Mount Athos hiking vacation, grand tour

Planet

CARBON REDUCTION
We are passionate about maintaining a waste free planet and always encourage the hikers to use refillable hydration packs rather than carrying and buying plastic water bottles. We also encourage our guests to refill their water bottles in natural springs where is safe to do so. As ethical hikers you will often see our guides collecting any rubbish while on the hiking trails and storing them in their bags to dispose them when back into the villages and towns. This is a culture that we embrace and encourage through our trips. We believe that every little helps as well as doing anything possible to maintain the virgin beauty of this place. In tha Athonian state there ara no power plants. Mount Athos is not connected with the power line of the mainland. All monasteries use solar panels, small wind turbines and hydro power. Our trips only involve hiking moving around the peninsula. In Mount Athos any kind of meat consumption is not allowed. All the food served is strictly vegetarian (legumes, vegetables, olives, fruits)

ENVIRONMENT AND WILDLIFE
Since the peninsula is only accessible to a limited number of people per day there is a lot of wildlife that can be spotted in their natural environment. In the peninsula there are no trips dedicated to the wildlife, there are no animals in captivity, and we are very mindful to not disturb them in their home. Our guides are familiar with the various species that can be spotted and will always provide information of what they are, and any specific facts known about the different wildlife creatures. We are not approaching the animals and always respect their space and peaceful environment they live in. We have the same expectation from our guests!

People

LOCAL ECONOMY
All the accommodation in Mount Athos belongs to the monastic community. We always support the local merchants in Mt. Athos trips. We make sure to highlight to the travelers of where to find the local products of the peninsula specifically local wine and the traditional tsipouro drink as well as locally produced honey and hand picked herbs. These products are sold by the monks that live on the peninsula permanently and rely on this income. They also sell religious paintings and rosary beads which they use while praying. Monks are self-sufficient, growing their own food, and performing crafts such as painting icons, woodcarving, and basket making to sustain themselves. In addition to the monastery life, some monks, known as hermits, choose to live in complete isolation in remote caves or cliff-side cells deep in the so called Athoinian desert, further dedicating their lives to prayer. While predominantly Greek, the monastic community includes monks from many other Orthodox countries, including Russia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, and others.

EMPLOYMENT, INCLUSIVITY AND DIVERSITY
All our guides are from Greece and the local community of Mount Athos or the villages near Halkidiki area. We employ only men since only men are allowed to enter Mount Athos since its foundation 850AD. Although Mount Athos community is Orthodox, all religions are welcome to visit both from other dogmas (Catholics, protestants, Anglicans etc) but also other religion (Muslim, Hebrews etc)