By Sophia Sleap

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Popular tourist trekking destinations such as Sapa in Vietnam and Chiang Mai in Thailand see hundreds of backpackers and holidaymakers trample their way through the surrounding hill-tribe villages every week. Many of these tours offer ‘homestays’, where you spend a night or two in the home of a local family.

The author taking a break on a bike ride in the Lao hills outside Luang Prabang, Laos

Although these trips offer valuable insight into how the local people live and the booking agents do usually pay the host families a fair wage, the experience can be spoiled somewhat by the hordes of other tourists making their way along the same route. Fortunately, there are alternatives: travellers seeking a more authentic experience of glorious Southeast Asian countryside are increasingly looking to less commercial destinations, such as Laos, to satisfy their curiosity.
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Posted under General, Laos, countries, local tips, responsible traveller, whl.travel newsletter

By Ethan Gelber

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At the July 2009 whl.travel Asia-Pacific Regional conference, Teamworkz Consulting was officially recognised as the whl.travel Franchisee of the Year 2008-2009 for its work in Vientiane, Laos. Teamworkz, which also owns and operates five other sites in Laos and seven in Thailand, could just as easily have earned its laurels for its labours in Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng, both also in Laos.

Teamworkz Consulting accepting its accolades as Franchisee of the Year 2008-2009 at the whl.travel Asia Pacific regional conference. Left to right are: Rob Shortland, whl.travel Asia Pacific Regional Director; Anne Done, Lee Sheridan and Mouk of Teamworkz; Len Cordiner, CEO of WHL Group

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Posted under General, Laos, Thailand, Turkey, Vanuatu, awards, countries, responsible organisations, responsible travel news, whl.travel news, whl.travel newsletter

By Paul Tavner

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Although Laos is well known for its natural beauty, you have to see it to believe it. Actually, sometimes really seeing it – living it the way locals do rather than just passing through it – is the only way to believe it. After all, with the thick jungle that covers much of the landlocked nation sometimes making venturing off the beaten track a daunting prospect, if you’re going to lurch toward the little-known, you might as well live it as fully as possible. Thus it goes with the genuinely breathtaking experiences of two of Laos’ most popular and stunning waterfalls: Kuang Si and Tad Se, both located within easy reach of the northern city of Luang Prabang.

A wooden bridge, part of the path network that surrounds Kuang Si, crosses the main run-off from the falls

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Posted under General, Laos, countries, local tips, whl.travel newsletter

Clean Breaks, 500 New Ways to See the World (read a review), published in August 2009 by Rough Guides, is a full-colour guide of the authors’ handpicked choices of the world’s best hotels, tours and activities run by people who are passionate about what they do in an environmentally and socially responsible manner.

Hiking through paddy fields in Thailand, you will definitely feel like you've made a clean break from your regular routine. Photo courtesy of Rough Guides

Needless to say, there’s an inspiring overlap between the authors’ motivations and the whl.travel vision, the latter being to locate and promote the kinds of small, grassroots travel initiatives that, over time and with the support of travellers, are positive steps toward improving a place, and help shape it in a caring and sustainable way.

To illustrate this, the following links take you to abridged Clean Breaks excerpts (in black) paired with mentions (in blue) of the further resources in select destinations available through whl.travel. After all, it is our shared belief that readers inspired by Clean Breaks are the kinds of people who see the value in traveling with whl.travel.

• Fair Trade Holidays in South Africa
• Treks through Villages in Nepal
• Jungle Lodges in the Amazon
• Green Luang Prabang, Laos
• In Search of the Real Fiji
• Explore Borjomi-Kharangauli National Park, Georgia
• Dive at Bunaken, Indonesia

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Posted under Brazil, Fiji, General, Georgia, Indonesia, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, countries, responsible organisations, responsible travel, responsible travel news, whl.travel newsletter