Walking in the Canadian Rockies holiday

Planet

We spend a significant amount of time at various national parks on this tour, the included entrance fees help to preserve the status and upkeep of the park on a continued and sustainable basis. Interaction with National Park Rangers helps to preserve this role as an employment opportunity for local people and future generations. Our Tour Leaders educate travellers on how best to interact with the wildlife in the parks, for example advising people not to feed the animals to stop them becoming dependent on hand-outs from humans. They will also advise all groups to keep to the path to minimise their impact and avoid disturbing wildlife.

During this trip we camp for 8 nights, and while we immerse ourselves in the nature it's also an energy efficient, wildlife-friendly and generally less wasteful way to experience Canada's wild areas. Camping is permitted in designated areas only with a valid national park camping permit and a national park entry pass.

As tap water is safe to drink in these areas, we urge customers to take a water bottle to fill up, rather than generating plastic bottle waste. On the bus we carry a large water bag (20 litres) so customers can refill their own bottle whilst on the road and before starting the trek instead of buying a new plastic bottle.

As a travel company we are continually looking for ways to improve and are proud to be ‘Responsible in everything we do’. Education is key, and so all staff, Tour Leaders and partnering suppliers are trained in responsible and sustainable tourism. At our Head Office, we continually strive towards a sustainable and planet-friendly working environment, including having solar panels installed and a company commitment to reducing our plastic usage.

People

We shop at local stores for picnic items, and our Tour Leader will encourage the group to eat in family-run restaurants and visit local shops whenever possible. This all brings economic benefit to the local communities that we visit.

Our Tour Leader is Canadian, and will guide us through the National Parks that they know so well alongside managing the camp set up. Like many adventures of this type, much of the team spirit and camaraderie is developed through mucking in and helping out with basic camp responsibilities. Setting the group size at a maximum of 12 also helps to mitigate our impact, allow us to use smaller vehicles and cause less disturbance whilst walking.

As a company we have valuable and longstanding partnerships with UK charities Toilet Twinning and Send a Cow, plus many smaller initiatives and projects around the world. We’re members of the UK travel industry body AITO because we believe it’s important to share our knowledge and experience, as well as learn from other operators.