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Ghana holidays, eco lodge with village tour

COUNTRY:
Ghana
LOCATION:
Dzita Village, Volta Region
PRICE:
From £475 - £550 (10 days) excluding flights
MORE INFO:
From £550 for one person. Price is based on two people sharing a room. From £95 per night per room. Price is for full board and includes the cost of one night in Accra, all airport transfers, all accommodation, all activities and all meals.
VOUCHERS:
Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday
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Ghana holidays, eco lodge with village tour

Ghana holidays, eco lodge with village tour

How this holiday makes a difference

Environment

- We are trying to protect the local remaining wildlife. We have implemented turtle patrols on the beaches for the last 3 years, and pay to release captured turtles. We also protect any other captured wild animals we find and either protect the animals permanently or re-release them into the wild.
- We inform our guests as to our wildlife efforts and encourage them to participate in and support our projects.
- Wildlife education. We work with the local chiefs and opinion leaders to persuade local people to protect and conserve local wildlife.
- We are planting trees in the area.
- We are working with the Development Groups in each of the villages to provide public toilets and clean water points for the community.
- In our second phase of building we are incorporating rainwater collection and a grey water recycling system. We will move to solar and wind generated electricity when we can afford the capital investment.
- All the accommodation is build out of mud blocks bought from local families. They are cooled by the sea breeze and fans rather than air conditioning.
- Our gardens are organic and we encourage a wide range of wildlife (as our most effective method of insect control).
- We compost all organic matter from the kitchens and from the gardens.
- We recycle all glass and plastic bottles.
- We have started a scheme to offset carbon by planting trees. This also provides local employment and protects the environment. In time the trees become a source of wealth for the community. If you wish to offset the carbon from your flight we can plant trees for you at a cost of £1 a tree. This will pay for the planting, manure, watering and protection for the first 2 years of the trees life until it is established.

Community

The lodge has been specifically built to enable people to get to know Africa, and to help improve life in the local community. We do this by:
- Providing employment. All the staff are from Ghana. We employ 32 people at the moment. All of them receive extensive training.
- We make a contribution to the local people for all our trips into the community. We ensure that half the cost of the tours is paid to the local participants.
- For the last 5 years we have been raising money to help raise standards in the 3 local schools by improving the school facilities. We have raised and donated £3000 to the local schools over the last 5 years.
- We are working with the chiefs to provide school clothes and equipment for children whose families cannot afford it. We have donated £750 to this fund over the last 3 years.
- We have been asked to build a clinic by the local community. So far we have bought the land and have started making blocks to build with. We have donated £2000 to this project over the last 2 years.
- We source everything possible locally in an effort to contribute into the local economy. All the services, such as electricians, builders, etc, are provided by local people.

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Ghana holidays, eco lodge with village tour

Reviewed 09 Jan 2012 by Federica Marchesi5 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


I believe that being in Africa brought out the best of me, and definitely taught me humility and what it means "being the different one". The hospitality of people, in spite of their limited resources, the mentality of sharing, the smiles, the friendly attitude, I enjoyed all of this thoroughly. I don't think I would have been able to have such an interaction and learn so much from the local people had it not been for the operator and the way it is structured.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


An exceptional place - clean, functional, safe, and very pretty, and the location is breathtaking - the staff is very caring and helpful, the chef's food delicious, and most of all I want to say that Kerry does an outstanding job as a manager. I found that all activities were very interesting, and the opportunity to be such a part of the local community was unique. Also, I should mention that while I love people and I thoroughly enjoyed all the activities, I am also someone who likes to hide away with a book from time to time, and there are certainly plenty of places to do that!

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


The local community was an integral part of life, and definitely has a great benefit from the operations. The structure is completely environmentally friendly, but more than that, the people there actively engage in activities that protect and preserve the environment (protection of turtles, cleaning the local beaches, etc.).

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


I have lived in many countries and traveled in many more, but this trip to Ghana
has been one of the (if not THE) best experience in my life, and a huge reason
has been because of the operator.

Reviewed 09 Jan 2012 by Rachel Freeman4 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


There were so many memorable aspects to the holiday it is difficult to pick one! We enjoyed the relaxed pace and the fact that the operator was so well integrated into the village that we could meet with and interact with locals easily and learn and see so many new and different things.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


Bring a camera and don't run by strict time keeping - and try our some of the excursions on offer. Don't expect "traditional" luxury - the rooms are nice and spacious - but cold water only - (which is not a problem as the weather is hot and therefore the cold water is welcomed!) The luxury is being right on the beach, hearing the ocean, having friendly staff to work with and changing pace and learning about new things - if one wishes!

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Definitely feel that the holiday benefitted locals as money was spent buying local products and/or services and items were brought to the local school; usually people staying can help out in a voluntary project - but there was not much going on during the holiday time between Christmas and New Year to do any volunteerism - it was interesting to hear about the projects - including compost toilets. Low impact as minimal energy used in terms of only a fan and no AC in rooms, no hot water to heat - eco bulbs used in most places, laundry dried in the sun, energy from generator.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


It was a superb experience.

Reviewed 05 Jan 2012 by Karen Sieverkropp4 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


The amazing amount of culture I was able to see during my short 1 week stay. The staff at the lodge took us to many markets, boat trips, village walks etc. Also the miles of endless pristine beach in front of the lodge. Oh, and seeing the leather back turtle lay eggs! ...and the drumming lessons.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


The weather is hot day and night, and you will probably want to swim in the Lagoon and Beach often - Pack accordingly.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Yes. Definately. The Lodge is working hard to teach better environmental practices to the community and has no doubt saved many of the leather back turtles with their beach patrol program. The lodge uses local staff, markets, and trades people within the community.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


Very Good. Everything was as promised, pickup/return to airport, tours, great food, and helpful staff,well managed lodge - reasonable price. Highly recommend.

Reviewed 31 Jul 2010 by Amy Walter5 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


It's hard to name just one thing, because I don't think I'll ever forget the memories! I got such a warm welcome on arrival to the lodge from all the staff, children and animals. We went to many places of local interest including the markets, the villages, school sports day, the slave fort, a weaving shop where we saw people using the traditional looms, the arts and craft market in Accra, a river trip on a long boat with a drumming troupe, a local funeral (a lot more fun than it sounds!) and to people's homes.

No way could I have seen all that on my own and it was such a privilege to see so much of the local community, even though there is no way you can really blend in if you don't look Ghanaian, because wherever you go people will be pointing and waving at you and shouting 'welcome!' I was travelling alone and I didn't feel lonely because the staff and other guests were very friendly, so I was never on my own. I would recommend it for families, people travelling alone, or people travelling in groups. They are very accommodating and can cater to different needs including dietary requirements.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


Be prepared for things to be different from back home, including the sense of time: when you are told something will happen today, it could mean tomorrow!

If you are a woman bring longer skirts and loose shorts to wear when not at the lodge, because it's considered rude to show above your knees. And every visitor should bring lots of mosquito repellent, sunscreen, and a torch. If you are able to bring any donations to the local school such as reading books, pens, etc, they will be very happy, as the resources are very basic.

If you volunteer in the local school as a teacher every weekday you can receive the holiday half price by contacting the tour operator, who wants to support volunteering projects in the local area. That's what I did (I am a teacher back home too), and I still had plenty of time to participate in all the trips and time to relax. The students are very hardworking and friendly and they want to help the teachers. I stayed for almost 3 weeks but would have liked to stay for longer. As a volunteer it would be hard to stay for less than 2 weeks as there wouldn't be time to get much done. The students loved having someone different as a teacher and the staff worked hard to make me feel welcome.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


All of the food they serve at the lodge is bought at the local markets and the lodge also supports local projects such as sea turtle rescue and sponsorship so that children can attend secondary school. There is very little waste/rubbish. All of the staff at the lodge are Ghanaians and whenever we visited anywhere, local people assisted us as tour guides.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


The lodge is so relaxing that you don't notice the time passing and it goes so fast! It's a great chance to get really involved with the local community and laid-back way of life. I've been home over a week now but the relaxed feeling hasn't worn off!

Reviewed 19 Jun 2010 by Alice McLuskie4 star rating

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?


My husband and I have travelled quite extensively in Africa and enjoyed the opportunity to visit an area unexposed to tourists. We particularly liked visiting the local markets and not being hassled to buy things. Also we were lucky enough to visit at the time of the Deba or homecoming (Easter Saturday). There was some wonderful dancing and drumming at the festival in the local village. A final memory will be swimming in the lagoon by moonlight.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?


Check out the side-effects of the different malaria tablets. Luckily the lodge is right on the coast, with an almost permanent in-shore wind, which keeps the mosquitoes at bay.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?


Yes: the lodge works with the local villages and schools.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?


We had a wonderful and memorable week. Our two daughters, aged 14 and 10, had a good introduction to sub-Saharan Africa and, I am sure, gained a better understanding of life in Ghana than they would have done if we had stayed in a Western hotel. The holiday was good value for money. There was something to do every day, if we wanted to, but also time to relax. The food was good, the staff were all extremely friendly and welcoming, the accomodation was basic but clean and comfortable. I would definitely recommend this holiday to others.
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Holiday Reviews

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!

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