Our responsibility
The right kind of travel
Travel is a privilege, and with this in mind, we believe it is our responsibility to act respectfully towards the countries, cultures and environments that we visit as tourists. Beyond this, we need to be sensitive to how travel and tourism can transform destinations, for better, and for worse. It is a vast and complex subject, but ultimately we believe that the right kind of travel and tourism can and does have a positive impact on the world.
We try to promote this kind of travel as much as possible with the types of trips we organise by selecting local partners that share our values. We work with many lodges across Latin America that are directly involved in crucial conservation projects and protecting key habitats for endangered wildlife. We only use local guides and try to select independent, locally owned and run accommodation wherever possible to ensure the money you pay goes back into the pockets of local people. Below are a few more things we are doing to promote the right kind of tourism.
We Give Back
The LATA Foundation
Our founder, John, has been volunteering as part of the projects team of the LATA Foundation for several years. The LATA Foundation is a charity set up to fund a range of locally run charitable projects across Latin America. The foundation raises funds through events and donations from a variety of organisations.
“My volunteer work with the LATA Foundation gives me a huge amount of satisfaction and the opportunity to give something back to the continent I know and love.”
John Stanley, The Latin America Travel Company
The locally run projects that the foundation chooses to support are all connected in some way to tourism. A fine example of this is the Fundación Calicanto based in Panama City. This project puts disadvantaged women through a six week course with the goal of raising their self esteem and finding them employment in the hotel or restaurant industries. Find out more in the video below.
Carbon offsetting
Tree planting
We contribute to the reforestation of the Sacred Valley in Peru by planting one tree per day for every client that books our Complete Inca Trail trip. We can also arrange for you to plant a tree yourself in various destinations during your trip to help offset your carbon emissions and leave a positive mark. Please ask one of our specialists for more details.
Kids Saving The Rainforest
Wildlife Sanctuary
We arrange visits to the Kids Saving The Rainforest wildlife sanctuary in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica. This inspiring project was originally started by two 9 year old girls with a passion for protecting the rainforest. The wildlife sanctuary takes in and rehabilitates a variety of injured and orphaned animals – including sloths! We support this project by arranging visits as part of a Costa Rica tour.
Our partners
A fair deal
A big part of practicing responsible travel for us is ensuring we are working with local partners who share our values. More importantly, we also want to make sure that our suppliers get a fair deal and that our customers receive unbeatable service. We prefer to work with highly qualified drivers, guides and local hoteliers and pay a fair price for the quality service that they provide.
Your part
What can you do?
A large part of traveling responsibly is down to how you act when you visit a new destination. We provide a fully published Trip Guidebook with each booking which has tips on how to be a more ethical and responsible traveller. This involves everything from cutting down on plastic waste, to being sensitive to cultural norms that may be different to what you are used to.
“They were excellent.. Made our trip so effortless and we had wonderful guides, good quality transportation and hotels. Would definitely recommend them to everyone.”
Th Lim, April 2019.
All trips are operated by HeadsEast Ltd, UK Company registration number 6717612
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