Top Eco Lodges for Family Experiences
OutdoorHub 11.01.11
Vienna, VA, Nov. 1, 2011 – Eco trailblazer Greenloons http://www.greenloons.com/ helps families source the green vacation of their dreams with a Greenloons-vetted list of eco-lodges that various reputable entities have green certified in destinations ranging from the Amazon to Kenya.
“I think the most effective way eco-lodges enhance a family travel experience is by introducing travelers to how to live responsibly and comfortably without taking something away from nature,” said Irene Lane, visionary founder of Greenloons.
She added that eco-lodges recommended by Greenloons are community owned and operated, use environmentally friendly building materials, buy locally and responsibly grown produce, reduce overall water consumption, use renewable energy sources, carefully dispose solid waste, and utilize indigenous plants for landscaping. Additionally their guest programs, such as treetop game viewing in lieu of safari drives in Kenya, are also environmentally astute.
Here are Greenloons’ top examples of ecologically sustainable family lodges:
Costa Rica’s Pacuare Lodge carries a Certificate in Sustainable Tourism and has received Travel + Leisure’s Global Vision Award, Condé Nast Traveler’s World Savers Award and the World Tourism Award for Sustainable Community Development. When being constructed not one tree was chopped down. The lodge employs local Cabecar Indians and, among other green initiatives, promotes jaguar conservation. It also offers world class whitewater rafting nearby.
Peru’s Refugio Amazonas Lodge in a 200-hectare private reserve on the buffer zone of the Tambopata National Reserve is a Rainforest Alliance-certified lodge using traditional native materials of wood palm fronds, wild cane and clay. An observation tower overlooks a fraction of the Amazon canopy.
Ecuador’s Yachana Lodge, also in the Amazon, can be a learning experience in, among others, medicinal medicines and traditional healing practices. This is a Smart Voyager-certified establishment.
Kenya’s Masai Mara Lodge enjoys the Kenya Eco-Rating Gold certification in Kenya’s premier wildlife reserve, the Masai Mara. The lodge endeavors, in addition to applying highest level green practices, to preserve the local culture and improve local income generation by promoting traditional handicrafts as well as featuring in guest tents furniture made by women’s groups in the Talek region. Tree-top wildlife viewing posts have reduced the need for game drives. The varied wildlife and natural environment, in addition to the culture of the local Masai people, come together to provide a spectacular lodge safari experience.
About Greenloons
Greenloons (http://www.greenloons.com/) guides families to travel experiences managed by certified third-party suppliers engaged in eco- and sustainable tourism. Lane founded Greenloons in 2010 for the global community of nature enthusiasts and wildlife conservationists interested in accessing detailed and reliable information about responsible, sustainable and certified ecotourism travel vacations both in the US and abroad.
Greenloons is a first-of-its-kind online resource aimed at answering the growing need for accredited eco-tours and sustainable holiday travel in the tourism industry. Greenloons.com provides ecotourism education, news, comparable certified ecotour and volunteer conservation program listings, tour reviews and booking services, plus a forum for the community to share its personal vacation stories and tips for establishing ecotourism in any corner of the world.
