About
Who We Are
Adventuretours, Inc., Action Trav’lers, began as a recess pastime of Robert Winter III and Lucian Holtzendorff in junior high, creating stories of large self-contained buses that would take kids all over the world. Several years later, the dream became a reality.
The group began in 1962 as college students Winter and Holtzendorff, along with 2 other fellows, took a camping trip in a Volkswagon bus to Mexico. The next summer, a few more guys wanted to go. This became an annual event and each summer, the group added more travelers, until finally in 1968, Winter and Holtzendorff decided an alternative means of transportation was needed.
The Lowndes County Board of Education was so impressed by the group’s plans, that they sold an old school bus for one dollar to Mexitour ’68, the now official name of the group. Members, ages 12-21, began the work of converting the bus into a camper, complete with a kitchen, bathroom, shower, television, telephone/intercom system, and bunks for 22. The bus was christened “El Paisano” and that summer they headed for the border. The entire bus construction and trip was captured in a full-length color movie, which was filmed by Winter and Holtzendorff and later transferred to video.
The success of the Mexitour ’68 caused an increase in membership. Short weekend trips were taken to nearby areas. In February of 1969, the name Adventuretours was born and it became a non-profit travel organization for youth, whose motto was “We believe that constructive activity builds character and confidence in youth…travel is but a reward.”
Along with the success of the new club, came the necessity of another bus for Mexitour ’69. A diesel bus was purchased from Trailways in Miami. Winter, Holtzendorff, and a new staff member, Rick Martin, along with many other members, began the renovation of the new bus. Bunks and storage drawers were built in the back section of the bus, along with a concession stand. The lower luggage compartments were used to store the kitchen and camping equipment. In the summer of 1969, “El Paisano” and the new diesel, “Ferdinand,” took two trips to Mexico, involving over 80 boys.
1970 was a big year for Adventuretours. Women chaperones and girls were invited to go on the trips and quickly went to work putting out the newsletter and working on the bus and trips. Membership continued to increase, again calling for the addition of yet another bus. A total solar eclipse was to occur in Lowndes County in March, and Winter came up with the idea of making “Solar Viewers” to sell to raise money for the bus. To make the 10,000 viewers, one and a half miles of black and white 70mm film was bought, processed, and packaged by members. Enough money was raised for the down payment for “Solar Express,” which was bought in March, converted, and was ready for travel that summer. In Mexico that summer, a long-lasting friendship with the people of San Luis Potosi began with the meeting of the Ruiz family. This meeting subsequently resulted in a student exchange program (from 1975 to 2016) bringing close to 200 students from Mexican, Russia, Ukraine, and several other European countries to Valdosta to study, several of whom are now U.S. citizens.
Other firsts for the club in 1970 were its first Westerntour, which visited many of America’s national parks and attractions in that area, and Canadatour, which was the first co-ed summer trip. On the Westerntour, problems occurred with the “Adventuretours” sounding too commercial, so the trustees changed the name of the club to Action Trav’lers, with Adventuretours, Inc. remaining the corporate name.
Action Trav’lers shop became a place where totally unskilled youth could learn to do many aspects of al kinds of work necessary for conversion and up-keep of the buses. By 1971, there were nearly 400 members. Membership continued to grow, causing an increase in the number of trips taken. Soon, a major part of North America was being covered by Action Trav’lers.
Each year the club tried to improve on ways of camping. Sleeping arrangements went from tarpaulins stretched out from the side of the bus, with army cots, to a huge circus-like tent with air mattresses, to finally the most effective, an air-building with foam pads. The kitchens were also improved on each year with better storage and cooking units, and interior designs on both buses were altered.
In 1973, 6 major summer trips were run. Due to the completion of the new Valdosta High School, the old building on Williams Street was now vacant. Action Trav'lers (along with Arts, Incorporated) moved in and set up operation in the fall of l973. There was now much more space to store equipment and conduct meetings of the newly formed "Travel Team." This was a group of youngsters whose dues paid for a trip per month and the same members traveled together on many Minitours around Georgia and Florida, with Disney World being the most visited.
In 1974, another larger bus, abandoned by a band, was bought for the price of repaired and converted in the same manner as the others. A Friendshiptour, with 12 Georgians and 12 Mexicans, toured the Western U.S. and part of Mexico that summer.
The regular Mexitour and college trip headed south in the summer of l975, the first one bringing back several Mexican Action Trav'lers who accompanied the Washington/New York trip.
l976 was the first year since l962 that a Mexitour was not run. The emphasis that year was the Original 13 Colonies Tour, covering those first American states, as well as Montreal and Toronto, Canada.
Disaster struck the club in November of l977. Much of the old Valdosta High School building, except where Action Trav'lers had most of their equipment stored, was destroyed by fire. The club then moved operations back to Winter's residence where it remained.
Mexitours were run from 1978 to l98l. Several other minitours were run in between, but not nearly as many as in the past (which at times, went twice a month all during the school year.) In l978 and l984 a Washington/ New York trips were run.
Several setbacks occurred in the years to come; the loss of “Solar” in an accident and major engine problems caused the sale of “Ferd.” After 1978, the club ran less and less trips, and finally, in 1984, it was forced to sell the last bus.
It has been estimated that Adventuretours, from 1962 to 1984, has covered over 200,000 miles just on the summer trips, covering a great deal of North America, with over 1000 young people…those numbers don’t include the hundreds of kids who traveled on hundreds of “Minitours” taken during the school year. Working on the buses and traveling on all of these trips, young people learned how to work as a team, manage their money, and to do many chores they never would have thought of doing… painting buses, carpentry, engine repair, cooking, setting up huge tents, metal work, maintenance, and many other jobs that come with maintaining busses and running a trip with 30 people. Almost everyone came away with something that stayed with them into adulthood.
The club has even been immortalized in a cartoon strip created by the late Whiz Holland, founder of Holland Flying Service. The comic strip was a combination of many things that happened in the club’s early history incorporated to tell the story of the Action Trav’lers.
The Adventuretour corporation has maintained its non-profit status throughout the years. In 1975, Adventuretours also added on the sponsoring of exchange students from Mexico and many other countries.