Gliding

Why: Because it's as far from middle seats, salted peanuts, and surly flight attendants as you can get in the sky

What to Expect: Five eight-hour days begin with seminars on gliding fundamentals and safety procedures, followed by as many as five hours in the air with your hands on the controls of a Grob 103 glider. Under the guidance of an instructor, learn how to seek out the air currents that will lift your superlight aircraft into the sky without the help of an engine. Soar past New Zealand's Southern Alps, glide from Mount Cook to Milford Sound, or cross the South Island coast-to-coast. After a day of riding the wind, debrief over beers with other students as well as experienced pilots who come to the school to rent gliders for personal use. Accommodations in furnished airfield chalets (complete with great views and glider parking) are included.

Where: Gavin Wills's Mountain Soaring School, Omarama, New Zealand: Strong thermal air above this small hamlet offers some of the best gliding conditions. From here, record-setting pilots have soared several hundred miles at a time along the Kiwi Southern Alps.

Basics
Phone: 64-3-438-9555
Web: glideomarama.com
Cost: $3,810, including lodging

Sailing

Why: You've always dreamed about sailing to a secluded island and dropping anchor

What to Expect: It's definitely a working vacation, albeit one aboard a luxury sailing yacht plying the turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Hands-on bareboat instruction includes at least 55 hours over the course of the seven-day trip and detailed lessons on the mechanics of sailing as well as navigation. You'll stay in one of three well-appointed staterooms, dine on great meals prepared by the crew, party at famous beaches, and snorkel the wreck of the Rhône, a schooner that went down more than a century ago. At the end of the course, you'll have your American Sailing Association bareboat-chartering certification, which means you can act as skipper or crew of a 30- to 50-foot sailboat during the day, in coastal waters.

Where: Blue Water Sailing School, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands: For serious sailors, these waters are the stuff of dreams. You'll be retracing the nautical paths of swashbuckling buccaneers with stops in Tortola and St. John, among other islands.

Basics
Phone: 954-763-8464
Web: bwss.com
Cost: $1,650, including onboard lodging and most meals

Tango Dancing

Why: Because, as Albert Einstein said, "dancers are the athletes of God"