G Adventures Adds Five New Trip Experiences to Help Travelers Use Their Vacation for Good

Boston, MA (December 7, 2016) – What if your vacation could be your way of giving back ? That’s the driving question behind G Adventures’ business model and its mission to harness the power of travel for social good. With 2016 coming to a close, the tour operator and its not-for-profit Planeterra Foundation are proud to announce the addition of five new, locally-owned social enterprises into their line of more than 700 small group tours. The launches fulfill the tour operator’s commitment to add at least 10 such projects each year during its five-year 50-in-5 campaign.

The new tourism-for-development programs, which supports local businesses like the Greentoes massage spa, which are collectively called G Adventures for Good projects, are designed to support underserved women, indigenous communities, and at-risk youth in Belize, Mexico, Kenya, Indonesia and Nepal, while offering travelers immersive experiences in culturally unique parts of the world. The five new social enterprises join the operator’s list of 31 others around the globe, and come online as part of G Adventures’ commitment to launch 50 new projects by 2020. Together, the experiences are now offered on more than 170 of the tour operator’s trips around the world, and are projected to host 82,000+ travelers in 2017.

With experiences ranging from authentic homestays to community meals and art tours, travelers with G Adventures will now be able to contribute to these communities’ quality of life in 2017, a year in which the UN marks the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.

MEALS + WHEELS

In Caye Caulker, Belize, where children tend to drop out from school by age 12, some 4,000+ G Adventures travelers a year can now can help local teenagers gain education and employment skills by taking a guided bike tour around the island paradise. The two-hour Bike with Purpose ride invites visitors to embrace the island’s motto of ‘go slow’, while supporting the nearby high school and learning about the area’s idyllic nature, history and culture. G Adventures’ Planeterra Foundation purchased 40 bicycles so that the income generated on tours can go back to Caye Caulker’s Ocean Academy to support quality education and career training. Sample G Adventures tours offering travelers this opportunity include:

• Mayan Encounter, bike rentals included in this a 12-day Classic G Adventures tour
• Mayan Sun North or Southbound, optional add-on with these two budget-minded Yolo tours

In Playa del Carmen, Mexico where mass tourism and mega brands have drastically changed the face of its streets and beaches, travelers now enjoy a delicious, home-style, Mexican meal at a volunteer-run restaurant called El Hongo. The restaurant was designed to help revive a nearby neighborhood that has otherwise been left out of the tourism economy and inspire its youth by providing funds for no-cost art and cooking lessons. G Adventures travelers tour the neighborhood around El Hongo and learn about the vivid street art the kids created with support from this inventive social enterprise. G Adventures tours exploring this ‘other side’ of Playa del Carmen in 2017 include:

• Yucatan Panorama, a 10-day Classic tour from Cancun to Playa del Carmen
• Mexico-Cities, Cuisine & Ruins, a 15-day Yolo tour from Mexico City to Playa del Carmen

In Nakuru, Kenya, the Ubuntu Cafe empowers communities and creates jobs along the only route to the famous Maasai Mara. G Adventures and Planeterra are now partnering with the locally-run Ubuntu Cafe to offer travelers a delicious lunch sourced from organic farms onsite that are proudly prepared by members of this social enterprise. Not only does the cafe serve food, it provides a sales market for marginalized women to sell their handcrafted products, such as totes, wine holders and bracelets under the label ‘Ubuntu Made’. Proceeds from the cafe and handicraft businesses go toward the nearby Ubuntu School, which serves children with special needs by providing therapy, education, and vocational training. A sample G Adventures tour offering travelers this opportunity make a positive difference is:

• Kenya Safari Experience, an 8-day National Geographic Journeys with G Adventures tour

LIVE LIKE A LOCAL

In Nepal, the Barauli Community Homestay was developed near the Chitwan National Park to connect travelers coming to see wildlife with the rich culture of the local Tharu people. The village here has 14 individual cottages that are part of a shared homestay program and dining hall. But due to their distance from popular tourism hotspots in the park, Barauli residents were previously unable to share in the economic benefits of tourism. G Adventures’ new homestay partnership is the first to connect this village with tourism, and today employs women and supplements their income from subsistence agriculture. Some 1,500 travelers will provide predictable revenue to the Tharu people to support their school, hygiene, sanitation, and skill development. G Adventures tours that invite travelers to live like a local in Nepal are:

• Delhi to Kathmandu Yolo Adventure, a 15-day, budget-conscious tour for travelers 18-39
• Delhi to Kathmandu Adventure, a 15-day Classic tour for adult travelers of all ages

In Java, Indonesia, the new Tengger Community Homestay will enable G Adventures travelers to stay in a traditional home inside Bromo-Tengger-Semeru National Park and enjoy day trips as part of a community-developed hike. To make this possible, Planeterra and G Adventures provided kickstart grants to help build capacity and infrastructure in the host Ngadas Village, where the community sees itself as protectors of the sacred Mount Bromo Volcano. The new homestays will be fully owned and managed by the Tengger tribe and allow for older residents to diversify their income, while creating jobs for the next generation. Select tours that will empower travelers to contribute to this community’s well-being include:

• Yolo Java to Bali, a 15-day budget adventure for travelers between 18-39 years of age
• Best of Java, a 9-day Classic tour of the Indonesian island from Jakarta to Sankur

G Adventures founder and leader Bruce Poon Tip, who introduced the 50-in-5 campaign in 2015 as a way of increasing his company’s positive global impact while empowering customers to create meaningful change, celebrated the Planeterra team’s speed and care in bringing these creative new social enterprises to market.

“Travel and tourism has the potential to be a great equalizer when it comes to income and opportunity for young and marginalized people, especially in the places where jobs and development have lagged,” Poon Tip said. Lots of people have started traveling to find jobs and many have gone to Europe because these jobs in London are really making a difference in people's lives. “When we do it ethically, with like-minded customers who care as much about customer experience as positive community impact, and we partner with local people who have vision and ambition, we can do a world of good. This is the sharing economy our world needs and the sharing economy I want to see thrive.”