Geography and belief suggest Noah's Ark may have come to rest between the mighty twin peaks of Mt Ararat after the Biblical Flood. And Turkey still fe...
As the pioneers of responsible tourism, we've screened this (and every) vacation so that you can travel knowing it will help support the places and people that you visit, and the planet. Read how below.
Planet
At Pamukkale, we discourage our travelers from disturbing the mud pools in an effort to preserve this unique natural site for future visitors. Whilst the pools are incredibly inviting, we recommend enjoying the waters at nearby Hierapolis instead where you can enjoy the hot springs without damaging the environment. We have also changed the way we explore the underground cities in Cappadocia to ensure less potential damage is caused by our visits.
Drinking water and the waste associated by single use plastic water bottles is something we are working hard on in Turkey as well as other destinations. All travelers are encouraged to bring their own refillable water bottles and we are rolling out a program of providing large water canisters in our vehicles on group tours to take refills from. We are also offering water filtering bottles to travelers, all of which which can vastly reduce waste generated by our customers both during the tour and on an ongoing basis.
Our Turkish guides are strict in monitoring and preventing littering to protect the sites we visit and waste bins are provided in all vehicles. Many of the sites we visit are incredibly important historical and natural wonders, and we encourage our travelers to treat these sites as such, sticking to marked paths, not climbing on ruins, picking wild plants or flowers, and avoiding disturbing the local wildlife as much as possible.
People
In Turkey, we visit a couple of carefully selected local shops during most tours, where travelers can learn about the local traditions and methods of carpet-weaving and leather production. All products sold in these shops are sourced from the surrounding local communities.
On this and our other tours in Turkey aim to support the local economy by using only local Turkish guides and working with smaller boutique style hotels, locally owned wherever possible, including some cave-style hotels in Cappadocia.
To provide a more in depth experience of Turkish culture, we also take a walking tour through the streets of Istanbul. We aim to take some of the lesser explored pathways whilst exploring the city before reaching the more touristy sections around Aya Sophia.
Our tour notes provide advance information on dress codes and particular local customs and our guides will expand on this in their explanations during the tour. This means we can create valuable and rewarding opportunities for our travelers and local people to mingle and exchange ideas and thoughts without causing any unintended offence.
