We recently asked hikers about their hiking style in OneTravel’s exclusive survey Tell Us How You Hike in order to better understand hiking styles and hikers’ preferences. Want to see how you compare to other hikers? Read on…
Survey highlights:
• People belonging to the age group of 25-34 are the most active hikers
• 44 % of hikers prefer easy hiking trails
• 56 % of hikers believe that they have an average level of fitness
• 55 % of hikers prefer to hike with friends
Most active age group:
Surprisingly, the survey found that the most active hikers are in the age-group of 25-34, against the seemingly more obvious choice of the 18-24 age group, which came in second. However, not so surprisingly, people in the age group of 55+ are the least active.
Most preferred season:
As many as 36 % of hikers said that spring is the most preferred season for hiking, whereas 31 % said they prefer winter over spring. In addition, 20 % prefer to hike during the summer and only 13 % hike during fall.
Level of difficulty:
The “Easy” level of trail difficulty is in the highest preference among 44 % of hikers, whereas 41 % prefer going on moderate trails. Only 15 % prefer a tough hiking trail to test their prowess.
Level of fitness:
Well, 56 % of hikers rated themselves as average in terms of fitness level, while 22 % said that they are super fit and 22 % of respondents want to improve their fitness level to take on more rigorous hiking trails in future.
Ideal hiking companion:
When asked about who wold be their ideal hiking companion, 57 % said that a close friend has always been their ideal hiking partner, whereas 18 % said that they prefer to hike solo and 9 % said that they might hike with someone they meet en route to the summit. 18 % percent said they prefer to hike with their romantic partner.
Most used app:
Though this may seem a no-brainer, the camera is the most-used app for 55 % of hikers while 17 % prefer a step tracker over any other app. 9 % prefer to use a social app to keep their loved ones posted.
Hikers’ inspiration:
The survey found that getting close to nature is the most inspiring force for 56 % of hikers, whereas 13 % said that they hike to stay fit. For others, the reasons varied from “Scrambling” to being “Social”.
Backdrop preference:
When it comes to the backdrop of the hiking trail, most hikers (52 %) stated that they prefer mountains. Others prefer wooded (29 %), coastal (13 %), and desert (7 %) areas to hike in.
Hiking frequency:
Over 55 % of hikers said they take hiking trips at least once or twice a year. So, if you have not gone hiking in the past year or two, don’t consider yourself lazy! 7 % of participants said that they hike every week.
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