07 May What Does Responsible Travel Look Like with Venture Uganda?
At Venture Uganda, we’re pleased to say we’ve had a wonderfully busy start to the year, with very strong bookings for both Uganda and Rwanda. We’ve also enjoyed attending a number of B2B events, and we’re busy developing new partnerships.
Encouragingly, responsible travel is high on the agenda with everyone we speak to, which is great to see. With that in mind, we’re using this month’s post to share some of the latest updates in responsible travel news.
Community Fruit Tree Project: Tackling Deforestation in Rukungiri, Uganda
As many of you will know, one of our directors, Michael, is from the Rukungiri district in Uganda, and it’s an area where we focus some of our responsible travel efforts.
This year, we’ve started an exciting new project with Bishop’s High School, Kyabugashe.
To help tackle deforestation, poor nutrition, and the loss of bird habitat, we’re working with the school to plant fruit trees along the boundary. By involving students in the tree-planting process, they are not only helping to restore the environment, but they are also being educated on the benefits of trees, from family nutrition and climate change to agriculture and bird conservation.
Once the trees are planted at the school, we plan to establish a community demonstration plot where anyone can come and learn!
The first trees are already in the ground at the school, and clients staying in the area are very welcome to visit and plant some trees during their stay. In addition to this, we are also accepting donations towards the cost of seedlings and plan to extend the project to another local school over time.
If you’d like more details about this project, please contact us.
New Community Eco-Lodge: Namoni Lodge Opens Near Kidepo Valley National Park, Uganda
Namoni Lodge in Kidepo has officially opened its doors and is now taking bookings and welcoming guests.
This community eco-lodge is situated just outside Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda. The lodge offers 10 mid-range, tented rooms, each with a deck overlooking the park, so you can wake each morning with the savannah right on your doorstep.
The vision behind the lodge is to embrace core values such as community-focused development, preserving local culture, and reducing environmental impact. It’s part of a wider, well-established effort to use tourism as a way to uplift this historically underdeveloped region of Uganda.
If you’d like to find out more, we’d love to help.
University Development Studies: Behind-the-Scenes Access to Rwanda’s Policy
We’re proud to continue running highly successful educational visits, and most recently, we concluded a trip to Rwanda for university students of development studies.
According to indicators such as literacy levels, maternal mortality and life expectancy, Rwanda is a rapidly developing country. We give students behind the scenes access to learn more about Rwanda’s development policies and their implementation and to test theories that have been learnt in the classroom in a real-world setting. This is quite an eye-opener for many!
We truly believe that travel to Africa challenges some media stereotypes and exposes people to different ways of doing things, while encouraging respectful interaction and mutual understanding.
We’re always happy to discuss a school or university trip and crossover visits (educational visits that tourists might enjoy), if you’d like to learn more.
Save 40%: Discounted Permits for Uganda Gorilla and Chimpanzee Tracking
Low season travel has long been regarded as a responsible way to travel, helping to avoid overtourism in popular areas at certain times of the year.
And now, there’s even more reason to consider it.
The Uganda Wildlife Authority has recently announced the reintroduction of discounted low-season permits for gorilla and chimpanzee tracking during certain months: April, May, and November. This reduces the price of gorilla tracking to USD 600pp and chimp tracking to USD 200pp for foreign nationals during these periods. Please note that low-season permits cannot be rescheduled and, like all permits, are non-refundable.
We welcome this initiative and will be happy to provide quotes for low-season enquiries.
Support Local Incomes: Authentic Cultural and Farm Visits in Uganda
We love taking clients into our communities to meet local people and gain insight into their daily lives, while also helping to boost their incomes.
Farm visits are always a highlight, such as coffee farms, beekeepers, or pineapple gardens. The best time to visit, of course, is during harvest (especially at the mango farm!), when you are free to taste everything – yum!
There is plenty to learn about culture too, particularly when visiting cattle keepers or learning the craft of banana gin making. We have so many ways to help ensure the holidays we sell have a positive impact not just on wildlife and environments, but on local people too.
Please just ask if you’d like more info on our community visits.
Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary Achievement: Southern White Rhinos Ready for Translocation
And finally, to round things off, we thought we’d end this post with a fantastic conservation success story!
During times of conflict, rhinos were devastatingly wiped out in Uganda. For many years, Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary has been running a breeding programme for southern white rhinos, and we’re delighted to say that numbers have now reached the point where rhinos can be translocated back into some national parks and wildlife reserves.
A huge congratulations to the Uganda Wildlife Authority and all its partners who have contributed to this amazing achievement!