G Adventures: How One Company Changed My World

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"It's about the journey, not just the destination!"

During the past year, I've had the pleasure to travel with G Adventures on 4 different tours, ranging from 7 to 33 days - in Indonesia, Ecuador and Central America. I've had so much fun travelling and witnessed beautiful landscapes, but more importantly I've gained an appreciation for different cultures.

Let me start by saying that G Adventures is unlike any other travel company out there. They create and provide authentic small group adventure tours, using local guides, local transport and locally owned accommodation wherever possible and have some of the best CEO's (Chief Experience Officers) in the world. Their core values and tour operator standards have redefined excellence and the way in which G connects with their customers. They are one of the most innovative companies in the world - offering a lifetime deposit scheme and guaranteed departures for every tour.

Honestly, I knew very little about G Adventures or Planeterra (G's non-profit arm) just over a year ago. As a big fan and new customer, I've had some very memorable experiences and grown to love G's brand and what it stands for. A socially responsible company which has revolutionized adventure travel, their model is based on five core values and supporting community-based sustainable tourism.

G Adventures core values are even printed on their CEO t-shirts:

- We love changing people's lives

- Lead with service

- Embrace the bizarre

- Do the right thing

- Create happiness & community

As their founder Bruce Poon Tip eludes to is his book Looptail, G Adventures seeks to engage customers to a higher purpose, transcend their industry, and foster a culture of freedom and happiness (which are inextricably linked). As a business, G is not only interested in making a profit, but cares about our planet and its people too. Planeterra has funded various community-based projects and social enterprises around the globe, with all operating costs paid for by G Adventures.

It would be easy for me to talk about the countless incredible adventures I've had - snorkelling with marine life in the Galapagos, or climbing volcanoes in Central America. Instead, I'd rather focus on the unique, life changing, once-in-a-lifetime experiences which really moved me and changed the way I view the world.

I've had the pleasure of getting to know four wonderful CEO's (Chief Experience Officers, a title given to every tour leader). Their passion for G and the work they do is infectious. I'm lucky enough to have met some of the most enthusiastic, knowledgeable and professional guides - Hasron in Indonesia, Henry in Ecuador, Luke and Fernando in Central America. I have learned a lot from the passionate CEO's who are without doubt the best in the business. When you travel on a G tour, you'll always meet repeat customers, an indication of just how many people identify with their brand and culture.

The below account of three life-changing experiences provides a unique insight into some of my highlights and most memorable encounters:

- Having dinner with our CEO Hasron in his family home (Indonesia)

- Living with Delfin and his family in the Amazon rainforest (Ecuador)

- Homestay experiences in Lake Atitlan and Ometepe (Guatemala/Nicaragua)

In December last year, I spent an evening dining with a Muslim family in their home in a local village in Sumatra, Indonesia. This was a really nice, authentic travel experience on many levels. Firstly, we take tuk-tuk's out to a local village which never sees travellers, where we receive a warm greeting from the locals. Then we all sit around on the floor, sharing food in the traditional way. What made this experience particularly special however, was that the family we visited just so happened to be our CEO Ron's family and it was the first time he visited them as part of a G Adventures tour. To top off this unique encounter, our small group of six are treated like celebrities as Sumatra does not get many visitors - everyone wants a photo with us, children wave hello and the local people are very friendly!

In April this year, I travelled into the Amazon jungle on a local living tour and met with Delfin, who it seems changed the course of G Adventures existence. Delfin and his family are from an indigenous community known as the Pimpilala tribe, who speak Quechua and believe in Pachamama (Mother Earth). Pimpilala Lodge formed part of G Adventures very first tour and now, a quarter of a century later, I was privileged to visit Delfin, Stella and their family to experience first hand their hospitality, kindness and generosity. During this amazing homestay, I would learn about traditional Quechua beliefs and customs, hike through the jungle and learn about medicinal plants, visit the local Cando school (a Planeterra project) and meet the 10 children who attend, and experience traditional ceremonies. It's a superb example of community based initiatives which can transform peoples lives for the better.

Then in May this year, I was fortunate enough to have another wonderful homestay experience in San Juan La Laguna at Lake Atitlan, Guatemala. The idea was to learn about Mayan culture on a Planeterra supported homestay with a local family in a Mayan Tz'utujil village. Despite my limited Spanish and their limited English (they actually speak a Mayan dialect), I have the most humbling evening at their dinner table, chatting and sharing stories with my hosts and their three sons. I also learn how to make tortilla wraps, admire paintings in a local art gallery, watch weavers use traditional techniques to dye wool, and visit a local medicinal plants garden.

Having travelled with other companies in the past, I'd find it very hard to go back, not just because G Adventures offer the best tours in the world and have the best CEO's - in the words of Bruce Poon Tip "they seek to make a difference, improve people's lives, engage with customers and local communities, support tourism and alleviate poverty".

If you'd like to know more - please feel free to contact me at: [e-mail]

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