NEW MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY TRAIL IN REMOTE LAOS READY FOR FEMALE HIKERS
Two responsible tour operators have worked with mountain villagers to set the standard for long-term community tourism with a female touch. |
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NEW MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY TRAIL IN REMOTE LAOS READY FOR FEMALE HIKERS
Two responsible tour operators have worked with mountain villagers to set the standard for long-term community tourism with a female touch. |
Catégorie : Asie Pacifique - Laos - Économie du secteur
- Tourisme
Ceci est un communiqué de presse sélectionné par notre comité éditorial et mis en ligne gratuitement le 06-02-2025
 Khiri Travel Laos team
Crédit photo © Khiri Travel
The inaugural four-day trek will commence on 16 February, with the participants being six women from Australia.
The trip, organised by Camino Women (Australia) and Khiri Travel (Laos), will be part of a 12-day northern Laos journey which includes a slow boat ride on the Mekong river, a train ride, visits to Buddhist caves and an elephant park, walks in paddy fields, meetings with various ethnic group villagers, and experiencing the UNESCO world heritage township of Luang Prabang.
However, it is the inclusion, support and training for villagers in three remote mountain hamlets on the new Soum-son (community) Trail that the trip organisers believe is a positive example of responsible travel.
In preparation to receive the women hikers in mid-February, 26 women and men from the three remote villages joined three days of training in Luang Prabang in Laos in December.
The villagers learned about community based tourism, safety standards, housekeeping service, waste management, food preparation and customer service. There were hands-on practical sessions. Training was carried out by four community tourism experts from the Lao government.
The aim is for community tourism to enhance the quality of life for the villagers.
Two-way learning process
“Our approach is to treat tourism as a supplementary source of income for the villagers who are rice farmers,” said Julie Beaufrère, country manager for Khiri Travel Laos.
“We don’t want over-dependency on tourism. And the cultural learning process is also very much both ways between villagers and the women hikers.”
After the inaugural trip in February, Camino Women and Khiri Travel aim to bring five hiking groups to the Soum-son Trail in 2025, followed by two per month in the next high season, November 2025 to February 2026.
Each trip will have the same local guide from the villages and Khiri Travel’s own highly experienced Laotian community guide.
Camino Women and Khiri Travel’s charitable arm, Khiri Reach, paid for the training in December. After consulting with the villagers about what else they may need, Khiri Reach and Camino donated two laptop computers, school books, and preserved foods to the three villages on the remote hiking trail.
Camino Women’s lead trip designer Lisa O’Donnell, who surveyed the trail with Ms Beaufrère last year, is glad to see the preparation, training and hard work paying off.
“We’re very positive with our partnership with the wonderful villagers and the proactive support from the Lao authorities and Khiri Travel. I believe our Camino women hikers are really going to enjoy their immersion in Laotian village life for four days.”
Australian tour operator Leatherback Travel operates specialist travel units such as Camino Women, Patch Adventures, Magnificent Rail and Fencox Travel. Khiri Travel has handled various tours for these brands in Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and Cambodia since 2023.
“The Soum-son Trail and the full 10-day greater Laos experience is a terrific example of close cooperation between Leatherback Travel and Khiri,” said Willem Niemeijer, founder of Khiri Travel.
“We aim to develop more responsible and regenerative travel experiences with Leatherback Travel across Southeast Asia in the months ahead.”
About Khiri Travel
Since 1993, Khiri Travel has won awards and earned a reputation as a destination management company dedicated to working with select tour operators to provide quality leisure travel experiences across Asia. With 17 offices in Thailand, The Philippines, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka (which has responsibility for the Maldives), Khiri Travel’s entrepreneurial associates craft innovative itineraries that reflect their passion for authentic, local and sustainable experiences. Visit khiri.com
About Camino Women
Camino Women is an adventure tour company based in Australia that combines trekking adventures with insider access to intimate cultural encounters. Designed by women for women, Camino Women is for active and energetic women of all ages.
 Crédit photo © Khiri Travel
 Crédit photo © Khiri Travel
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