Top 10 Most Popular Adventure Travel Destinations (PHOTOS)

People swim in the Celeste river waterfall at Tenorio Volcano National Park in Upala, Costa Rica. The blue color of the lagoon, formed from chemical reactions of calcium carbonate and sulfur, is surrounded by amazing rainforest of 12,819 hectares of this park. The Celeste river carries its color for a distance of 36 km (22 miles).

Travel advisors at Virtuoso, a leading luxury travel network in the Americas, the Caribbean, Australia and New Zealand, have voted for 10 most popular adventure travel destinations for 2011, and Costa Rica tops the list.

Costa Rica offers extensive adventure travel experience ranging from white water rafting, canyoning, hiking, biking and more.

A tourist power-kiting on Blouberg beach near Cape Town.

A haven for adventurous trails, South Africa offers climbing, surfing, diving, hiking, horseback safaris, mountain biking, river rafting and many more exciting adventures. The African country's long coastine and rich wildlife offers a lot of daring adventure travel experience.

A blue-footed boobie is perched on a rock on the Galapagos Islands.

Galapagos Islands, where British naturalist Charles Darwin conceived his theory of evolution, gets 23.21 percent votes, making it to the top five most emerging destinations of 2011. Galapagos Islands around the equator in the Pacific Ocean is known for its rich wildlife. Tourist activities on these islands feature snorkeling, kayaking, hiking, wildlife viewing, mountain biking, horseback riding, scuba diving and camping.

Tourists are seen on a boat tour, a popular tourist activity in Tasman Lake, southeast of Christchurch, in New Zealand.

The country's vast landscapes, magnificent shoreline, glacial mountains, lakes and more offer one of the most wildest travel experiences, varying across cycling funs, underwater adventures, mountain biking, trekking and the like.

The famous Twelve Apostles at the Great Ocean Road, Australia.

An exclave U.S. state located at the northwest end of North America, Alaska charms visitors with its bountiful lakes (over three million), strikingly beautiful landscapes, mighty glaciers, the tall Mt. Mckinley, which is the highest peak in Alaska and in all of North America, the longest coast line in the U.S. and more. Alaska has a wide cover of glacier ice and about half of the world’s glaciers are present in Alaska, making it an ideal place to have expeditions.

With many active volcanoes, adventurous trails on mountains, rich wild life, rail roads and magnificent glaciers, Alaska has plenty to offer for adventure travelers.

In picture: The Blue Lake in Alaska.

A family of elephants walk at dawn in Amboseli National Park in southeast Kenya near mount Kilimanjaro.

The East African country is famous for varied wildlife and a wide forest cover. It's no wonder why wildlife safari is the most sought-after activity in an adventure trip to Kenya. Other attraction is hot air balloon ride over the forest reserves.

Botswana in Africa is an upcoming destination attracting tourists to its rich wildlife and adventure travel experience. Chobe National Park is a major tourist destination in Botswana offering numerous safari adventures. It has one of the highest densities of elephant on the planet - so many that they are gradually turning to forest to savannah. Botswana scores 17.30 percent votes.

Chobe National Park is a major tourist destination in Botswana offering numerous safari adventures.

Peru might be famous for Machu Picchu ruins, but also holds a host of adventurous trails for tourists. Cycling, trekking, climbing, hiking, camping and more such activities in the valley of Peruvian Andes Mountains attract adventure seekers.

In picture: An Andean man blows a flute next to terraces at the archaeological site of Pisac in Cuzco in Peru.

Rocky Mountain National Park, Northern Colorado shown in this photo.