Skyros

How the minimum criteria of the responsible travel standard was met...

Economic responsibility

Skyros provides holistic holidays which emphasise being rather than having, doing rather than consuming and cooperating rather than competing.

Whenever practical, Holidays include excursions to see local workshops, artisans or small-scale industries at work - e.g. on Skyros there are visits to the woodcarvers, potters, cheesemaker etc. (depending on the time of year some visitors can even tread the grapes to help with local wine production!)

Both of our sites on Skyros Island use locally owned and maintained accommodation with policies in place to use local produce, manufacturers and services whenever possible (e.g. cuisine of local origin, locally made and sourced furnishings and furniture etc.) This also enables us to support local community projects.

Environmental responsibility

On Skyros Island our building construction has been fully in tune with the natural environment, motorised sea sports have never been introduced, and kitchen and shower water and waste/left over food is recycled. Visitors are requested to limit the use of running water, which is pumped out of our own well. Showers are heated via solar panel, accommodation has remained simple partly in order to avoid the industry’s excesses, and the external lighting is solar-powered. We are also working with the local authority to bring further recycling to the island – plastic, glass and aluminium. Guests are encouraged to bring refillable water bottles in place of single use plastic.

Staff, guests and suppliers are also actively encouraged to suggest further ways in which we can increase our environmental responsibility.

Social responsibility

Visitors are requested to help with a few chores, from sweeping the yard and chopping vegetables to fruit picking from the garden. The objective is the creation of an ethical mini-society in which decent human behaviour counts more than money.

Travellers are provided with pre-trip information on the host community to encourage responsible integration and raise cultural awareness, are taught some local language, fed on national cuisine and encouraged to integrate responsibly with the host community. Holidays include courses on local history and culture, language or art forms. Further integration with the host community is encouraged in various ways e.g. the mini-marathon which brings visitors and locals together and sponsorship of local events and teams like the Skyros Tae-Kwon-Do team.