Environment

Accommodation and Meals:
We spend 12 nights in a hotel, 1 night in a traditional yurt camp and 1 night on a sleeper train. All of our accommodation is predominantly locally owned and staffed, which is beneficial to surrounding communities. The yurt camp in the Jety Oguz gorge is also run by local people and uses very little electricity and water, so this is a reduction to our overall impact on the environment. Where meals are provided, fresh fruit, vegetables and meat are sourced at local farms and markets. Train-travel has long been a popular way of travelling around the ex-Soviet Union and so this is also a great experience and insight into a different side of Uzbek life. Where meals are provided, ingredients are locally sourced and free mealtimes are a great opportunity to support local cafes, restaurants and markets by trying some authentic cuisine. The market in Bukhara specialises in dried fruit, whilst in Kashgar there are several vendors selling dishes from homemade ice-cream, to roast lamb and steamed buns.

UK Office:
It all starts at home so we have first worked at reducing our carbon footprint in our UK Offices. Through energy conservation measures and recycling policies, we are proud to be actively reducing the waste produced and our impact on the environment. We support various projects all over the world to try and give something back to the places we visit.

Community

Local Craft and Culture:
In Kyrgyzstan we stop for lunch at a woman's association attached to a shop which sells traditional felt rugs and other crafts made by local women from surrounding villages. There is also the opportunity to experience local Dungan and Kyrgyz folklore (song, dance and poetry) organised by local teen-agers and to meet a local hunter who uses a Golden eagle. In China there are visits to earthenware workshops run by local families and to crafts-streets, where local tradespeople (bakers, blacksmiths, ironmongers, ice-cream makers, basket makers etc.) make and sell their wares. Whilst in Fergana, Uzbekistan, there is a visit to a local ceramic workshop and a local silk factory. Throughout the journey there are also opportunities to eat dinner with local families in their homes which might be the most valuable cultural experience on offer. The group can sample local, home-cooked food and learn about Uzbek, Dungan, Kazakh and Kyrgyz families and their different cultures.

A Fair Deal:
We work closely with our local operator to run this trip in a way that aims to reduce impacts and to give as much back as possible to the local communities. Part of this is employing local leaders, who are committed to responsible tourism and helping to preserve the way of life in their area. The leaders will give a briefing on responsible tourism issues to help you understand how you can help reduce your impact and maximise the benefits to the local community from your visit.

Group Size:
This small group tour has a maximum of 16 participants, meaning that we have a low impact on the environments and communities we visit and are able to ensure that we do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. The small number also allows us to stay in unique, family-run hotels that cannot benefit from coach tours and other mass tourism due to their limited sizes.