Naturally, enjoyment is our number one priority when travelling, but at the same time we need to consider the impact our travels may have on the environment. Therefore, we try to do as much as possible to reduce our ecological footprint on our safaris. We implement various initiatives to reduce this to a minimum:
This travel agency is founded by the love for animals and our entire business depends on it. Naturally, we want wildlife to thrive and the wellbeing and correct treatment of wildlife is incredibly important to us. We don’t condone any activities where any animals and/or nature is put in harm, neither from our partners or our guests. We’d like the pristine nature in Tanzania to remain as it is so we can enjoy these magnificent animals for years and years to come. We kindly ask people to refrain from booking a safari with us if they are not willing to show respect towards our wildlife.
Most tour operators take those 500ml plastic water bottles on safari, you know the ones! On average, travellers drink at least 4 of these bottles per person per day. That means a family of 4 would use about 160 plastic bottles for a 10-day trip. And that’s just one family!. Imagine the amount of plastic after a year… That, while there are excellent ways to cut down on plastic use. Therefore, we installed a large refillable container with fresh drinking water in our Arusha Trips safari vehicles. During the trip you get your own bottle, which you can refill and keep in the cool box. Now you can always enjoy delicious, cool drinking water without wasting plastic!
When you go on safari, you often get a packed lunch in a cardboard box, wrapped in plastic. Sometimes you even get plastic cutlery along with it. We find that rather unnecessary… Arusha Trips uses its own picnic boxes (hamper) during the safaris, filled with plates, cutlery, glasses and a picnic blanket. These are taken back to the accommodation after use and washed for reuse. This prevents a mountain of unnecessary (plastic) waste. The little waste we do create, we take back with us and make sure it ends up in the bin. That way we keep the parks nice and clean! Not only is it a more sustainable way to eat your lunch, it is also a lot tastier and offers a much more enjoyable experience than eating out of a cardboard box. Just look at the pictures above!
When choosing our accommodations, besides the fact that it has to be a nice lodge, we also look at how the staff is treated, the waste and energy policy, if local suppliers are used and whether the local community is supported. The same applies for the activities organised by our local partners.
We visit our partner accommodations and activities regularly. However, we don’t have eyes and ears everywhere. This is where you as a traveler are incredibly important. If you see or hear anything that contradicts these values, please let us know.
We are delighted to organise excursions to local projects that support the community in and around Arusha, part of the proceeds of which will be donated. Examples include visiting or helping to build schools for children’s education, visiting shelters for local orphans, or even playing soccer with the city’s local talents. These great initiatives give you an impression of the local life in Tanzania (apart from tourism) and are often very educational, heartwarming experiences for our guests. Here you are given the chance to really make a difference in the lives of our local community.
You too can contribute to a more sustainable future for Tanzania and for the tourism industry in general. There are many, many, simple ways to do this and we would love to help you make your travels more sustainable.
1. REQUEST A TAILOR-MADE SAFARI
2. CALL WITH US ABOUT YOUR TRAVEL PLANS
3. CO-CREATE YOUR DREAMSAFARI
4. PACK YOUR STUFF, SAFARI NJEMA!
