Peru slow travel holiday, beyond Macchu Pichu

Planet

CARBON REDUCTION

Man-powered activities: well over half of the days of the itinerary are dedicated to hiking, with more based on exploring towns on foot. The itinerary includes a 4-day hike through the Ausangate mountans, as well as a journey 4 days white water rafting along the Apurimac River.

Flight-limited itinerary: There is one return domestic flight in this itinerary, to get to Cusco from Lima. The majority of transportation is on foot, with mules, or by raft.

Vegetarian food: There are vegetarian options every day, including on the 'foodie' tour in Lima

Locally-sourced and seasonal food: The itinerary features Pachamama dishes, which are made of locally harvested potatoes, beans, cassava, plantain and corn, alongside local meats such as alpaca and guinea pig, for non-vegetarians.

ENVIRONMENT & WILDLIFE

How our accommodation:

- reduces our carbon footprint:
8 nights of the trip are camping in remote locations, leaving no footprint. We take everything we need and clear it all away.

- restores nature:
We visit and eat at a local, organic farm, which works to keep traditions alive and to grow food sustainably.

How our travellers can make a difference:
This trip does not include Machu Picchu. Instead, we introduce travellers to much lesser visited, yet similarly impressive, Incan sites and hikes. Even at better known locations, such as Rainbow Mountains, we visit a part most don't got to. Reducing overcrowding at principle tourist sites is key to making a difference on the ground.

While our guides are well equipped, travellers are encouraged to donate any left-over hiking gear to them to take to their communities, as this kind of equipment is very expensive in Peru.

People

LOCAL ECONOMY:

Local staff:
All the guides and porters are local people, who rely on this trade for their livelihoods.

Maximising local economic opportunities:
We include a visit to the Lamay community. This is an ethically-run, entirely non-exploitative experience, offering a unique insight into the life of a mountain community, whilst contributing to their sustainable development. Travellers to learn about their traditions and customs, such as farming and weaving. Lunch here is garden to table, using vegetables the travellers will have helped to harvest.

Minimum wage:
We believe strongly in paying a fair wage and ensure that our partners in turn pay their staff fairly, at least at the minimum wage and normally above.

This is particularly pertinent to this region, where more unscrupulous Machu Picchu excursions can be manned by porters who are overloaded and underpaid, with shameful living conditions en-route. We ensure our guides and porters are paid above the minimum wage and use well-treated work horses to help carry the load on the mountain hike, to avoid overloading the porters. Our staff sleep in the same conditions as, or similar to, our guests on overnight excursions.

Working standards for porters:
- paid above min wage, directly into bank accounts
- good food provided (they don't eat the clients' leftovers, as is the case with other organisations) and porters have their own cooking facilities so do not need to wait for the clients to finish dining before they can start their own meals.
- porters' transport from their towns to the trails is paid for by the DMC, not out of their wages
- DMC provides accident insurance, work contracts, pension contributions and family health insurance for porters
- the DMC operates a tree planting scheme above the porters' villages to combat erosion.

Our DMC for this trip is B-Corp certified - the only one in Cusco to have this certification. They are also members of The Long Run, a well-respected sustainable travel movement.

Our workplace diversity strategy:
Staff are employed based on aptitude, irrespective of any characteristics of identity or appearance. Our small body of employed staff and valued contractors is a mix of male and female across ages, life stages and ethnicities.

Charitable initiatives we operate:
For every trip we operate, we contribute an amount to an annual fund. We then donate this to a chartable cause. We select a cause both in an emerging market with which we work, and a cause closer to home.
Examples of beneficiaries include renovating a playground at a school in Sri Lanka, where we partnered with Rosyth Estate House; funding the rebuilding of a playground in a disadvantaged area of Cartagena, Colombia; and purchasing kit for a children’s community football team local to our UK offices.

We also participate in local, UK charitable initiatives, with a day a quarter dedicated to this for our body of staff.