Adventure holidays with a difference

Intrepid travellers can combine an adventure holiday with putting something back into the local communities they visit as part of a new programme launched by a tour operator.

Explore's Interact series of tours enables travellers to spend half of their break on a guided expedition, and the other half living in local communities in countries such as Peru and Uganda.

In Peru, adventure holidaymakers spend their first week in the small town of Misminay learning about the Andean mountain community's way of life.

They will help out with farming, learn the basics of the language, Quechua, and contribute to local projects such as building latrines and constructing a clay oven.

The second week of the tour is then spent exploring Peru's tourist mecca – the lost Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, the Sacred Valley and Cusco.

"The ability to get closer to local communities is the very essence of an Explore tour – a stop at a remote village, a trip to the local market or a visit to a village school," said Simon Tobin, Explore's managing director.

"Explore's new Interact tours provide opportunities for mutual experiences, where visitors gain a deeper insight into the hosts' way of life while contributing to the local economy in a tangible way."

The tour to Uganda involves working on building classrooms for a community school project in Jinja, on the banks of the river Nile, and living within the local community.

The second week of the tour is spent visiting jungles and national parks, including watching chimpanzees at the Kibale Forest.

Departures for both two-week adventure holidays are in September and October. The Peru tour costs from £1,913 per person, and the Uganda tour costs from £1,545 per person.

See www.explore.co.uk

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