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Sustainable Travel · · 5 min read

7 Travel Experiences that will Change Your Life Forever

From the conservation sanctuaries in Southeast Asia, to the poverty-stricken regions of South America, there are many causes and a lot of people who need your help. Even if you’re just looking to travel for your own spiritual growth and evolve as a mindful human being, there is no shortage of amazin

7 Travel Experiences that will Change Your Life Forever
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From the conservation sanctuaries in Southeast Asia, to the poverty-stricken regions of South America, there are many causes and a lot of people who need your help. Even if you’re just looking to travel for your own spiritual growth and evolve as a mindful human being, there is no shortage of amazing destinations across the globe where you can find yourself, escape the daily stress of your hectic life back home, and figure out what you want to do with your life.

Today, we’ll be touching on some of the best travel experiences and destinations you can have while journeying the globe. Some will emphasize the need to help others so get ready to clean up litter from beaches, build schools, and transport medicine to remote villages. Others will prioritize mindful travel and self-exploration so that you can ultimately become a better earthling. Let’s go.

Volunteer to do good in Costa Rica

Travel Experiences that will Change Your Life Forever - Have Fun Do Good

Companies that are making globetrotting more meaningful and purposeful for the local community are becoming increasingly popular with each passing year. One of these innovative travel companies is Have Fun Do Good, a volunteer-based travel agency that takes you to amazing exotic destinations where your helping hand is needed. But it’s far more than just grunt work.

What makes companies like this interesting and appealing is that they act as a community, and they plan interesting activities for small groups so that you can fuse work and play seamlessly at your destination. You’ll be surfing and cleaning beaches, snorkeling and pulling out litter from the ocean floor, cleaning forests and natural reserves while camping, and much more. It’s truly a unique and rewarding experience.

Sustainable Travel Experiences And Protecting the Extraordinary Species in Tanzania

Travel Experiences that will Change Your Life Forever - Above Safaris

Above Safaris creates tailor-made adventures in Tanzania that are grounded in responsibility, sustainability, and community innovation. This Earth Day, we urge adventurers around the world to consider how their actions can help protect our species. By protecting the wildlife of Tanzania, we are preserving an essential part of what makes Tanzania extraordinary.

Wildlife plays a vital role in the Tanzanian ecology, and the environmental future of the world. Responsible and sustainable travel allows adventurers to take action by supporting conservation efforts, creating opportunities for local people, and limiting environmental impact.

Thousands of different species call Tanzania home. With 17 National Parks and 20% of Africa’s massive mammal population, Tanzania is the prime game viewing country in the world.

Travel sustainably and aid the environmental cause in India

Travel Experiences that will Change Your Life Forever - Hara House
Hara House – Zero Waste Guesthouse in India

It should go without saying that, as a mindful traveler, you should aim to minimize your carbon footprint and any negative impact your travels might have on a global and local scale. You need to hold yourself accountable and travel with companies that are a part of a sustainable travel network, like the one in India for example, that emphasize low-impact travel methods.

This will help you aid the preservation of the natural world around you, as well as the conservation of the ever-decreasing natural resources. By becoming a sustainable traveler, you will give back to the local communities you visit, and you will feel better for it as a result. These habits will inspire you to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle back home.

Learn the craft of ethical and artisan fashion in Panama

Thread Caravan employs local artisans to continue practicing their craft without the pressure to sell the goods they produce. This allows for appreciation of the process, and for travelers to learn about traditional craft production in communities where various crafts have originated and have been practiced for generations. Their 5 – 7 night trips, which can also be customized for groups, also include adventurous activities such as sailing, hiking volcanoes and visiting ancient ruins.

On this specific travel experience you will explore the Guna Yala islands off the Caribbean coast of Panama. The islands are home to the Guna people, a sovereign indigenous group that retains much of their heritage and traditions. You will spend 4 days and nights living on a sailboat and island-hopping, connecting with the local community to share stories and learn about their culture and textile traditions.

Help Build a School in Nepal

Lower Merion High School 2019 Trek to Nepal

Travel experiences can be very personally impactful, but imagine if that experience lasted for decades. BuildOn offers this opportunity by traveling to 1 of 7 country, stay in a local village, and help build a school that will become a focal point of that same community for decades.

With the help of the local village and travelers like yourself, the organization builds schools in areas that lack adequate classrooms – where students learn in huts, are taught under trees, or walk miles to a neighboring villages. Or don’t go to school at all.

MovingWorlds allows individuals to pick a country to travel to and help by donating their skills for a set period of time in return for a free place to stay. You can donate your skills in Business Development, Marketing, Social Media, Sales, Graphic Design and much more.

For this particular trip you can donate your web skills to a social impact educational organization in Cambodia. The organization is looking for someone to train their team on various web-based tools, mainly related to SEO. They currently have a website but they’d like to get more traffic and improve the overall site. If you are interested in coming to Thailand to train their team then this is the opportunity for you!

Pick a country and stay with a local

Work and travel is a pretty popular concept nowadays, and people from all over the world are flocking to tourist hotspots in search of seasonal jobs that will fill their pockets with material wealth. However, this is not the way to experience a local’s way of life, or the way to give back to the local communities you meet. So, forget about Miami and Cancun, and instead opt to stay with a local family in yet another exotic destination, and simply help out.

There are many families around the world, mostly farmers, who are in need of hardworking travelers who are willing to help around the estate in exchange for a bed, a roof over their head, and a belly full of food. You will find such offers on popular websites such as Workaway that are on a mission to connect altruistic travelers with families around the world that need their help.

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