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Information: Providing suitable, relevant information for our customers; to help them to gain a wider understanding of our style of tourism that focuses on learning, genuine interaction with the local communities, reciprocity and cultural exchange processes. To be aware of the potential impact of tourism on the local society, culture and environment, and to behave and dress appropriately with a respect and appreciation for local customs, mores and traditions and a respect for the ecology of areas visited. Our guides and leaders thus facilitate communication of our values to both travellers and local communities, educating them in sustainable tourism practices.
Group Sizes: By limiting groups to small sizes we aim to reduce the impact on both local communities and the environment whilst allowing for greater genuine interaction with said communities. It also results in a higher guide/customer ratio thus greater facility for supervision and individual assistance and allows us to use smaller hotels and restaurants and employ the services of more genuinely ‘local’ operators perhaps not otherwise well equipped for larger groups.
Destinations: We combine the well known tourist sites with many off-the-beaten-track, rarely visited destinations thus diverting tourist revenue and contact with responsible tourism into areas not usually benefiting as well as providing a more authentic view of the region visited.
Local Products: As much as possible we aim to employ local personnel, (guides, drivers, agents etc), use local restaurants and smaller privately owned accommodation. Customers are also encouraged to buy and use local products and services as much as possible in order to support and stimulate the local economy. They are also advised against buying prohibited items and products made from parts of wild animals or plants.
Local Awareness: By explaining our methods and the reasons behind them local agents, guides and hotels are encouraged by us to adopt further responsible tourism practices themselves and guides and drivers are provided with additional training in this respect. We carefully select the places we visit to ensure that none are involved in exploitative practices of people or animals.
In addition, some of the specific initiatives for this tour include the following: We work closely with The Penang Heritage Trust to organize our tour of some of the sites of Chinatown. The Heritage Trust provides a sensitive look at the culture and the history of the region. By our continued patronage of the service we contribute to the upkeep of the organization, which helps preserve the country's culture and educates its visitors to understand the genuine Penang.
For our two-day expedition into the little known Belum Forest Reserve, we are guided through the jungle by indigenous tribes-people known as the Orang-Asli. Their intimate knowledge of the jungle makes for perfect guidance, while allowing our passengers to have a fuller understanding of the ethnic make-up of the region.
We fully support the Rainforest Discovery Centre in Sepilok by sending our guests there for a visit. The centre’s primary function is to create public awareness and appreciation of the importance of conserving forests, as well as the sustainable use of forest resources. This is one of the projects developed by the Sabah Forestry Department. The minimal entrance fee paid helps in funding the centre.
We also visit and contribute to Sepilok Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre, considered to be the largest orang-utan rehab sanctuary in the world. The entrance fee our guests pay goes to the badly needed fund to run this huge operation of saving and rehabilitating orphaned and confiscated orang-utans, in the hope that one day every single one of them be released to the wild. Even sun bears, gibbons, Sumatran rhinos and elephants get treated here.
The Kinabatangan Nature Lodge in Bilit, Sabah, as part of their ongoing contribution to the environment, is possibly the only lodge in Asia to use FSC-standard certified timber (recycled wood) for building their facilities! (FSC is Forest Stewardship Council). The lodge have environmentally aware and environmentally friendly policies on amongst other things, waste disposal, reusable materials, involvement of the local community and care for the environment. They are also a partner of the ‘Corridor Of Life’ vision project, brainchild of the WWF-Malaysia. This project, formulated towards sustainable development, addresses the issues of reforestation, protection and management of the lower Kinabatangan (among their chosen locations). The lodge is also very actively involved in and committed to raising funds for the Voluntary Conservation Levy to establish fund to finance the cost of protecting and reforesting the area. They are also in the process of setting up a Grey-water Project to use recycled bath water for gardening. In our continual support for all these endeavours, we are sending clients there.
In the Danum Valley Conservation Area we use a very comfortable eco lodge there. They limit guest number to 60 only at a time in their attempt to limit the effect of humans to the natural surrounding. They have environment-friendly reminders in place. They collaborate with remote local schools and villages and offer guests the opportunity to interact with the local people and contribute, in any form, to their charitable community projects.
We stay at, and support, the Sabah Tea Plantation and learn about it’s organic, pesticide-free tea production. We are happy to use their accommodation, restaurant and guides as well as educating our travellers as to the methods of producing organic tea.
We participate in tree replanting scheme in the Kinabatangan River. Deforestation due to the rapid recent increase in planting palm trees for oil has meant that many of the natural flora is being destroyed along with wildlife habitats of more than just the orangutans. Tree planting is very labour intensive and the locals need all the help they can get, so tour participants dig a hole and plant a sapling.
Use of local transport (bus) for most part of the tour. The production of the tour is assisted by a small, locally based operator and using native Sabah guides only.
We have included destinations not part of standard itineraries such as Danum Valley. In this way we spread responsible tourism into areas which do not get much income from tourism or awareness of responsible tourism practices.
This family-run company started in 1999 after the director, Mark, spent many years researching guide books in Asia and decided he could put together more exciting itineraries. His passion for the diversity and character of Asia is reflected in the unique, locally-owned places that the tours visit and travel groups are kept small so that closer interaction with their hosts is possible. Although Mark could happily survive for weeks on jam sandwiches while sleeping under the stars, he realises not all customers want this and goes out of his way to ensure all facilities used are pleasantly comfortable, clean, warm and welcoming.
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