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10 Top Philanthropic Travel Adventures
Philanthropic travel—which connects travelers and communities that can benefit from the visitors—is a growing luxury travel niche. Here are 10 rewarding adventures for those who want to see the world and help it too.
01. CLIMATE WATCH IN ANTARCTICA
Antarctica has long been considered the world’s last frontier, but thanks to climate change, that frontier is starting to look very different. Aboard its luxurious Le Boreal cruise ship, Abercrombie & Kent offers travelers a chance to witness the effects of climate change. Guests visit remote islands and cruise alongside icebergs and glaciers for close-up views of wildlife. At the trip’s conclusion, guests present the U.S. Palmer Research Station with new equipment to support ecological research projects relevant to the study of climate change.
Contact
Susan Griffith
800.554.7094
akphilanthropy.org
02. CHILDHOOD EDUCATION IN NAIROBI
Micato Safaris offers a top-notch tour: Stroll through the jacaranda-lined streets of Nairobi, visit tea estates and wildlife rescue centers, and stay at the legendary Norfolk Hotel, where Ernest Hemingway and Teddy Roosevelt once lodged. But Micato Safaris also provides guests the chance to help educate one of Africa’s 15 million AIDS orphans and children living in poverty. Through their nonprofit America Share, Micato matches philanthropic travelers with a child living in the Mukuru slums outside Nairobi. A $1,500 donation buys the child a year at a reputable boarding school and underwrites fees, tuition and uniform. The program now provides primary and high school education for 290 orphaned and vulnerable children.
Contact
Dennis Pinto
212.545.7111
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03. SUPPORTING FAMILIES IN VIETNAM
A bespoke private tour of Vietnam might include dining in French colonial villas in Hanoi, shopping at colorful markets in Saigon and visiting terraced rice fields in Sapa—all while staying at the finest hotels in the region. Though luxury is a given, Artisans of Leisure also emphasizes culture and philanthropy. One philanthropic opportunity pairs travelers with local families to donate an essential item—like, say, a water buffalo, which help local farmers work their fields more efficiently and can dramatically improve their quality of life.
Contact
Ashley Ganz
800.214.8144
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artisansofleisure.com
04. CONSERVATION IN THE GALÁPAGOS
Guests onboard Lindblad Expeditions’ National Geographic Islander can marvel at this archipelago while Zodiacs and kayaks provide an up-close look at the pristine beaches, spectacular waved albatrosses and Galápagos penguins. A team of naturalists help educate Darwin fans about the islands’ conservation efforts. Lindblad works with its guests to raise money—$4.5 million to date—for projects such as the eradication of nonnative feral pigs on Santiago Island.
Contact
800.EXPEDITION
expeditions.com
05. H2O APPRECIATION IN KENYA
Elevate Destinations’ “Water 2010: Kenya” tour offers travelers a chance to better understand the water crisis in this drought-ravaged country. Guests can meet with leading Kenyan water experts in Nairobi, observe the fragile ecosystems of Lake Naivasha and Lake Victoria, and examine the effects of the recent drought in Samburuland. Accommodation is at the luxurious Ol Malo lodge, built into a rock escarpment at the edge of the Laikipia Plateau.
Contact
Dominique Callimanopulos
617.661.0203
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elevatedestinations.com
06. ORGANIC FARMING IN INDIA
Pench National Park lies at the foothills of the Satpura Range in Madhya Pradesh, in the heart of India. Home to endangered tigers, the park also boasts four-horned antelope, leopards, sloth bears and striped hyenas. Guests at travel company & Beyond’s luxurious Baghvan Pench Jungle Lodge are immersed in the sights and sounds of the Indian jungle. Morning and afternoon game drives are nestled between sumptuous Indian meals, which help provide travelers with a unique way to give back. Guests can explore the organic gardens and gray water system and learn to prepare traditional central Indian cuisine; the &Beyond Foundation helps fund sustainable agriculture in the area.
Contact
Sharleen Landsman
888.882.3742
andbeyond.com
07. MICROLOANS IN CAMBODIA
Cambodia has much to offer visitors, and socially conscious travel company Go Philanthropic organizes Cambodian tours that allow travelers to support local communities. Guests can spend an afternoon with a nonprofit, Journeys Within Our Community, to see how it is changing the lives of local residents by offering small business loans. Thanks to the largesse of traveler-philanthropists, JWOC has made 50 microloans financing small businesses from secondhand clothing vendors to spice stalls.
Contact
Lydia Dean
585.319.3890
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gophilanthropic.com
08. SCHOOL LUNCHES IN KILIMANJARO
Luxurious lodges complete with four-poster beds and table linens are not normally what to expect on a safari, but Exquisite Safaris Mara Great Migration Camp in Tanzania is a five-star affair—as is the exquisite Dunes Camp on the Indian Ocean, where the beach doubles as a runway for the small plane that brings you there. But this trip isn’t all wildlife-watching and beach hammocks. Exquisite Safaris collaborates with nonprofits such as Kids of Kilimanjaro, where travelers can engage and contribute towards a school lunch program that feeds 13,000 students and extends school hours.
Contact
David Chamberlain
775.309.1428
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exquisitesafaris.com
09. RITZY GIVE BACK GETAWAYS
As part of their Give Back Getaways program, the 71 Ritz-Carlton hotels around the world are each partnered with a local charitable organization. Guests spend a half-day with Ritz-Carlton staff enjoying philanthropic experiences, from participating in a musical therapy session with disabled children in Istanbul to monitoring wildlife at the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge in Naples to helping restore the ancient town of Wuzhen outside Shanghai. All of the profits from Ritz’s volunteer vacations are donated to the nonprofit partner organizations.
Contact
Sue Stephenson
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ritzcarlton.com
10. GORILLA WATCHING IN UGANDA
Absolute Travel’s custom tours feature the best of Uganda—from hippo spotting along the Kazinga Channel to absorbing the local culture in the capital Kampala. Guests stay at Uganda’s premier lodge, the Volcanoes Bwindi Lodge in Buhoma Village, which overlooks the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, home to the magnificent but endangered mountain gorilla. Guests can spend a day with Ugandan nonprofit Conservation Through Public Health, which focuses on gorilla conservation by providing healthcare and education to locals. Donations received from gorilla tourism promote sustainable livelihoods for some of the poorest Africans.
Contact
Katie Losey
212.627.1950, ext. 303
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absolutetravel.com