Cape town to Victoria Falls vacation

Planet

Conservation:
On this trip, we have the chance to visit the Painted Dog Conservation Project where we get to learn more about these fascinating dogs that are endangered with their dwindling numbers. Painted dogs are an alternative name for wild dogs and the facility is involved in research, conservation and rehabilitation of these dogs for over 25 years in Zimbabwe and beyond. One of the biggest threats painted dogs face are actually human ignorance and misinformation as land owners tend to believe that the dogs are dangerous and should be removed. As a result, the facility places community development and outreach efforts as one of their key priorities through working with local communities, farmers and children to improve perception and awareness of the painted dogs.

Water:
Water is a really important issue with trips such as this and whilst we must stay hydrated, it is also vital that we have a system for providing clean water without causing lots of waste with plastic bottles. Wherever possible we provide safe alternative sources of water to buying single use plastic bottles. This may be through large water containers, or encourage our passengers to filter, sterilise or purify water. We encourage all our passengers to come prepared with a reusable water bottle for this purpose.

Group Size:
This is a small group tour, meaning that we have a low impact on the environments and communities we visit and are able to ensure that we do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. The small number also allows us to stay in unique, family-run hotels that cannot benefit from coach tours and other mass tourism due to their limited sizes.

UK Office:
It all starts at home where we work towards reducing our carbon footprint in our offices through energy conservation measures, recycling policies and the promotion of cycling and walking as a means for our staff to commute. Our head office has become a plastic-free zone with the use of plastic bottles being banned in our head office and we distributed reusable water bottles and tote bags to every staff member. We also support a large number of community and environmental projects in different parts of the world and try to give something back to the places we visit.

People

Local craft and culture:
There are plenty of opportunities to support local craft. On our way to Hwange National Park, we will visit craft markets owned by the local communities where craft are made on site by artists and sold directly to customers. Additionally, in Victoria Falls we will visit an open air market and while in Cape Town, we will explore some local food markets. Definitely, our local guides will advise clients on what can be bought and what should be avoided as products from animals or any indigenous hard wood should never be purchased.

As a wildlife trip, we get to observe animals in their natural habitat in Hwange National Park and Chobe National Park. Not only does our entrance fees to these parks help contribute to the upkeep of these places, the national parks also pay a levy to local communities to support them and show them how the park directly benefits the communities.

Community:
Our local suppliers support the Save Our Sausage Trees initiative in Botswana, which aims to address the issue of depleting forests in the area. The Mokoro is a boat used by the people of the Okavango Delta and it is crafted traditionally out of a single mature Kigelia Africana tree (or sausage tree). Although increased tourism has had some obvious benefits to the area, this has also brought a higher demand for Mokoro boats and therefore more trees are being cut down. As a wooden Mokoro only lasts about 5 years, there are hundreds of these trees being felled per year and not enough to sustain this. Our local operator consulted the Okovango community, and they made an agreement to pay half the price of fibreglass Mokoro if a poler is willing to purchase the other half, in order to save the trees.

Accommodation and meals:
On this trip we stay in a variety of accommodation ranging from hotels, guesthouses and safari lodges. We try to use locally run accommodation that employs local staff and use local produce wherever possible. Most of the accommodations also pay a community levy which thereby supports the local communities around them. When food is not provided, our local guides will encourage and recommend clients to visit local restaurants and cafes to try local specialties.