El Salvador & Guatemala holiday

Through our commitment to responsible tourism we have developed a non-profit organization dedicated to making a positive difference in the lives of people and communities around the world through support of international charities, local organizations and community projects in the places that we visit on our tours.

Open Windows is a non-profit organization that provides educational opportunities for children in the community of San Miguel Dueñas in Guatemala. Programs offered by Open Windows are free and have supported over 1,500 children in the areas of literacy, computer skills, tutoring and art with priority given to those who have greater financial need. A scholarship program is offered to children who show great interest in learning and strong dedication to studying and for those in need of medical support, a health clinic is open free to the community twice each month.

There are no other libraries or computer centers in San Miguel Dueñas (not even the four local schools have either of these facilities). Open Windows, therefore, aims to improve the living conditions of the economically deprived children from in and around the town, by providing access to important educational resources through its services which the community has come to depend on.

In La Ceiba, Honduras Planeterra supports the following project:

The Adelante Foundation was created in response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Mitch, one of the most powerful hurricanes to hit Central America. Causing over 7000 deaths, destroying 80% of agriculture, and leaving nearly 20% of the population homeless (Honduras Institute of Tourism), Hurricane Mitch decimated what little capital and material resources rural towns had to begin with. In rural areas where Adelante works, sixty one percent of families live in extreme poverty surviving on less than $1 a day.

The Adelante Foundation is a non-profit organization that helps the poor to help themselves by offering short-term loans to women providing them with the capital needed to start their own small business ventures.

The majority of Adelante borrowers are women who work in groups of 4-6 to start up re-sale, service oriented and manufacturing businesses. These are small businesses that generally involve selling items such as clothes, toiletries and food, or offering services such as washing clothes and working as seamstresses. The women are also provided with educational workshops to help them develop basic business skills.