Azores whale watching and walking holiday

Planet

CARBON REDUCTION

- The island use geothermal activity to generate some of their electricity. We have one property currently that uses solar power and are looking to actively source more.

- This trip features use of an electric bus to take people from the car park to one of the tours. This helps to manage congestion and reduce carbon emissions from the many cars visiting the site

- We can include tours that allow people to enjoy parts of the island by foot, cycling or kayaking rather than vehicle

- We can recommend restaurants that use locally sourced produce, reducing importation of goods and helping the local environment to thrive

- Tailor-made longer trips help to offset the carbon usage of international flights

- Electric bikes are available to rent in Ponta Delgada if you would like to have a more eco-friendly way to get around. The town is also small and easy to navigate, which means you can get to most places by foot without having to use vehicle transportation.

- Vegetarian and vegan meals are available on all full day activities and we can also recommend some wonderful plant based restaurants. One particular restaurant uses seasonal and locally sourced produce, obtained from the local market on the same day. In all hotels in Ponta Delgada they try to use locally sourced dairy, bakery and tea produce. Sao Miguel is home to the only tea plantation in Europe and the Azores prides itself on showcasing their creations. The wine is also made locally in their lava stone vineyards!

ENVIRONMENT AND WILDLIFE

- We can include a trip the geothermal area of Furnas where ongoing conservation has managed to restore the biodiversity of Furnas Lake and the wildlife in the area. The Furnas Lake recuperation project has reintroduced thousands of endemic and native plants of various species that were extinct or scarcely encountered in the landscape of the Furnas Lake, such as Picconia azorica, Azorean Juniper (Juniperus brevifolia), Portugal Laurel (Prunus azorica) and Buckthorn (Frangula azorica).

- The Furnas Lake remains designated as a protected body of water under the Furnas Lake Land Development and Watershed Plan (POBHLF). The plan's goal is to manage eutrophication, harmonize human activities with environmental protection, and enhance the watershed to enhance water quality.
To execute the POBHLF, large sections of pasture and some forest were purchased. These areas have been cleared of sources of pollution, and now, they are undergoing an intensive ecological restoration program that will transform them into a diverse forest landscape.

- Tourism focusing on nature assists the Azorean people and its conservation efforts by educating tourists on the importance of the natural environment and how it might be best protected.

- All our guides live locally and about 60% are native Azoreans. Those who accompany guests on the whale watching trips often have a wide range of advanced marine biology qualifications and are involved actively in research and conservation. Those who lead the land tours have standard tourism qualifications and further in house training. We have also personally set up training for the team with our UK based oceanographer who is an expert in marine conservation. He is due to give personalised training in early 2025 and this will assist the team in communicated ways in which guests can contribute to ocean habitat restoration.

-We are members of the World Cetacean Alliance and so is our boat operator/tour provider. This organisation offers a whale heritage site certification scheme and we worked with a whale researcher and marine biologist to help the Azores become a certified whale heritage site. Our tour provider also works within the local community and with guests to educate them before each tour about how to behave responsibly and look after the local environment, as well as conservation efforts that are ongoing in the area.

People

LOCAL ECONOMY

- Our favourite hand picked hotels are either entirely or part owned by local families from the Azores. Some historical buildings have been purchased by local people and lovingly restored into hotels that we now use for our guests. Wherever possible we will recommend these hotels over and above large international chains who have moved into the area.

- We maximise local economic opportunities by ensuring that at a minimum 60% of our guides are local and Azorean, all guides live locally to the areas we visit year round. We include visits to the oldest tea plantation in Europe which is family owned. The Azores climate is perfect for growing tea and it is known as the “capital” of European tea growing. We also visit local vineyards and recommend locations where visitors can purchase local produce or artisan creations.

- We try to actively discourage people from contributing to the housing problem in the Azores by not staying at Airbnb style accommodation, which is often owned internationally and sits vacant during the low season. This has driven local property prices above what local Azorean's can afford and we try to educate people on this situation so they can avoid contributing to the problem. We instead offer both apartment and hotel style accommodation which is owned by those who live in the Azores and support the local economy.

EMPLOYMENT, INCLUSIVITY AND DIVERSITY

- 90% of our tour operators live in the local community year round and 60% are native Azoreans.

- The boat company and land tour operator we use ensures they pay their staff well above the minimum wage and recently implemented new policies to improve the quality of life of their staff.

- We have a number of hotels that have been audited and checked for their accessibility criteria. We have a holiday specifically for those with extra requirements and our dolphin and whale watching trips to sea are suitable for those with disabilities. Our staff in destination are brilliant at assisting those with low mobility and the boat can be suitable for wheelchair users who can weight bear.

- Our boat operator also offers free trips to sea for local and/or disadvantaged children.

- Our whale watching company offers presentations in local schools to educate the children about the marine life on their doorstep with an emphasis on conservation. They are also planning to host an Azorean Whale Festival to promote the islands as one of the key locations worldwide to see whales. We donate a percentage of it's profits to the World Cetacean Alliance (WCA), helping to protect whales and dolphins worldwide.