Photography holiday in Morocco
Typically you will be sharing your experiences with between 4-20 like minded travellers (depending on the trip, operator and how many others are booked on the trip) and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends it's good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting new people as well as experiencing new cultures.
How this holiday makes a difference
Environment
Any flights taken by the professional photographer in the conjunction with this trip are carbon balanced, and we encourage passengers to carbon balance their own flights through a scheme offered by our ground operator. Our ground operator is seeking to be carbon neutral in 2010, which further minimises our effect on the environment.
We maintain a home office to minimise pollution from commuting and heating. We also have a comprehensive recycling policy and use energy efficient devices and practices to minimise our effect on the environment. All papers, plastic and electronic devices which can be recycled locally are recycled through our local council. We have a policy to minimise printing – especially for colour printing of photographs which uses a considerable amount of harmful inks. We favour low voltage light sources and actively switch these off when not in use. We also use individual switching to allow computer and other peripherals to be disconnected when not in use. All of our tour information and trip notes are supplied digitally, and we don't have a paper brochure.
As an comprehensive adopter of digital photography we have drastically cut the pollution associated with film manufacture, processing and printing.
Community
The professional travel photographer who will be accompanying the trip, is very passionate about the idea that photographers should travel sensitively and should have a positive effect on the places that they travel in. Passengers on this trip are encouraged to always act with respect for people, places, religions and cultures that they wish to photograph and especially to never 'steal' pictures. They are actively instructed in ways that they can interact with local people - and seek permission for photographs, which results in much more sympathetic picture, and a much better experience for all concerned. As we will be visiting many religious places information will be supplied as to how we can avoid causing any offence.
Unlike a lot of photography trips, we have relatively small numbers with a maximum of 12 people, which means that we can avoid swamping the people and the places that we encounter. There are times when these numbers will be divided, to further minimise our effect on locals, and to promote more positive interactions. The small group size also minimises our effect on the environment we travel through.
All of our land arrangements are provided by an operator who have a policy of using local guides, accommodation, and travel operators wherever possible. Although a professional photographer accompanies the tour, we also have a local leader for the entire trip, and sometimes employ a local guide to show us a particular place. This means that we can be sure of contributing to the local economy and providing work and support for local people. Where private transport is used, it is supplied by a local operator to give employment to local people and boost the local economy. We also support the local economies by visiting local restaurants, business and gift shops.
We have a couple of options for visiting local NGO projects on this trip. While in Midelt we'll visit Kasbah Myriam, a carpet and embroidery workshop run by Franciscan nuns with the aim of providing sustainable employment and healthcare to local Berber women. The wares they produce are beautiful and of high quality, so it's the perfect place to buy a memorable souvenir. You can also donate clothes to the women at Kasbah Myriem during your visit. Your leader will help organise this for you.
In Ouarzazate, you'll be able to visit the Handicapped Project Horizon, an association that seeks to improve the livelihoods of disadvantaged people in regional Morocco.
While on the trip you'll meet plenty of local people, and while in Ait Benhaddou you'll have the option to enjoy a meal in a local family's house. Spending a night with these friendly locals will give you a better understanding of the way of life for a normal rural Moroccan family. You'll also have some fun by learning how to make Morocco's most famous dish, couscous!
Through our ground operator we support an independently run charity foundation which aims to put something back to the places we travel in, and supports a number of local charities and projects. Passengers are encouraged to support this foundation.
Passengers are given comprehensive information through the trip notes and the initial group meeting about the social and environmental issues about their trip. They are informed about the cultural and religious issues and how to avoid causing offence. This includes dress codes and interactions with local people as well as how to approach the religious places we visit. They are also informed about how to minimise the environmental impact of their trip, by avoiding plastic bags and minimising the use of bottled water.
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