Myanmar highlights group tour

Environment

This program has been designed with Myanmar’s cultural heritage and natural environment in mind. Many who work in Myanmar tourism are not familiar with sustainable practices, as the country’s tourism industry is in the early stages of its development; we therefore make it our responsibility to train our suppliers and staff on initiatives such as recycling, littering and energy saving. For our customers, we provide the official ‘Dos and Don’ts for tourists’ booklet, detailing how you can visit Myanmar responsibly.

This small group tour takes in environmentally sensitive areas, where we make an effort to minimise environmental impact and support heritage, wildlife and sustainability initiatives:

- The largest collection of colonial-era heritage buildings in Southeast Asia can be found in Yangon, where we highlight the historical importance of these buildings and the need for their preservation by non-profit organisations such as the Turquoise Mountain and the Yangon Heritage Trust.
- The group cooking class, conducted by a chef who is native to the area, uses locally-sourced products, sustaining the environment and contributing to the local economy.
- In the Bagan area, visit a rural, locally-owned and run jaggery (cane sugar sweet) and toddy factory and road-side shop. Buying products here supports the local economy and preserves the local environment, as the owners use traditional, sustainable farming techniques.
- Visiting the ancient capital of Inwa, you will be taken around by horse and cart, contributing to the local economy and reducing the environmental impact on this area, which is predominantly a rice farming area.

Other intiatives:

- Being a developing country, Myanmar’s rural poor are particularly vulnerable to natural disasters; we contribute donations and money to disaster relief as such events occur, recently donating to flood relief in Rakhine State.
- We work with guides, suppliers and accommodation providers to reduce environmental impact in areas such as recycling and re-use of towels and bedclothes on a day-to-day basis.

Community

Myanmar is changing fast, but remains one of Southeast Asia’s poorest countries. As a locally-owned company employing mostly local staff, we know that responsible tourism is a route to economic development and better education and healthcare for many underprivileged communities throughout the country.

Our small group tour brings a focus on community and community development, including:

- Making an offering to novice monks at the Mahagandayon Monastery near Mandalay, giving a deeper understanding of this devout Buddhist community, and contributing to local education and the monastery’s upkeep.
- At Bagan and Inle Lake, the tour will take in the small workshops of silk weavers, silversmiths, and lacquerware artisans, where your contribution will directly help the local economy.
- Shopping at one of Yangon’s social enterprises, which train disadvantaged locals and put their profits back into the community.

As a company, we also regularly donate money and gifts to monastic schools at various locations around Myanmar (a monastery education is often the only kind available in many villages around the country).