Why Us?

OUR CAMPS

We are the expedition specialists and since 2002 have been living, working and making a real difference in our locations in Africa and Asia.  We are the only expedition company to own, manage and operate 25 permanent and exclusive camps in the heart of rural communities and wildlife areas, bringing significant revenue and assistance to the poorest rural communities that would otherwise not benefit from tourism. With an in-country team of over 150 local staff, we employ locally, pay fairly and treat ethically. Our permanent presence in our destination countries allows us to maximise benefits to the people and wildlife that need it most by committing year round to our projects, so you can be confident that the work you do will have a lasting impact on areas that you visit. This also means that we have unrivalled safety systems in place to deal with emergencies.

OUR PROJECTS

Working with communities is not unique to us; the way we do it is. Our award-winning projects are developed in partnership with local communities and address poverty, healthcare, education, welfare, conservation and environmental awareness. By doing so we have developed a relationship with the local people whereby they welcome us as part of their community and not simply as tourists passing through. This provides you with a unique opportunity to fully integrate into the community, away from the tourist circuit to get a true flavour of the country you are visiting.  During your time with Camps International, you will visit several of our camps and work on a range of projects. We have up to 100 different projects running at any one time and the projects undertaken by our volunteers have benefitted over 25,000 people in developing countries so far.

OUR PLEDGE TO THE PLANET

We clearly recognize the synergy between our commercial and ethical objectives and the result has been to create a responsible culture in everything we do, across 3 continents. Sustainability is at the heart of every project. We have established charities to work alongside Camps International to provide additional support for our ongoing initiatives.

What we do:

• We run all our own trips and projects
• Our local camps are built and run by locals
• We empower thousands of people to generate income for themselves – no handouts
• We protect and conserve wildlife – on land and in the ocean
• We love our environment. We plant trees … a lot of trees
• We are committed to quality and committed to making your experience outstanding
• Travel with Camps and you join a global family that includes us and the communities to which we belong

What we don't do:

• We don’t cut corners in our safety, ethics, integrity or responsibilities
• We never abandon our projects – we finish what we start
• We don’t sell cheap trips – cheap trips mean compromise
• We don’t run pointless projects. Everything we do matters
• We don’t abandon you in country. We employ over 150 people worldwide – offices, vehicles, drivers, camp managers, cooks, security, housekeeping, project leaders, operations teams – all there for you.

OUR ACCREDITATIONS

Responsible Tourism Awards:

We are proud to have been recognised at the World Responsible Tourism awards on several occasions; being longlisted since 2005, receiving Highly commended in 2007 and winning the award in 2008 for the ‘Best Volunteering Organisation’. These are the largest and most well respected awards in the travel industry, celebrating the best in responsible tourism and recognising ethical companies that make a significant contribution to responsible travel.

BS8848

BS8848 is the British Standard specification for the provision of visits, fieldwork, expeditions and adventurous activities outside the UK. Our expeditions comply with the standard and we annually review this through a process of self assessment. View our compliance document here.

Learning Outside The Classroom Quality Badge:

We are among the first expedition providers (and one of only a handful) to receive The Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) Quality Badge which acts as a national accreditation for the provision of educational visits, recognising organisations that are delivering high quality learning experiences and managing risk effectively.

In order to achieve the badge we have pledged our commitment to engage in an on going process to sustain high-quality learning outside the classroom experiences and have demonstrated to an independent assessor that we meet the following 6 quality indicators:

• Have a process in place to assist team members to plan the learning experience effectively
• Provide accurate information about our expeditions
• Provide activities, experience or resources that meet learner needs
• Review the experience and act on feedback
• Meet the needs of team members
• Have safety management processes in place to manage risk effectively

For more information on the LOtC Quality Badge please visit: www.lotcqualitybadge.org.uk

ASDAN:

Any volunteer from the UK who travels with us on any of our four week expeditions can obtain either an ASDAN Universities Award or 70 UCAS points (the equivalent of an A at AS-level) through the CoPE level 3 programme that we run in association with ASDAN, the internationally recognised awarding body.