Highlights of Turkey holiday

Planet

On this trip during your free time our tour leaders will encourage you to visit the DEKAMER Turtle Rehabilitation Centre near Dalyan to learn about the life cycle of the turtles and also their conservation efforts. There is the chance to donate to their conservation and rehabilitation work.

Our local agent provides filtered water in large reusable containers on all minibuses and encourages customers to refill their reusable water bottle from this rather than purchasing single use plastic bottles.

In order to use less fuel on our minibuses the air-conditioning is only switched on when our customer board the bus and the engine is switched off whenever the bus is parked up.

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

The majority of accommodation used on this trip is locally owned. This not only provides direct employment within the hotel, but also has the effect of percolating money beyond to small businesses that supply the hotel and in this way money is spread throughout the region we visit. Our tour leaders will also recommend where you can experience great food in local restaurants, most of which is sourced locally. Other people too benefit from our visit including drivers and local guides, as well as the staff in our local handling agent's offices.

When in Selcuk our tour leaders encourage customers to visit vocational projects such as carpet and kilim weaving and pottery making workshops that aim to support local women to keep the traditional processes going and to train new generations in the old ways. As well as training on the skills involved this also provides local woman with paid employment.

We use local Turkish tour leaders, who know the country very well and who will help to give us a unique insight into its history, customs and culture and get us that bit closer to the local people. Our tour leaders are trained by us in the importance of responsible tourism with guidance given on how they can make a difference. When it comes to visiting sites of religious importance our tour leaders will give guidance on appropriate behaviour and dress code so that our customers make a positive impression on the local community by visiting respectfully.

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.