Slovenia winter photography vacation

Planet

Slovenia has plenty of fresh water sources and the water is of excellent quality. We encourage our guests to use tap water to save environment from excessive plastics and to save some money.

Nature in Slovenia is still very well preserved although it is under constant pressure from development. While photographing we often pick up trash, educate our guests about nature, animals and plants and how it’s all connected. We always carry binoculars with us so the guests can use it for watching birds and other wildlife which helps understanding nature and its fragility. Also books about animal and plant life are always present in our van.

On this tour we spend a lot of time outdoors photographing landscapes and nature. Our guides always educate our guests about rules of conduct in Triglav national park and other important nature areas.

To reduce the amount of driving we pick accommodation that is very near the places we photograph and use it as our base. We use one accommodation which is in the center of the areas we photograph to minimise driving distances and fuel consumption. This way there is also more time for photography itself and the air is cleaner. We only use modern diesel vehicles that energy efficient and comply to the strict standards of European Union.

We do not send out any printed brochures or itineraries. Everything is available online on our website and in PDF and we discourage our guests from printing it out. Also the invoice for this tour is issued electronically. It is our small contribution to use less paper.

People

This workshop is run in the of season where there is little tourism going on in the region. We bring our guests directly to small business owners to help them earn income in low season.

We only use established local eateries and restaurants that offer locally produced seasonal food - run by local people who know traditional recipes of the area best. Food is one of the most important parts of the travel and we educate our guest about local specialities, the background of the food they eat (where it comes from, why it is important, ingredients & recipes…).

Where possible use only small local private suppliers of accommodation (pensions, b&bs, farmhouses). This way our guests benefit the true hospitality and more authentic experience and local community benefits from the money they spend – a fair trade. We communicate directly to these suppliers so there is no middle man who would get most of the money. We caress our relationship with these suppliers (usually local family or a small company) because our interest is long-term partnership. Most of the places we use will also offer something more to our guests – like invitation to wine cellar or in the season our guests can join grape harvest or help feed the farm animals…

Only local photographers with intimate knowledge of the area guide this tour. Great guide/photography leader is of key importance for us. The right person can make or break the experience of our guests so we work only with best guides and in off season we offer free training, study trips and education on different aspects (one of them is how to travel responsibly). Also our local photographers know the culture and where is allowed to photograph and where not.