12 Vacation Destinations That Thrill Seekers Can’t Miss

There's bungee jumping and there's extreme bungee jumping. For the ultimate bungee jump, strap in and dive off the AJ Hackett Macau Tower in Hong Kong. At 764 feet, this is recognized as the world's highest bungee jump — and for the extra-bold, there are even night jumps.

Located about an hour outside of La Paz, Bolivia, is a treacherous, narrow mountain road that has been dubbed "the World's Most Dangerous Road." An adventure tour company called Gravity takes brave travellers to the top of the 4,760-metre-high La Cumbre mountain; from there, adventure-seeking tourists make the harrowing trip downhill on bikes equipped with double suspension and hydraulic disk brakes, traversing a road that's responsible for about 300 deaths each year — which is probably something you don't want to think too much about while biking it.

If you feel the need for speed at high altitude, head to Sequim, Washington, and find Mason Wing Walking. There, you'll be securely strapped to an old-fashioned biplane (after receiving an array of safety instructions) and take off into the wild blue yonder. Don't be surprised if your pilot executes a few barrel roles, just to make things interesting.

Sandboarding is the hot new adventure sport — think snowboarding but with sand instead of snow. To put an even more extreme spin on this extreme sport, head to Chile's Atacama Desert, renowned as the driest place in the world. Unlike skiing, there are no chair lifts, so be prepared to hike up to the top of a hill before speeding down it with a board strapped to your feet. A local company called Sandboard San Pedro can get you all set up.

Anyone with a fear of heights will want to take a pass on enjoying a gourmet dinner atop a platform hundreds of feet above the ground, suspended by a crane as it gently sways in the breeze. You'll be strapped into a chair, while a chef (also strapped in) cooks dinner for you, hibachi-style. If Belgium is too far for you, the Dinner in the Sky concept has caught on, and is taking off in other locales as well.

Adventure-seekers won't do better than taking a whitewater-rafting trip down the Tatshenshini River in the Yukon, where you'll see icebergs, glaciers, wildlife and roaring, rushing rapids. Canadian Rafting Adventures is one of several companies offering expeditions.

Aspiring astronauts can see if they have the right stuff by heading to Space Adventures in Vienna, Virginia, where the coup de grace is a ride inside zero-gravity simulator within a specially modified Boeing 747 that performs aerial manoeuvres called parabolas in which the plane dips and arcs that allow passengers to experience the feeling of weightlessness.

You'll soar like an eagle if you decide to go paragliding over Interlaken, in Switzerland's Jungfrau region. From your vantage point in the sky, you can take in mirror-like lakes, glaciers, charming villages and more, with companies such as Paragliding Interlaken can make it happen.

Each summer, the water level of the Zambezi River falls just enough to allow visitors to Zambia's famed Victoria Falls to walk along the lip, where a small rock pool known as Devil's Pool appears, right on the edge of a sheer 355-foot drop at the edge of the falls. It's been described as "the ultimate infinity pool," and experienced guides will make sure that visitors don't actually go plunging over the edge of the falls.

The Greek island of Zakynthos is a popular tourist destination because of its crystal-clear water and white sand beaches. for visitors with a more adventurous bent, however, Zakynthos' Navagio Beach is also a popular spot for BASE jumpers, who hop off a cliff for a 650-foot jump above a picturesque beach that hosts a shipwreck. Divers have five seconds to pull the ripcord of their parachutes before floating serenely to the sand.

There's skiing, and then there's heli skiing, in which adrenaline junkie skiers and snowboarders are transported to mountaintops where chair lifts don't even go. From Whistler to Revelstoke, there are numerous heli skiing opportunities for hardy winter-lovers, and the Destination British Columbia website offers numerous recommendations.

Add a little high-flying action to an African safari by soaring above the Serengeti in a hot-air balloon. Companies such as Serengeti Balloon Safaris will take you up, up and away.