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RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL POLICY
Suddenly, everybody seems to have a responsible travel policy. We've had one for years. We support local communities, local economies and do our bit for the environment, we always have, we always will. This year we have adopted a fantastic project in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal where we are sponsoring two Zulu children and helping to promote the project to a wider audience here in the UK. Responsible travel is at the core of our company's ethos. It should be a way of life, not a customer generating exercise.
Responsible tourism policy
An independent company
We are proudly independent. We believe that our beneficiaries should be our employees, our customers and our suppliers, not corporate shareholders. As long-standing members of Responsible Travel, we aim to ensure that our holidays benefit the communities and environments we visit. We also believe that we have a responsibility to our employees and the region in which they live too.
Social responsibility at home and away
We fully appreciate the impact of tourist visits on local communities and residents and strive to ensure that we are having a positive effect. Hence, we always use locally owned providers with the aim of distributing the financial benefits throughout the local economy. We encourage our clients to respect the lives of local inhabitants by learning a few important words: hello, goodbye, please, thank you, etc and where possible to become involved in local events and learn about their lives. We purposely chose to base our offices in a converted farmhouse in rural Northumberland. By doing so, we have helped to provide employment in a region where rural diversity is at the heart of economic development.
Economic responsibility
We firmly believe that the communities and areas to which we send our clients should benefit economically. The very nature of our holidays means that we operate for the main part in remote rural and coastal areas where employment can be limited. Hence, wherever possible we use local accommodation, transport and activity providers. This enables local economies to benefit directly and helps to generate incomes and employment in areas where the drift might be towards cities and towns. Our policy is to use local or family run hotels and guesthouses, steering away from organisations whose beneficiaries are shareholders and senior management.
Environmental responsibility
We wish to maintain the natural settings in which we work, not just for the future of our company, but also for future generations. Hence, we insist that our local providers are equally conscious of this need. We ensure that all litter is removed from any of our activity sites. Where it is feasible, we strongly encourage group transfers, reducing the volume of road traffic and make our clients aware of their obligation to the environment and local communities.
Reduce my footprint"
Carbon emissions
For information on how you can offset your carbon emissions please see page 24.
Activity and adventure holidays 2008/09
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