Why choose to travel with Footprint Adventures?

We are totally committed to conservation

We try keeping all places cleaner than we find them, which we also ask of you. We offer a wide choice of safaris and treks to the adventure traveller, ranging from camping safaris, to wildlife safaris, trekking tours and bird watching trips. As a member of the Travel Trust Association you enjoy total financial protection.

Our philosophy is based on sustainability

The long term assurance that whatever activity we conduct in any specific natural area, must contribute to the conservation and the well being of the inhabitants of that area, thus ensuring that future generations will be able to visit those same areas and enjoy the same experience.

Local Guides 

All our tours are guided by local experts, ensuring of the best possible knowledge available to you, after all this is their own backyard.

Local Contents 

All arrangements for your stay and transportation are made by locals, insuring maximum benefits to the local communities and at the same time keeping costs at a reasonable level with no compromise in standards. Our clients can therefore feel assured that a percentage of the tour fee goes directly to the local communities.

Small Groups 

On our treks and safaris we travel in small groups making the trip much more enjoyable and avoiding negative impact on the environment and local communities.

Porters and Tourism Concern

 Footprint Adventures support Tourism Concern in their campaign to improve working conditions for porters employed by the tourist industries around the world. Guides and head porters are responsible for their porters and they will have available specific emergency funds to pay for porters to be evacuated and treated in case of sickness or accident. Porters will be paid a stable and fair basic wage. Provisions are made for porters’ food and accommodation so that they do not have to provide for this out of their wages. Equipment appropriate to each stage of each particular trek will be provided to porters, including, for example; sleeping tents, protective clothing, carrying equipment and kerosene for their own use. A maximum load has been set and porters will not be asked to carry more than this under normal circumstances.

Total Financial Security

Footprint Adventures are full members of the Travel Trust Association with a membership number of R704x. The Travel Trust Association regulations require member travel agents to hold all received monies in a special client account. This account is totally separate from the business bank accounts of the member and is controlled by an independent trustee whose signature is required, along with that of the member, before the release of any funds. Trustees audit the accounts monthly, and must belong to an approved professional body, accountants, solicitors, banks etc, and be approved by the Travel Trust Association.

Total flexibility

You can choose to join a small international group or have a private departure.

Local Guides

All our tours are guided by local birding, trekking and wildlife experts, ensuring of the best possible expertise, after all this is their own backyard.

Knowledge of destinations

We pride ourselves on the detailed knowledge of our destinations. We have lived and worked in many of the countries we visit.

Take advantage of cost effective air travel

All our adventure tours exclude International air fares, allowing you to take advantage of the many fares on offer.

Environmental Guidelines 

By following these simple guidelines, you can help to reduce the impact on the environment, minimize the possibility of animal suffering and stress, and encourage respect and appreciation of other cultures and traditions.

Campsite 

Remember another party will be using the same campsite after you have left. Leave the site cleaner than you found it.

Don’t Fuel the Fire

Always discard matches and cigarettes with great care but also keep the use of wood for fuel to a minimum. When possible, take kerosene or an alternative fuel source for cooking and heating purposes.

Remove litter

Burn or bury paper and carry out all non-degradable litter.

Keep local water clean

Avoid using pollutants such as detergents in streams or springs. If no toilet facilities are available, make sure you are at least 30 meters away from water sources, and bury or cover waste. Use fresh water sparingly – it is very precious.

Plants should be left to flourish

Taking cuttings, seeds and roots is illegal in many parts of the world. Also remember the trade in many wildlife products is strictly illegal.

Help your guides 

Help your guides and porters to follow conservation measures.

When taking photographs

Respect privacy - ask permission and use restraint.

Respect Holy places

Preserve what you have come to see, never touch or remove religious objects. Shoes should be removed when visiting temples.

Giving to children encourages begging 

Please do not hand out sweets, pens, money etc at will.  This not only encourages begging and aggression from children, but also promotes expectancy well into later life.  If you want to positively give during your holiday, ask us to incorporate a visit to a school during your trip.

Follow local customs

You will be accepted and welcomed if you follow local customs.  Learn basic phrases from the local language, such as “please”, “thank you”, and “can you help me?”  Travelling with respect earns you respect.

Clothes

Loose lightweight clothes are preferable to revealing shorts, skimpy tops and tight fitting action wear. 

Encourage local pride

Visitors who value local traditions, encourage local pride and maintain local cultures. Please help local people gain a realistic view of life in Western Countries.

Respect Animals 

In National Parks and Wilderness areas the animals are wild. Harassment can cause stress, keep your distance if you are in a safari vehicle or other forms of transport. In some situations it is possible to get really close, this makes for great pictures but Mountain Gorillas, for example, can catch human diseases which can be fatal.

Stay on Track

Unsupervised off road driving can cause irreparable damage to the soil and vegetation, all for the sake of that once in a lifetime shot. In many areas, trekking and climbing are popular leisure activities. By carefully keeping to marked paths and routes, human impact can be kept to a minimum.

Local purchases

Purchase handcrafts from the makers in their respective villages if you can, rather than from a large craft shop in town. Spread your buying around various stalls, so that your money benefits many families rather than one. Buy local produce rather than imported goods.  Do not buy products made from endangered species, hard woods or ancient artefacts.  Bargain fairly and with respect for the seller.  Be aware of the economic realities of where you are.  Haggling is the norm in many cultures, but don’t feel upset that as a visitor who potentially earns 100 times a local’s salary, you are expected to pay slightly more than the local price.