Eco Holidays

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 Jan 25

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Is it ethical to travel to countries that allow paying tourists the right to shoot large game?  Or should you avoid them?

With the report in the Sunday Times that people are again being invited in large numbers to shoot wild animals in Africa - including whole families of elephants – should you support their country with tourism or avoid them all together?

Apparently Zimbabwe is trying to cull huge numbers of it’s elephant population, and South Africa is offering lion kills to foreign tourists.

Obviously, it is unfathomable to me why anyone would want to kill any healthy animals anyway – let alone pay large sums of money to do so. And if I had good reason to end the life of an animal, I certainly wouldn’t want to pose on top of it for a photo!

Why Hunting?
They can reason that some animal populations can be a danger to local communities and need to be ‘controlled’ but there are far more humane and tourism-friendly approaches. Shooting them has to be a final option – but allowing inexperienced gun-toters to take on the job is surely a way of saying that ‘it doesn’t matter if they suffer – we just want them dead’.

I know that if my cat needed to be put to sleep – I could probably get some local man to whack it a few times over the head with a large stick for virtually no cost. However, I would rather leave it in the hands of a professional veterinarian – even if it costs me a considerable amount of money.

But, I suppose using Zimbabwe as an example isn’t the best, as at the moment they apparently don’t even care about their human population – let alone their animals!

However, South African Hunting Groups should know better. They know that this is a very controversial area, but they still continue to arrange hunting parties – arguing that the money raised is ploughed back into the community and into wildlife conservation.

Regardless of whether it is or not, should we as tourists make a stand and decide to go to other countries for our safari’s and feed our money into their economy instead? Or, should we let them see that what they are killing is worth more to them alive in their own country?

Is it that easy?
Hunters normally pay between £5000-£15,000 to kill an animal so it is a very lucrative business to compete with. This means that at least 6 people need to visit the same reserve paying around £2500 each for a short safari to match the incoming amount. But the actual profits don’t match up.

To drive a jeep of 6 hunters into the park, feed them lunch, then whisk them off home takes less than a day. This totals between £35,000 and £90,000 for a day depending on what they are killing – and the only overheads are 2 peoples wages, fuel, bullets and lunch.

To gain the same amount of total funds per day from sight-seeing tourists would mean dividing up their 3 day safari – so around £833 a day each for the same trip – minus the bullets obviously. In addition, the safari would include accommodation as well, so take off the odd £33 as a token cost.

So, the safari only needs between 44 and 112 people in each jeep to match the hunters profits! It’s not going to happen, is it?

Without getting petty about the figures, you are going to need a huge number of animal-loving tourists to match a jeep load of hunters.

What Can We Do?
Lets assume that these ‘trophy’ animals are part of a large plan to save other species in the area as many hunters claim. Can we still justify this? And can they prove where their money helps?

Obviously, each ‘hunt’ should be taken on a case-by-case basis and large charities and organisations will be able to see the results of their ‘claims’. Therefore, if you are planning to travel to a country in Africa that offers hunting – check with animal charities and organisations in that region before booking to find out current activities and what you can best do to help out.

Don’t forget that many of the local communities in these countries may not agree with the hunting either – and many hunting parties are not run by locals or happen on completely the other side of the country. However, you could be affecting individual livelihoods and the future of their families by not visiting.

Of course, if you are going to ‘boycott’ a country, there is no point doing so unless you let someone know your reasons – and local charities can help you to direct your correspondence down the best path for maximum effect.

Make sure you don’t miss out on one of the worlds greatest wildlife adventures because of a selfish few. Pick yourself an eco holiday that will actually leave your destination better off for your visit, and feel great about your contribution.