Udon Thani accommodation in Thailand

Planet

The villa is directly owned by a group of local villagers who were encouraged to launch an alternative vacation destination for visitors seeking to leave the beaten path of tourism in Thailand and to experience rural village life, as lived by the vast majority of Thais not living in the main cities or mass tourism destinations. 100% of revenues from guests is retained and distributed by them, locally.

Sceptical at first, they have been delighted – and indeed surprised – that there is a group of people who are keen to experience their lifestyle first-hand.

That visitors take an interest in rice farming, water buffalo, local village traditions and crafts, local temples, the countryside, the flora and fauna of the local listed wetlands, the extraordinary local cuisine and the slower pace of rural Thailand, has enabled them:

- To keep their families together, given the income generated from guests, in an area where it has been traditional for fathers and sons to leave for the cities or foreign countries to seek menial labour
- To pay for a better education for their children
- To take a renewed pride in indigenous traditions, customs and practices
- To launch initiatives (control of waste disposal, pollution reduction, the promotion of indigenous traditions) that have not traditionally been at the forefront of villagers' minds, given more pressing economic dictates.

People

A Fair Deal
No middlemen are involved with direct bookings at Gecko Villa: all proceeds are retained by the families involved in the villa.

Village primary school support
Regular donations are made to our local village primary school, where students are primarily the children of poor farming families.

Responsible travel
Meet and interact directly with the locals!

Local sourcing
We source products and services locally, in order to provide a direct benefit to the immediate community.