Responsible Travel Tips
How you can help make a difference. - In our Responsible Travel policy we are doing our best to foster the positive effects of adventure travel, while minimising our harmful impacts on local communities and their environment. With your help we can really make this happen. Here are a few good ideas about how you can help minimise the negatives and accentuate the positive aspects of adventure travel.
What to do before you travel
- Learn a bit of the local language and don’t be afraid to use it. Being able to say even a few words like hello, please and thank you will help you to connect with people
- Bring aphrase book on tour and keep practising to improve your confidence. You will also find some good language tips in the country dossier(s)
- You may also find it helpful to research the culture, religion, traditions and local values of the destination you’re visiting. This will not only help you to appreciate the way different people live, but also make your experience more meaningful
- Learn about appropriate body language. Certain hand gestures like doing the thumbs up (positive in Western culture) may have a very different meaning in Turkey, for example. - Bring appropriate clothing with you (or purchase it at your destination, to save weight in your luggage and support local enterprises)
- Be aware that both men and women may be required to dress modestly in places of spiritual significance, like temples, churches or mosques. You’ll need long-sleeved shirts, trousers, a skirt that reaches well below the knee and shoes which cover your toes to cover up properly. You may miss out on visiting these special places without appropriate clothing, so it pays to be prepared.
- Try to pack light. Reducing the weight of your luggage will reduce the amount of work the taxi, airplane, train, coach or expedition vehicle will have to do to transport your gear and therefore reduce carbon emissions – and you’ll make your own life easier!
- In many countries you will encounter a level of poverty which you won’t find at home. Although we would generally discourage offering gifts to beggars, we would suggest that if you feel the need to help, bring a stack of pens and writing pads and hand these out to children rather than offering sweets or money. Your alternative gifts will still be popular and the parents will thank you for saving their children’s teeth – access to dental services may not be readily available
- We’d also encourage you to think of alternative ways to help, such as supporting a local community organisation, which may be more constructive and offer more long term benefits
- Cut out plastic – remove and recycle plastic packaging of new travel gear before you pack, and bring a light cotton or string bag for your shopping so you can politely refuse plastic bags at shops and markets
- Try to bring rechargeable batteries as disposable batteries leach toxic chemicals as they degrade in landfill, and recycling facilities are scarce in some countries. - Bring your own metal water bottle. Fill up at restaurants or treat your own water on tour instead of buying lots of plastic bottles. Bear in mind that there may not be recycling facilities available at some destinations
- Take public transport to the airport and reduce the emissions caused by private cars etc
- Include a percentage amount for tips when you are working out your budget. Tips are the main means of survival for workers in many countries.
Cusco Tourist Tickets (Boleto Turistico - Cusco).-The Cusco Tourist Ticket (130 soles for 10 days, students 70 soles; a one-day ticket costs 70 soles, no discounts) is a vital purchase for most visitors. It's the only way to get into most of the city's and region's main attractions and comes with useful maps and other information, including opening times. It does not give entry to the Catedral, Iglesia San Blas or Museo de Arte Religioso ["museum of religious art"], which each cost a separate $5 entry... The ticket is, in theory, available from all of the sites on the ticket, but in practice it's best to buy from the Tourist Information office in Calle Mantas, the i-Peru office at Avenida Sol 103 (Galerias Turisticas, room 2; T. 227037) or the office at Casa Garcilaso on the corner of Garcilaso and Heladeros (Mon-Fri 7.45am-6pm, Sat 8.30am-4pm, Sun 8am-noon) (p.249).
*Mountain sickness "soroche".- Soroche, or mountain sickness, is a reality for most people arriving in Cusco by plane from sea level and needs to be treated with respect. It's vital to take it easy not eating or drinking much on arrival, even sleeping a whole day just to assist acclimatization (coca tea is a good local remedy). After three days at this height most people have adjusted sufficiently to tackle moderate hikes at similar or lesser altitudes. Anyone considering tackling the major mountains around Cusco will need time to adjust again to their higher base camps (p.248) [When you come by bus from Lima it can be some passengers have soroche in the bus. One is chewing coca leafs against soroche in the bus.
*Crime in Cusco by extreme poverty.- Poverty is so strong in Cusco - and the upper class of Peru is not giving any cent of the big profits of Machu Picchu to the Cusco population, so there is crime against tourists in Cusco. When the window glass cannot be repaired and people are freezing in the night there will be criminality to have money for the window glass etc. Tourist companies are also instigating a hatred against the tourists e.g. when tourists have the better buses than the population, and tourist restaurants give pizzas for 30 soles what is 3 times a daily income for a native, and tourist hotels have always water, the population in the suburbs only 2 hours every 2 days. At the same time the government of Peru maintains that tourism would be "important". Yes, for the money bag of the government, tourism is important, not to for the natives! By this the government of Peru and it's corrupt industry are giving conditions that criminality and envy will not stop].Cusco police have made a real effort to clean up the city's poor reputation for pickpocketing, bag snatching and street muggings. However, in recent years there have been several reports of "strangle muggings", whereby tourists are jumped and strangled to the point of fainting before being robbed. Although crimes in general are rare, it's still best to avoid walking along empty streets late at night, especially if alone. The police claim that robberies are virtually non-existent around the Plaza de Armas or Avenida Sol, but admit that incidents are still possible in the Central Market and the area downhill from here. The train stations tend to be well policed by private security, and inside the railway compounds problems are almost non-existent... If you are unlucky enough to have anything stolen, report it to the Tourist Police. On the other hand, if you need help or advice to make a claim against a local tourism operator or service provider who has seriously failed to deliver what they promised (it's always a good idea to get this written down and signed as agreed by the operator before paying) you'll get better results by going to the i-peru Tourist Assistance office, or contact your consulate.
*Taxi service.- You should be particularly careful when arriving at Lima’s Jorge Chavez international airport. Unwary passengers are often approached by thieves masquerading as tour operators, people who pretend to know them or bogus taxi drivers. There have been frequent cases of rogue taxis being used at the information kiosk next to the airport exit. Tourists have also been targeted and robbed by bogus taxi drivers elsewhere, especially at night. The safest way to travel by taxi is to always call a licensed taxi company, which may be marginally more expensive, but it is much safer than hailing a taxi on the street. If possible you should always book a taxi in advance from a reputable company, hotels and tour guides will be able to chances with unlicensed taxis. If you cannot avoid taking a taxi from the street, try to use a taxi that is licensed. It is not always easy to determine this as taxis vary greatly in different areas of Peru. Generally licensed taxis will have their registration number on the side of the vehicle and a drive's identification card prominently displayed in the vehicle. But in all cases be sure to take a conspicuous note of the registration number before getting into the vehicle.
