel is participatory in nature, but not so all-encompassing that you can’t head for a nearby “sag wagon” when you’re bored or tired.

The key to a soft-adventure trip is options, says David Ripley of Sobek, the firm that pioneered soft-adventure travel in 1984. A Sobek river-rafting package, for example, allows traveler to stop when ever they aren’t in the mood. “If you don’t feel like rafting, you can hang out in the van and follow the river to the next destination,” he explains.

Now packaged by dozens of suppliers throughout the world, soft-adventure travel offers hiking, canoeing, biking, and manageable doses of almost any physical activity. Most packages also include opportunities to explore the natural history and the culture of a region.

The most popular foreign soft-adventure destinations are Nepal, Indonesia, Peru, and Africa, says Sobek’s Ripley. “Most soft-adventure people have been to all the traditional destinations. They don’t want to go where their parents went. They are in their 30s, 40s, and 50s, they’re fit, and they’re ready for new experiences.”

Not all soft-adventure travel involves exotic destinations, of course, and many packages focus on just one or two forms of activity. All Adventure Travel, for example, sells biking or hiking packages in dozens of U.S. and European locales.

Most adventure-tour operators offer both “soft” and “hard” adventure experiences. The toughness of each package is usually designated by a level of physical difficulty. “Soft” adventurers usually opt for the first and second levels.

The price range for the adventure travel is as broad as the experiences being offered. All Adventure Travel’s five-day bike trip in Vermont, complete with accommodations at country inns and sag-wagon transportation for less dedicated cyclists, cost $590. Mountain Travel offers a 17-day hiking trip in Indonesia for $2,890. A company called Overseas Adventure Travel sells a 17-day hike/bike/cruise adventure to Patagonia for $2,790. (Prices quoted are per person, based on double occupancy in a hotel room, and do not include airfare.)

A good source for information on soft-adventure travel is the monthly newsletter Questing, 15760 Venture Blvd., Encino, CA 91436; tel: 800-777-8929.