Tel. +44 (0)1273 600030 (UK)
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One of the main factors in choosing the location for our holidays is the community in which we stay, where traditional ways of life survive, although they are often on the retreat. Our intention is to bring new income and impetus to the area – without overwhelming it! Our guests enjoy learning about the environment and culture, and the locals benefit both economically, and from the knowledge that their way of life is valued. Our presence brings valuable sustainable tourism to the local inhabitants of this little-known area. We are working closely with the enterprising former mayor of Artenara, Señor José-Antonio Rodriguez Rodriguez, to encourage people into the region to appreciate its unique beauty.
We are also working with the current mayor to apply pressure on the island’s parks service to try to repair a footpath to one of the most extraordinary, and currently "lost" aboriginal caves on the island.
The Gran Canarians have a high awareness of environmental responsibility, especially concerning one of their scarcest resources: water. Our Handbook explains this and advises on how to use water responsibly, to conserve energy and recycle waste on the island. One of the best ways in which we do this is by living traditionally as the locals do; in caves hewn out of the soft volcanic rock. These dwellings are extremely energy efficient, being warm in the winter and cool in the summer. The water in our accommodation is solar-heated too.
We support the village shop and bar/restaurants in the isolated village of Artenara by purchasing the ingredients for the packed-lunches supplied on our 'Original' trips, and dining in the evening on their delicious locally sourced produce.
The interior of Gran Canaria has been declared a World Biosphere Reserve due to the richness of its flora and fauna and its varied landscapes. There are over 100 species of plant which grow only on Gran Canaria and the island has become a unique reference point for botanists worldwide. For those wishing a deeper level of understanding of the importance of the local flora, we recommend a visit to the island’s fascinating Botanical Gardens.
We encourage visits to Tejeda's several fascinating museums describing the history of the local people and the region, and of the traditional life of a Gran Canarian peasant. And finally, we thoroughly recommend supporting local enterprise by sampling the award-winning wines produced by our host!
All our car hire is carbon-offset through a scheme in place with the Carbon Neutral Company. Our brochure production and distribution is also carbon offset through a similar scheme, and we offer all our clients the opportunity to offset the carbon emissions caused by their flights too. Our brochure and all other literature and correspondence uses recycled paper, and we operate a rigorous recycling and energy saving policy both at our UK office and all our destinations, as well as encouraging our local suppliers to do the same.
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!
