Silk Road overland holiday

Planet

We have a strict environmental policy to make sure that the environments we visit are not damaged or spoilt in any way. Our “Leave No Trace” ethic is applied to this trip and as tour operators, it is something we are careful to promote. Your guide on this trip will have been trained to uphold this policy and all clients are fully briefed on appropriate/responsible behaviour whilst in wilderness areas.

We are very aware of the economic, ecological and ethical impact tourism can have on ancient cultures and fragile environments. We realise that taking clients across all these regions can have a negative impact on the environment if not handled responsibly and as such, on all of our trips we go to great lengths to minimise the negative and accentuate the positive - after all, there are also many good things that the traveller can bring.

By keeping the group size to a maximum of 12, we can also minimise the human impact on the fragile sites we visit – particularly important as this trip visits some delicate ecosystems.

People

In all six countries (China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran and Turkey) we use local ground handlers - this means that all the operational costs go directly into the local economies and helps to improve employment opportunities in remote regions.

By incorporating homestays, locally owned hotels, family run restaurants and the services of guides and drivers into our itineraries, we ensure that money you spend on your trip goes directly into the local economy and local communities benefit from tourism. For example on day 15 of the tour on crossing the border into Kyrgyzstan we will spend a night with a local family in Sary Tash. Sharing rooms in this simple, rustic but cosy setting gives travellers a first-hand, authentic experience of the lifestyles of the peoples of this region whilst also allowing for deeper cultural understanding and interaction.

We show support to local communities through engaging and appreciating local culture and customs. On day 17 of this tour we will arrive at the town of Margilon in Uzbekistan where clients can admire and learn about the process of silk-weaving from start to finish. We will also visit nearby Rishton renowned for its remarkable blue and green ceramics.

In order to facilitate an enduring support structure for the communities we visit, and to show a commitment to these values, in January 2009 we set up a charitable foundation through which we can directly channel funds to both existing NGOs and our own development projects. In addition to organising ethically sensitive tours, having our own charitable foundation allows us to raise money – through the cost of our tours, charity trips and fund raising events – which can then be used to fund various projects in education, sanitation, reforestations and a number of other important issues facing developing communities.