How to Tread Lightly, Give Back and Remember Your Adventure Vacation Forever... |
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| Excitement Ahead. What are You Leaving Behind? |
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Feel the rush of adrenaline and the tingle of excitement as you plan your upcoming adventure. Anticipate hiking through the deep jungles full of wildlife, the treks through mountain passes with snow-covered peaks overhead, or the thrills and excitement of big white water in narrow canyons. Those kinds of personal encounters with nature are what drew us to our adventurous travel careers years ago and inspire us to take time to be part of the natural world. This inspiration leads us on countless personal and professional adventures and has instilled a desire to help our travelers truly experience the world.
One thing we've learned from so much time spent in the midst of beautiful landscapes, is while the destination and its exciting activities may be your focus, after the trip they are often merely the background for your experience. Your most enduring memories are of the local people you meet and interact with along the way- the people who live, work, and play in all of our adventure destinations. TA and our travelers find ways to help care for the well-being of the people and the places we visit. When you tread lightly and leave behind only footprints, you take away memories that last forever.
Read more about how to tread lightly with us
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| More than a Safari Adventure |
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Listen Long Enough to Make a Friend
Your trip to Africa can go beyond the looking glass, by taking the time to meet locals, learn about their culture and unique wisdom, and understand the complex issues of ecology and wildlife conservation in their homeland. Would you enjoy your safari more if you had a chance to sit down with local people and talk about what you see and your common surroundings? What if you were with your guide and just a few other travelers out in the bush, and you all had a chance to sit quietly watching a mother lion teach her cubs to hunt?
Racing across the African plains in a horde of vans and jeeps is one way to check off the "Big 5" list of animals many hope to see on safari. You might question how that experience affects the animals, land and people. It's also worth reflecting a moment on what you take away personally from seeing only the surface of Africa. The Maasai Land Safari from Wildland Adventures, which garnered several awards recently, including the Conde Nast Green List and Africa Trip of the Year from Outside Magazine, is an answer. In partnership with MERC, a non-profit grassroots network of Maasai communities dedicated to the protection of traditional land rights and conservation of the great ecosystems of East Africa, this trip delves into the Maasai culture with extended village visits, along with game drives and walking safaris to see the wondrous wildlife of Kenya and Tanzania. Proceeds from the trip are donated to MERC for their continued work.
Read more on connecting with the Maasai |
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So Many Ways to Get Around
Biking across idyllic European landscapes, kayaking through dense Central American jungle mangroves, trekking the ancient routes of the Incan people, and canoeing in a remote and calm Canadian lake all allow you to relax and explore new places in-depth. Different from experiencing your whole trip with your nose pressed against the window of a tour bus, the adventure in travel relates closely to you using your own power to get around. A bicycle route through the French countryside brings you right up to market towns, roadside cafes, little-known restaurants, and historical vineyards, as on the Le Provence Complete with Euro-Bike & Walking Tours. White water rafting through a river canyon, where you use some fast strokes to descend the Green River in Utah with Western River Expeditions, not only is under your raft mates' own steam, but also helps to maintain neighboring lands and keep the river clean. Contribute to a healthy environment by rowing, paddling or peddling, limiting your impact on the Earth's climate and providing funding to preserve natural lands. Meet local people, take in your surroundings, and see the world up close.
Read more about trips powered by you |
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| Conserving the Delicate Balance |
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Preserving Rain Forests in Central America
The high canopy of old growth rain forests in Central America is the home of playful Capuchin monkeys, sloth, Scarlet macaws and toucans, and all are likely to be seen on a hike in the wild lowlands of Panama or Costa Rica. They will continue to live there with the help of responsible travelers. Tropical jungles are delicate ecosystems that are easily nudged out of balance when disturbed by human activity around them. Make your visit to these lands one that benefits the destination by helping to ensure wildlife is protected, proper land use is enforced, and visitors are educated on the advantages of a healthy global environment.
TA partners with jungle lodges that strive to achieve a balance between stewardship of the land around them and integration with their natural surroundings on the one hand, and comfort, personal service, and "jungle luxury" on the other. Experience this balance when sharing the wonder of giant sea turtles nesting on the Caribbean beach with your native naturalist guide in the evening before retiring to your comfortable jungle lodge for a pleasant night's sleep on the Costa Rica Family Adventure with Austin-Lehman Adventures. A family contribution from the trip to the national park system, used to protect the turtles and the jungle, lets young people begin to understand the importance of eco-travel early on. Teens play an even more direct role in the preservation of the Monteverde Cloud Forest on the Costa Rica Clasica trip with AAVE Teen Adventures by actually planting trees in the reserve.
Read more on TA's contribution |
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| Featured Partnership: IdealBite.com |
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"A Sassier Shade of Green"
When we came across an online magazine called Ideal Bite that speaks our language when it comes to enjoying your life and treating the environment with respect at the same time, we wanted to know more. Founded by Jen Boulden and Heather Stephenson, two former corporate climbers working together "virtually", but living on opposite sides of the country, the site has been featured in Vanity Fair and CNN. "The concept behind Ideal Bite is an easy one � if we all knew what to do in our day-to-day lives to help impact the planet and our communities positively and painlessly (and without preachiness), we would all do it. And if that know-how came to us in a fun, pithy, sometimes irreverent way � so much the better." Facts and suggestions on green food, products, services, and of course, ideas from a new Ecotravel section developed together with TA are all delivered daily via email, and personal stories about using those tips are found in their blog. If you are wondering which products and services are environmentally friendly, but lack the time to investigate all the details, our partners at IdealBite.com can help.
Get the Daily Bite here |
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