Bamboo - combining travel, responsible tourism and volunteering
There are so many different types of holiday available nowadays that we are spoiled for choice. From activity and adventure holidays to wildlife encounters, cultural tours, shopping based trips, nature tours, luxury beach getaways or cruises it can be hard to decide how to spend our vacation time.
If you’ve been following my blog you will know that I am passionate about the environment, wildlife and for trying to give something back to the amazing world in which we live. So when an advert from Bamboo popped up in my Facebook feed how was I to resist?
What is Bamboo?
Bamboo is an independent adventure travel company with a difference. They are dedicated to responsible tourism and each tour is designed around giving–back to the communities that they visit, creating a positive impact and enabling travelers and communities to work together.
Bamboo tours are a mix of holiday, cultural experience, having loads of fun and giving back to local communities.
Bamboo offer tours to amazing destinations such as Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Bali, Uganda, Costa Rica, Tahiti, Nepal and India.
Arriving In Tahiti
The tour which appealed to me the most was the Ten Day Discover Tahiti tour. It is an off the beaten track tour of Tahiti and Moorea in French Polynesia which includes volunteering with ocean conservation projects, beach cleanups, swimming with sharks and rays, learning about Tahitian culture and spending time in the Tahitian jungle.. So I made my booking and that’s how I found myself in Tahiti’s Papeete airport at 2.30am feeling tired from my flights but ready for my next adventure.
It can be hard to find a taxi in more remote locations in the early hours and most hotels do not allow check-in until 2pm on your arrival day so I had booked a taxi together with an extra night’s accommodation which would give me immediate access to my room.
If your flight arrives in the early hours of the morning I would recommend this approach. True it will cost a little extra, but I promise you will be so happy you did this as it will help you to recover from the flight and will get your holiday off to a really good start.
Meeting my Bamboo group
For many solo travelers meeting the people who you will be travelling with or perhaps sharing a room with can be quite daunting. Even the most seasoned solo traveler can find themselves wondering - what will the other people be like? Will we get along together? Will I fit in? Or even - will they like me?
Despite my many travels I still have these feelings but I realise that it is completely natural to be a little nervous. If you find yourself in this situation my advice would be - Just Be Yourself and remember that your travel buddies are probably also having those same thoughts.
Every traveler is different. Some will dive headlong into everything, others may hang back and may seem distant. It takes all kinds to make the world so don’t jump to conclusions about people as even the most quiet and reserved person has something valuable to add to the group. Often these people end up being the glue which pulls the group together.
There are seven of us in our group on this particular tour. All women around the same age as we had opted for the Young at Heart over 50s tour. Everyone in the group (except me) was travelling from the USA and were transiting via LAX ( Los Angeles Airport). Bamboo had set up a Facebook Group for us about six weeks before the start of our trip which gave us a chance to chat on line before we met in person. This also enables the other girls to meet up in LA so they have the chance to share a beer before they arrive in Papeete.
Their flight lands around 6am and they are met by Moana who will be our Bamboo guide for the next ten days. Moana takes them to the hotel but as they are too early to check into their rooms he suggests they go into Papeete to explore. They send me a message but I am still sleeping so they head into town returning at 2pm to check in.
We make contact later in the day and arrange to meet outside the hotel reception for pre-dinner drinks. We have all heard how expensive alcohol is in Tahiti so everyone went shopping in Duty Free and soon the tables are overflowing with bottles, glasses and various types of snacks. We chat excitedly, introducing ourselves and explaining why we each chose this trip. Before we know it the sun has set and we are all hungry so we head over to the restaurant for dinner.
We have an early start tomorrow and as we’re all feeling tired we head back to our rooms straight after dinner. I go to bed with a positive feeling. This is a great bunch of women and I know it’s going to be a fun trip.
