Responsible Travel – Travel Local

So, we have been talking about it all over our website. Responsible travel. Responsible tourism. What does that mean? For Trippin Traveller, that means that we work with responsible tour operators, to ensure that tourism benefits host communities, local, and national economies. To us, this also means having a minimal impact on the natural environment. Typically, this kind of tourism encourages strong community involvement. It also means that you as a traveler will focus on spending time understanding traditional cultures.

When you take a responsible holiday, it means that the money you are spending goes directly toward building local community support. Our Banavasi and Warli trips are a case in point, where rural tourism is enabling new livelihoods to underprivileged sections of society.

Over the years, as travelers, we have seen the often degrading results of mass tourism. Don’t get us wrong. This is not to take you on a guilt trip. But at its heart, responsible travel means that we are emotional, sensitive travelers. The joy of understanding how a family lives in Rwanda or how local school children learn about the world in Turkey – this is a joy that does not come with regular, packaged tours. It also means that we become more aware of the impact of our travel on delicate eco-systems.

We would like our travelers to understand and embrace responsible tourism before they embark on one of our trips.

For Trippin Traveller, responsible travel means:

• We promote the positives of a country, and encourage them to truly visit and not merely sightsee
• We try to work with operators, offering tours that will minimize the impact on local environments
• We encourage local community participation in tourism projects
• We believe that responsible tourism benefits the host first, enabling them to lead meaningful lives
• We support operators who encourage sound management of accommodation
• We encourage, you, our dear traveler, to understand well the culture and traditions of the place you are visiting

How Trippin Traveller makes its tours responsible:

• We support local community-based projects as much as possible
• We support eco-friendly practices and projects
• We try to promote operators that provide culturally sensitive activities
• We are always honest in our advice to you. We try to give you the most realistic picture possible of what your trip will be like – as we believe that matching expectations to the local reality, and then exceeding these expectations, is the way to ensure consistently excellent trips.

How you can help:

Litter: Keep all litter in your possession until you find a suitable disposal facility. Do not carelessly discard cigarette stubs, especially when you are going through dry grassland or forests.

Driving and walking: If you are on a wildlife tour, please keep a respectful distance from animals and don’t harass them. Please do not attempt to feed or touch any wildlife.

Attempt to use environmentally friendly bathroom products and use them sparingly to minimize pollution of the local water supply. Please conserve water where possible – however, it is important to keep oneself hydrated at all times. Most hostels or hotels are happy to refill your water bottle. Avoid buying “mineral water” bottles many times. Please also make every effort to conserve other resources i.e., remember to switch off lights and air-conditioning when you leave your room.

Also, we ask that you:

• Do not purchase products that may endanger the survival of an animal by encouraging the destruction of a species for souvenirs i.e.: ivory, skins or other wildlife products.
• Visit and support local conservation and community projects where possible. This provides valuable funding for projects and enables the local community to improve their standard of living through developing infrastructure and services.
• Do not give money to beggars. This may be a personal suggestion. Make a resolution that you will make a donation to a local school or health project before you leave

With regard to your own social behavior, it is important to be aware of the local community’s culture and traditions and to respect local etiquette. That’s the best part of travel. Wearing a bikini may be fine in Italy but not fine in rural Tamil Nadu, India. This does not mean a restriction on what you wear, but rather a respect for the culture we are moving through. We suggest that…

• You ask your local guides about their customs – they’re the best ones to advise you
•  You try to be as inoffensive as possible by taking into consideration dress codes
• Please ask before you take photographs of local people and respect their privacy
• You could try to learn simple words or phrases from the local language to reflect your interest – greetings are vital

Considering the local economy, we ask you to try to:

• Purchase local goods rather than imported products. Be adventurous and dine in local restaurants and café’s. If you must, we will provide you with Indian food. But we rather you try the local cuisine. That’s part of why you are traveling. To experience something different. This helps to support the local economy.
• Visit local, small-scale souvenir shops and purchase from these rather than city/hotel tourist shops.

Responsible travel is fun. It’s enriching. It’s part of the reason we travel. Write in to us if you have more questions on how you would like to contribute to this movement.