Kenya to Zimbabwe overland tour, 3 weeks

Planet

Water: Before traveling on any of our trips all of our travelers are supplied with detailed pre-departure information which includes information on traveling responsibly. Water conservation is one of the key elements of this. We encourage our travelers to bring a reusable water bottle from home and to fill it using purified water supplied on our expedition vehicle, rather than purchase plastic water bottles. The water we carry with us in jerry cans is used for drinking, cooking and washing (on occasions). The jerry cans have to be filled on route and we find that filling and carrying them helps focus the mind on the importance of water conservation!

Wildlife: There is plenty of opportunity on this trip for wildlife viewing-from the open plains of the Serengeti, the unique Ngorongoro Crater habitat and Lake Manyara National Park. We ensure that all our travelers adhere to National Parks guidelines on responsible game viewing-for example not encouraging guides to get too close to the wildlife, not making loud noises, or disposing of food and litter inappropriately etc. In Nairobi, we sponsor an orphaned elephant, Kamboyo, at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. We also sponsor a lowland gorilla Rambo Chella in Cameroon. Our office staff have also taken part in the Great Gorilla Run in London to help raise funds for the 800 or so mountain gorillas left in the wild.
Part of the money paid for many of the wildlife viewing experiences on this trip goes towards the conservation/ protection of the animals and their habitat. This trip does travel through a variety of natural habitats and we are very aware that we need to respect these.

People

Local Crafts and Culture: We visit a number of local artisan/craft markets during this tour and encourage our travelers to support these. In our detailed pre-departure information we also provide information on bargaining responsibly and paying what you think the item is worth, rather than trying to bargain as low as possible. The difference of a pound or two to us is minimal but for a local artisan it could mean the difference between their family eating or not that night.

There is also the option to visit a number of cultural attractions en route, including a Maasai village and cultural center. Local villagers act as guides and also use the opportunity to produce local crafts to sell.

Volunteering and Charity: In Zimbabwe, we have been supporting the Hupenyu Hutsva Children’s Home in Harare, for a number of years.
We are very proud of our involvement with this Home as we can see the small differences we have made and we know that it has been important to the Home to just know that someone outside even cares about what is happening there. We have donated educational materials, bedding, clothing, sports equipment and computers to the Home.

In 2008 we also funded the installation of a borehole at the Home-enabling them to be far more self sufficient in food production and enabling the children to learn valuable horticultural skills (our generous travelers donated seeds and gardening tools.) Since 2007, we have run an annual 'Kids Week' event, using our trucks and crew to take all the children and staff out on a series of day trips, finishing the week with a big party. Many of the children rarely leave the compound they live on so it is always a big adventure! We're never sure who it enjoys it most though, our crew or the children!