Borneo 12 day family tour

Planet

Information: Providing suitable, relevant information for our customers; to help them to gain a wider understanding of our style of tourism that focuses on learning, genuine interaction with the local communities, reciprocity and cultural exchange processes. To be aware of the potential impact of tourism on the local society, culture and environment, and to behave and dress appropriately with a respect and appreciation for local customs, mores and traditions and a respect for the ecology of areas visited.

Our guides and leaders thus facilitate communication of our values to both travelers and local communities, educating them in sustainable tourism practices.

Destinations: We combine the well known tourist sites with many off-the-beaten-track, rarely visited destinations thus diverting tourist revenue and contact with responsible tourism into areas not usually benefiting as well as providing a more authentic view of the region visited.

Local Awareness: By explaining our methods and the reasons behind them local agents, guides and hotels are encouraged by us to adopt further responsible tourism practices themselves and guides and drivers are provided with additional training in this respect. We carefully select the places we visit to ensure that none are involved in exploitative practices of people or animals.

We fully support the Rainforest Discovery Centre in Sepilok by sending our guests there for a visit. The Centre’s primary function is to create public awareness and appreciation of the importance of conserving forests, as well as the sustainable use of forest resources. This is one of the projects developed by the Sabah Forestry Department. The minimal entrance fee paid helps in funding the center.

We also visit and contribute to Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Project, considered to be the largest orangutan rehab sanctuary in the world and the Borneo Sunbear Centre. The entrance fees our guests pay goes to the badly needed fund to run this huge operation of saving and rehabilitating orphaned and confiscated orangutans, in the hope that one day every single one of them be released to the wild.

The Kinabatangan Nature Lodge in Bilit, Sabah, as part of their ongoing contribution to the environment, is possibly the only lodge in Asia to use FSC-standard certified timber (recycled wood) for building their facilities! (FSC is Forest Stewardship Council). The lodge have environmentally aware and environmentally friendly policies on amongst other things, waste disposal, reusable materials, involvement of the local community and care for the environment. They are also a partner of the ‘Corridor Of Life’ vision project, brainchild of the WWF-Malaysia. This project, formulated towards sustainable development, addresses the issues of reforestation, protection and management of the lower Kinabatangan (among their chosen locations). The lodge is also very actively involved in and committed to raising funds for the Voluntary Conservation Levy to establish fund to finance the cost of protecting and reforesting the area. They are also in the process of setting up a Grey-water Project to use recycled bath water for gardening. In our continual support for all these endeavours, we are sending clients there.

We stay at, and support, the Sabah Tea Plantation and learn about it’s organic, pesticide-free tea production. We are happy to use their accommodation, restaurant and guides as well as educating our travelers as to the methods of producing organic tea.

We contribute towards tree replanting scheme in the Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary. Deforestation due to the rapid recent increase in planting palm trees for oil has meant that many of the natural flora is being destroyed along with wildlife habitats of more than just the orangutans.

The tour features several protected areas and national parks including Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park, Mount Kinabalu National Park, Kinabatangan and Tabin Wildlife Sanctuary. We also employ local, native Sabah staff only, including tour-leaders, local guides, boat and van drivers.

People

Group Sizes: By limiting groups to genuinely small sizes we aim to reduce the impact on both local communities and the environment whilst allowing for greater genuine interaction with said communities. It also results in a higher guide/customer ratio thus greater facility for supervision and individual assistance and allows us to use smaller, independent hotels and local restaurants and cafes.

Local Products: As much as possible we aim to employ local personnel, (guides, drivers, agents etc), use local restaurants and smaller privately owned accommodation. Customers are also encouraged to buy and use local products and services as much as possible in order to support and stimulate the local economy. They are also advised against buying prohibited items and products made from parts of wild animals or plants.

We have included destinations not part of standard itineraries. In this way we spread responsible tourism into areas which otherwise do not get much income from tourism or awareness of responsible tourism practices.

Community tourism projects. In addition we include several community based tourism schemes including a tour and cookery class in Kinarut Village and a visit to a women's cooperative project in Bundu Tuhan providing employment for local residents who grow edible flowers and herbs as well as offering traditional chocolate and soap making classes.