Armenia and Georgia highlights tour

Planet

CARBON REDUCTION

The transportation on this tour has been specifically designed so that internal flights are not used. All journeys within Armenia and Georgia are done by road, and day-to-day explorations and sightseeing are often done on foot. Also, keeping our groups small (twelve maximum) means there is no need for huge coaches, and we can instead use smaller vehicles.

All diets can be catered for, including vegan and vegetarian. All we need is advance notice so that we can prepare our local team, and the hotels and restaurants you will be visiting; during the trip, your guide will be able to assist with ordering meals that meet your requirements.


ENVIRONMENT & WILDLIFE

Broadly, we use local guides who have intimate knowledge of the places you visit and how they are fairing in terms of restoration, degradation, and therefore how best to navigate them. We always ask our clients to respect our outlook on this, in being mindful of rubbish, and trying to recycle whenever you can.

We encourage all our clients to bring a reusable water bottle, ideally with a filtration system to replace the need for single-use plastics. We offer a free Water-To-Go bottle (just pay for postage) to all of our UK-based clients when they book, which provides a great chance to try out these amazing filtered bottles in the hopes of converting more travellers to using them on all of their travels

People

LOCAL ECONOMY

As regular travellers, one thing that never ceases to amaze and inspire us is the kindness and generosity of local people, often people who have very little to their name. We firmly believe that they are who make these places special and that they should benefit from our visit so we do our best to ensure that the benefits of our tours reach as widely as possible into the communities where they operate.

Given the Caucasus region’s ancient and strong links with religion – particularly Christianity – it’s no surprise that this trip visits many churches, cathedrals, monasteries and temples, many of which are historic UNESCO-listed sites. These important historical and cultural sites, as well as the many others visited on this tour, rely on the monetary support that visitors provide in their continued preservation and exhibition.

This trip also includes unique features such as a visit to the Maran Winery, a cooking class, a carpet-making workshop and a chance to see a local master making “Teka” artefacts. Not only are these inclusions excellent opportunities for our travellers to experience culture first-hand, but they support local businesses and businesspeople, many of which are practicing traditional crafts. Similarly, this tour offers many opportunities to take meals and spend time with local families in their homes. This is an excellent chance for both our travellers and the local individuals who take part to exchange cultures, and it provides income for local families directly.

All of our tours in the Caucasus are led by fantastic local guides, and transport ia provided by local drivers who ensure that all supplies are purchased locally for your journey.

Our first preference for accommodation is always locally owned properties, which often provide a better boutique experience, but also minimises the economic leakage from tourism spending. The same goes for restaurants and shops.


EMPLOYMENT, INCLUSIVITY, AND DIVERSITY

One thing which is true across all of the countries in which we operate, is that we are passionate about ensuring the partners we have on the ground are those with the best knowledge of them. Our primary ground operator in the Caucasus is based in Georgia and staffed by Georgians, and we supplementally work with other local teams in Armenia (and Azerbaijan) who are run by local people as well.

All of our guides, drivers, and other staff are paid at least minimum wage, if not a living wage or above for fair compensation of the incredible work they do.

Our partners employ women guides in all countries, and we are LGBTQ+ friendly on all of our trips. We are always willing to have discussions with those who may have questions about safety on the ground, visibility, and any other concerns to ensure that our clients are comfortable and confident whilst on our trips.