Kerala Hike, bike & kayak in India

Planet

By staying at environmentally low impact accommodation like the Hornbill Camp, we hope to bring in awareness about Responsible Tourism among the general public. Hornbill Camp is made of locally available materials and constructed exclusively by using locally available expertise in reed leaf thatching. There is very little concrete used, instead tents are used. The water is heated using solar heaters and the kitchen refuse is recycled for use in the spice plantations nearby.

People

The members of the local communities are involved in each and every activity of this tour. The visit to spice farms and staying at homestays also adds to the local economy in a big way, both directly and indirectly. Vegetables and fruits used at these places are locally grown and the proceeds go directly into the hands of the farmer rather than a big corporation, thus making them stake holders in such a tour as this.

The treks are always led by tribal trackers and members from the local community, who have over the years come to depended almost exclusively upon income from tourism related activities, due to slowing down of their farm-related traditional incomes. The treks in Munnar leave only a miniscule carbon footprint and present itself as an alternative form of tourism as opposed to the mass tourism normally seen in such hill stations.

This is also the case with kayaking, which once again utilizes the services of the local youth, who are expert oarsmen, helping them make an alternate livelihood since their traditional livelihood from fishing has seen a serious decline in recent past. We always employ local drivers during all our tours. Our supplies like vegetables and poultry are always sourced from villagers residing near the camp & we promote local businesses by using local jeeps and locally owned wooden canoes for moving on the river, whenever possible.