Eco Holidays

posted by Catherine on Apr 14

What makes an Eco Lodge an Eco Lodge?

Most people would reply: A log cabin in the middle of a rain-forest clearing, with huge verandas and a river nearby. It would run on solar power and grow all it’s own food on-site. No doubt, monkeys and other animals would be wandering around outside and the local hosts would be teaching you the lingo!

However, we need to be a bit more realistic about what eco accommodation is, and where it is can make all the difference. Not only will the country you are heading to change the variables – but in what setting it is in can also alter the way it can be compared to other ‘eco’ properties.

For example, if the hotel is crammed in a busy town center, it cannot change its percentage land use or have extensive areas for wildlife to live and breed. However, if it is set within acres of rain-forest it can afford to have vast areas ‘untouched by development’.

In addition, if it is an existing accommodation being transformed into a more eco-friendly location it can only do so much with what it has – as demolishing it and rebuilding might be more wasteful than just modifying what it has! However, a new development has an empty canvas – so it can immediately have a beneficial impact on the environment.

However, is a new build resort that eco-friendly in the first place? Did it need to even be built when that land could have been left un-developed and a brown-field site used instead?

So many factors…….

Where to start:
I think you can only really set your own standards depending on the type of accommodation and the location you are hoping to travel to.

If you are visiting a city, then your expectations will need to be reined in and comparisons can only be made with other city accommodations – also less individual travel as the airport/bus station will be close.

However, if you want isolation and low impact countryside living, then development, alternative power, local impact and wildlife disruption need to enter the equation! And don’t forget the distance you have to travel on top of your international flight or bus journey to get to the middle of nowhere…..

You also need to decide whether the impact of your journey there is worth all the fuss – for example if you were to camp nearby to your home that would be a real ‘eco holiday’ (less travel, less resources, less impact) – but it really wouldn’t be an adventure.

However, if you want to impact positively on distant communities and experience different cultures then you must breach the whole ‘carbon emissions’ dilemma of getting there in the first place!

Comparisons:
Basically, whenever searching for accommodation for your eco holidays, make sure you take a good look at whats out there before booking.

Don’t be too hard on yourself to find the ultimate eco destination otherwise you could be taking all the fun out of your trip! However, make sure you set your lowest factors before searching (for example – no all inclusive packages or no international hotel chains, etc) and go upwards from there.

Making your impact there can be just as important. If you go to a city and select an eco hotel and then hire a car and eat in Burger King then why take ages choosing yourself an eco hotel?

At the other end – you could book yourself into a hotel that does the basic eco activities and then make your actions more ‘green’ For example you could stay longer, volunteer within the community, shop ethically, eat locally with local establishments, don’t drop litter or leave waste and use resources sensibly – more than making up for your accommodation using mains electricity.

The End Result:
Don’t forget that it is a holiday after all – so if you aren’t going to enjoy yourself – there is no point in going.

If the most eco friendly hotel isn’t in the place you wanted to go then you need to make a choice. If the hotel you love has everything you want and need but doesn’t recycle – again, the choice is yours.

I’m sure your house back home isn’t the most responsible house in the world – but you have done your best with what you have and what you think is important. Your hosts may have done the same.

Also – should you only support those companies already offering the best eco solutions or should you help fund those companies still trying to achieve them? Your money as a guest can make all the difference to a growing firm improving the whole area not just over-booking the one resort.

Don’t stress about it to much – vacations are for enjoying!
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posted by Catherine on Mar 27

This longer-term volunteer project could be the opportunity of a lifetime!!

There are many short-term opportunities out there for volunteering and fit with most peoples work schedule - but some of the longer-term options will very likely change your life!

Take the following volunteer placement as an example: 12 weeks working in a Safari Lodge in Africa for about the same amount of money (rent, bills and food) that you would be spending back home!

As with all volunteer packages it doesn’t include international flights or other travel arrangements, but everything else while you are there is included.

What Do I Do There?
Well, you will be helping to run the lodge, so it will include general maintenance, working with the guests, helping the local community and enjoying the wildlife of course!  There will be many an opportunity to get close to the wildlife here.

The company involved will plan to speak with you at length before you go so that you are matched up with the best location for your abilities, skills and to a certain extent your preferences.

Naturally, they will not want to waste their time and money and your time and skills by putting you in a location that is beyond your ability or in a country you didn’t want to visit!

And you certainly won’t perform at your best if you really aren’t happy sleeping in a tent and using an outdoor shower! All options are considered carefully to make the best of your time and to get the most out of your trip.

What Else?
The package comes with training in the UK before you leave and 24 hour support the whole time you are away. You even get a small salary to spend whilst you are abroad.  All food and lodgings are included as is on-site training.

All the camps featured are eco-friendly and strive to be responsible locations – for example using local resources and natural energy. These eco-credentials are a integral part of the camp and your experiences and training will allow you to pass on your knowledge and enthusiasm to all the guests that visit during your stay!

Education is a very important part of this trip.

You may also be required to work alongside nature and wildlife teams in removing snares and rehabilitating injured and orphaned animals – which would of course be amazing! 

Many sites also have strong links with local communities, so if this is an area you are interested in or have the skills to teach in your skill set, then this could become the main focus of your trip here.

Getting There & Away:
Depending on the time and season of your eco adventure, they can also offer international travel options, or allow you to make your stop at your safari lodge as part of a larger or worldwide trip.

Why not travel the length of Africa by overland tour bus to get to your lodge and then head down to The Cape afterwards? Or stop-over in Africa as part of your round-the-world journey from India or Australia on your way back home?

The Details:
Holiday Details: Responsible Travel act as the agent
Countries: Botswana, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Mozambique and Malawi.
Costs: from £2400 (12 weeks) – depending on location and park fees

I am seriously considering this one myself!  What an experience, and what a story to tell……

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posted by Catherine on Dec 7

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I thought I would start off with an article about the basic things to look out for when booking your eco holidays and adventures.

Obviously there are extremes for the most eco friendly holidays out there, but I am just offering a few of the essentials that can make all the difference to the environment you are travelling to and the wildlife and people who you will be sharing it with.

1) Choose a destination you care about.
If you make sure that you are travelling to a destination that you know a lot about or want to explore for the first time, then you will be spending your well earned money supporting eco holidays in that area – ultimately making that people working in that destination treat tourism (and their environment) with care. 

It’s the whole demand circle – if loads of people want cheap sun and sand, then you get a Cancun (loads of high rise hotel blocks crammed onto a sandy peninsula).  If people demand (and pay a bit extra for) ecologically and environmentally friendly small destinations – then that is what they will supply.

2) Consider a recommended location.
Ideally, you would travel to a location that had been recommended by a friend or other trusted source.  Not only does this save the destination from having to advertise their location to thousands of potential holiday-makers, but it keeps the feeling friendly – and lets the staff and managers there that they are treating their customers with great customer service – so they will repeat that for your holiday, hoping that you too will pass on the good word.

3) Select your agent well.
If you are booking your eco holidays through an agent, make sure that they offer flexible packages and are not sending huge numbers of people to the same locations.

Most reputable tour operators will fly you scheduled to your destination, keeping travel groups to a limited few (no more than 12 really).  They will normally also offer an English-speaking guide or escort to be with your group at all times, and have everyone travel together on internal transfers.

Many specialists such as Audley Travel and the Kuoni Group can even offer individual travel, basically your group only throughout the trip.  They also offer a personal service for any extras that you may require, such as tailor-made specialist trips.

If you book an ‘eco-holiday’ with companies that normally offer package deals or cheap vacations, then the destination may well be only eco-friendly on paper.  Even if the hotel is in ‘the jungle’ and uses recycled rainwater and grows a lot of it’s own fruit – with 500 paying guests at a time running around the chlorinated pool with a fountain splashing down a rocky slope – it’s not actually an eco-friendly destination.

4) Contact your choices in advance.
If you have selected one or two locations that you like, make sure you contact the owners/managers in advance.  They should respond to your email, phone call or letter promptly and answer any questions you have.

Ideally, they would also offer you advice that they feel will make your vacation even better or your travel plans run more smoothly – even if you didn’t ask for it.  This shows that they have great experience with tourists and have found that certain things work and other things don’t, and they want your trip to visit them to run as smoothly as possible.

5) Go independent.
Make sure that the hotel you select is run independently and preferably by a company that is resident to the country your are visiting.  This way, your host will not only know more about the location and places of interest, but they will have made a network of other suppliers and local tour operators that they will recommend to you as necessary.

The money you spend in the resort will therefore go to benefit the local area and families as and when they are employed by guests or the hotel itself, but your money will not leave the country and fly back home before you as with many package destinations and all-inclusive resorts.

Although such destinations do employ local staff, they are not benefiting local people or the communities they are located in.

6) Research the location and resources of the Hotel.
Many companies like the attention that being ‘eco-friendly’ attracts, so make sure you check their credentials before you book with them.

Where are they located exactly, and does their building or complex fit into the environment well (are they all below the canopy level?, are they made of local materials? where does their sewage and litter all go?) 

Are they located close to the kind of environment you want, for example are they in a cloud forest, on a beach, in the mountains?  Don’t let the name of the lodge or hotel confuse you in this as destinations will often use key words to attract guests (such as monkey lodge, rolling waves hotel, canopy cottages), but could not actually offer that item – or are about an hour away from it….

Do they use all their own energy supplies, like solar panels, recycled river or rain water, composting toilets, limited lighting and wood burning stoves or bio-fuel?

Do they grow their own food supplies and farm animals?  If not, is all food from local suppliers?  If they offer specialist diets such as gluten-free alternatives etc, are these imported – if so do you personally pay for that privilege or does the hotel (and environment)? 

Do they ask you to take all your own litter away with you, or offer sensible alternatives to waste?

7) And finally – Is there anything you can offer them?
Not a necessary part of anyones holiday, but fun none the less. 

Has you hotel or lodge got a local school or project that you could help out with while you are there?  Could they link you up with an environmental group who are doing some work in the local area?  Are they associated with an educational establishment that you could offer your skills to or you could learn from?

If you are there becasue you love that location and that environment, then why not offer to help out and improve what’s already there – at no extra cost to you but of huge benefit to them.

Hope you have a great time!