Nairobi To Victoria Falls tour, 34 days

Planet

Wildlife: Our travelers have the chance to spot a wide range of wildlife in a number of National Parks on this trip, from the world famous plains of the Serengeti, to the lesser known Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. We ensure that all our travelers adhere to the rules and guidelines of the National Parks we visit with regards to game viewing responsibly. These include not encouraging guides to get too close to wildlife and not making loud noises to help keep any disturbance to the animals to an absolute minimum. Food and litter should be disposed of appropriately as it is not only unsightly but can cause harm to wildlife.

This guidance is also detailed in the pre-departure information provided to our travelers before they leave home, along with further advice on treating wildlife responsibly whilst traveling, such as never buying endangered species or endangered habitat products.

Part of the money paid for many of the wildlife viewing experiences on this trip contributes to the conservation and protection of the animals and their habitat. As well as visiting the National Parks, we travel through a variety of natural habitats and wilderness areas and we are very aware that we need to respect these in the same way as the National Parks.

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust works to protect Kenya’s wildlife and habitats and is most well known for its successful orphan rescue and reintroduction project. Oasis sponsors an orphaned elephant and our travelers have the opportunity to visit the DSWT orphan unit in Nairobi.

Waste: All our travelers receive detailed a pre-departure information document when they book their trip which includes advice on traveling responsibly and what they can do before they leave home to help reduce the amount of waste produced during the trip. This includes removing packaging from personal items which can be recycled at home and taking a reusable water bottle to save buying plastic bottles of water during the trip. Advice is also given about how to act responsibly during the trip such as disposing of rubbish appropriately and our Tour Leaders reiterate this at the beginning of the trip.

As a company we have a big commitment to reducing, reusing and recycling here in the UK. We are very aware of our environmental impact, so we recycle and compost as much of our waste as possible. We keep paper usage to a minimum but when necessary, we use recycled paper and stationery. Our brochure is available to view or download online and the paper version is printed on stock produced from sustainable sources and vegetable based inks.

People

Friends & neighbours: On this trip we stay at small, locally owned campsites that employ local people. Additionally, we try to stay where they also have a commitment to the communities they inhabit. Meserani Snake Park near Arusha in Tanzania started as a campsite but has become an integral and important part of the local Masai community.

From Meserani Snake Park, travelers have the opportunity to go on guided a walk to a Masai village. The walks are guided by local Masai and the profits are retained by their community. The campsite has also established a medical center for the local Masai villagers and this is partly funded by the profits from an on-site shop selling Masai crafts.

We do what we can to further support their initiatives and we have donated basic medical supplies to the medical center and have also made financial contributions to the project.

Volunteering & charity: In Harare, Zimbabwe we support the Hupenyu Hutsva Children’s Home. We came upon this Home by accident during a visit to Zimbabwe many years ago. One of our Directors was taking some supplies to a nearby children’s home and got a bit lost! He ended up at Hupenyu Hutsva by mistake and was impressed by the staffs’ dedication and commitment. We started making regular donations of food followed by educational materials, bedding, clothing, sports equipment and computers.

We are very proud of our involvement with this Home as they receive very little other support and it’s wonderful to see the differences we can make. In 2008 we funded the installation of a borehole, enabling the children and staff to be far more self-sufficient in food production. Our travelers donated seeds and gardening tools which meant the children could learn horticultural skills for the themselves.

Every year we hold our 'Kids Week' event. Over a few days, all the children and staff have a day trip out in one of our trucks, accompanied by 2 or 3 of our crew. This is a real adventure for many of the children who rarely get to leave the Home grounds and it’s a fantastic opportunity for them to see and experience somewhere different and to learn about their own country. Staff, children and Oasis crew all enjoy a huge party at the end of the week!

Local crafts and culture: Throughout this trip there are opportunities to visit local craft stalls and markets to buy a plethora of locally hand crafted items. The Masai Market in Arusha and Victoria Falls Market are just two of many, not to mention stalls that appear along the roadside. We encourage our travelers to support these during the trip and explain what an important source of income they are to local communities.

Our trip pre-departure information gives guidance on bargaining and advises travelers to pay what they feel an item is worth and to not be concerned at getting the cheapest price possible. Not only can hard bargaining for bargaining’s sake cause bad feeling, it’s important to remember that the difference of a pound or two may be little to the buyer but for a local artisan it could mean the difference between their family eating or not that night.