With ecotourism projects springing up all the time, Janine Kelso gets the lowdown on five major sustainable tourism initiatives
Huaorani Eco-Lodge, Ecuador
Why? Set in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, this lodge is wholly owned by the Huaorani people.
The income generated from the lodge gives the indigenous population a steady income while allowing them to maintain their culture. Accommodation is in the form of five palm-thatched cabins that can sleep up to 10 people. Each hut is named after Huao communities along the Shirupuno River and all have private bathrooms with cold showers.
With the help of a native guide, visitors can find out about medicinal plants and learn how to climb trees, hunt and fish using traditional methods, and fire a blowpipe. Activities range from walking along Huaoran jungle trails to visiting the community and craft market.
If it wasn’t for this lodge, the local people would be dependent on handouts from oil companies that are resident in the rainforest. On leaving the lodge, visitors will drive alongside miles of oil pipelines that show the threat facing the rainforest and the Huaorani people.
Sample product: Audley Travel offers four nights at Huaorani Lodge for £640 per person, including flights and canoe transfers (01993 838 000).
Hotel Sigiriya, Sri Lanka
Why? In the shadow of Sri Lanka’s famed Sigiriya Rock and surrounded by flora and fauna, this hotel has won numerous ‘green’ accolades thanks to its energy conservation and renewable energy projects, which include solar water heaters, biological sewage treatment plants, rubbish composting and use of a bio-mass gas fire rather than a diesel-fired boiler.
It also has an organic vegetable garden and has reduced its use of aerosols and plastics. As a result of its good practice, its carbon footprint has fallen dramatically in the past few years.
Sample product: Somak Holidays offers four nights’ bed and breakfast at the three-star Hotel Sigiriya for £1,199 per person, including flights and transfers (020 8423 3000).
Iwokrama, Guyana
Why? Iwokrama research and conservation centre is literally dripping with eco-goodness.
Alive with jaguars, its acres of wild rainforest are protected, while its indigenous population, the Makushi people, have been heavily involved in scientific research, conservation and tourism.
Guests stay in thatched wooden cabins on stilts, raised up above the Essequibo River. Visitors can view the wildlife in the treetops by going on the canopy walkway, comprising a series of suspension bridges and observation decks.
From here, it’s possible to see howler monkeys and a variety of birdlife. Go jaguar spotting in the rainforest in a 4×4, and you’ll be astounded by how the animals are not phased by the presence of humans. While touring Guyana, must-see sights include its dramatic waterfalls, such as Kaieteur, which is five times higher than Niagara.
Sample product: Journey Latin America offers a 13-night tailor-made tour of Guyana, visiting Kaieteur Falls, Iwokrama and Karanambu, for £2,583 per person, including all accommodation, most meals, most guided excursions and ground transport within Guyana. Return flights in low season start from £790 per person (020 8747 8315).
Aquacity, Slovakia
Why? This sprawling geothermal resort in Poprad, Slovakia, has won numerous awards for being green. Aquacity prevents 27 tonnes of CO2 gases being pumped into the atmosphere every day by using geothermal water and solar energy to heat and power the resort.
There’s an Olympic-size pool, outdoor heated pool, water slides, solarium, steam rooms, sauna, hot tubs and massage rooms.
If you’re brave, follow in the footsteps of athletes by hitting the cryotherapy chamber for the ultimate health kick. Here, you chill down to -120C by spending two minutes in the chamber, said to be good for osteoporosis, rheumatism and back pain.
Sample product: Regent Holidays offers four nights’ half-board at the Mountain View Hotel at the Aquacity Resort for £292 per person, including free entry to Vital World Spa and Aquacity’s water park plus a nightly laser show in the Blue Sapphire pools (0845 277 3317).
Conservation and community projects worldwide
Why? New for next year, the Adventure Company is launching holidays that enable travellers to spend two or three days involved in conservation or community-based projects.
Hands On Adventures offers a range of experiences – from tracking bears and wolves in the Tatras Mountains of Slovakia to spending time in remote villages in a tsunami-affected region of southern Thailand.
Families with children as young as five can combine two days in a community-based project with a longer sightseeing trip around Namibia. Run by the San bushmen in the northeast of Namibia, visitors will be taken on bush walks, taught to track animals and gather bushfood. The San will also share their knowledge of animals and survival.
Sample product: The Adventure Company offers a seven-night bear tracking trip in the Tatras Mountains in Slovakia, for £1,249 per person, in May and September 2009, including flights, elements of bear tracking every day plus spare time to explore local towns, hot springs, a helicopter flight or an evening in Krakow. The price includes a €180 contribution that goes directly to the bear conservation project (0845 450 5316).
