Senegal wildlife vacation

Planet

CARBON REDUCTION

We do make use of a scheduled flight between Cap Skirring and Dakar on this tour, but driving is preferred over expensive and polluting charter flights. The main accommodation used in Niokolo-Koba, NiokoLodge uses solar power for electricity, and the accommodation as a whole is designed to blend seamlessly into the environment. We do not make use of shared local transport due to the distances travelled during this tour. Neither is human-powered transport used due to Niokolo-Koba being an area containing big game, but all game-viewing at Pointe-Saint-Georges is done on foot.

We advise customers during the booking process as to those steps that can be taken to limit their carbon footprint, including searching for flights with lower carbon emissions. Electric vehicles are not used.

Vegetarian and vegan food is available throughout this tour, but these meal options are limited and can become repetitive throughout the tour. All food is locally-sourced and seasonal, there are no other options in Senegal!

ENVIRONMENT AND WILDLIFE

Our accommodation in Niokolo-Koba, NiokoLodge, has been specifically designed to have minimal impact on the environment. Built of locally-sourced, sustainable materials and entirely powered from solar panels, this is by far the best accommodation option in the park. The lodge operates using electric vehicles to transport clients to and from their rooms, and owns a series of hides and watering points that sustain common warthog, bushbuck and Guinea baboon populations.

Including in the cost of this trip are entrance fees and taxes, which go directly towards funding anti-poaching patrols intended to protect the local threatened populations of leopard, lion and wild dog. Ecotourism, and our trip specifically, is a significant contributor to programmes focussed on protecting Senegal's last lions in Niokolo-Koba. Our visit also supports community engagement initiatives in Pointe-Saint-Georges, where the African manatee population is now far better protected than it has been historically. We submit data collected during this tour on lion movements to Panthera at the end of each tour.

During the tours, we supply customers with information on the importance of Senegal as an ecotourism destination and how we can all take steps to protect it. Local guides are mandatory in Niokolo-Koba, and they are assisted during this tour by expert western tour leaders - it is key to our mission that clients engage with local tour guides to breadthen and depthen their experience with ecotourists. There are no invasive species likely to be encountered during this tour.

People

LOCAL ECONOMY

All accommodation options used during this tour are owned and managed by Senegalese people. Our accommodation at Pointe-Saint-Georges, Campement le Lamintin, is particularly notable as a basic hotel that has been set-up, staffed and owned by a local family for many years.

We employ local guides, drivers, cooks, housekeeping staff and boatmen throughout this tour, and encourage clients to spend money at local markets in Kaolack and Dakar.

EMPLOYMENT, INCLUSIVITY AND DIVERSITY

100% of the staff employed by local partners during this tour are Senegalese, with over 90% being from the villages immediately adjacent to the wilderness areas we visit. We are always pushing for more employment opportunities for women during our tours, and are pleased to see an increasing number of women employed at the accommodation we use in Kaolack and Pointe-Saint-Georges.

We insist our local partner always honour the local minimum wage, and remain deeply committed to diversity in our own workplace. We welcome LGBTQ+ travelers, but as Senegal remains a conservative country, LGBTQ+ guests should be aware that public displays of affection may attract unwanted attention.

Due to the remote nature of areas visited during this tour, guests with limited mobility, limited vision, or cognitive issues are unlikely to be able to enjoy this tour.