Responsible Tourism

Sunderbans Smiles

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Trip highlights

• Volunteering with a community in the Sunderbans
• Calcutta city tour
• Game cruises and birding tours within the unique Sunderbans eco-system, potential viewing of tigers in the water
• Visiting land based tiger viewing watchtowers
• Staying in Eco Lodge on Bali Island - ‘Sunderbans Jungle Camp'
• Evening experience at the local Rural theatre (Bonobibi Yatra) performed by the villagers

Trip COMMENCEMENT dates:
Please note that you should depart the day before the above dates from your country of origin.
If you are booking for two or more people, you can select your own departure date if the above dates do not suit. We can also tailor-make a trip to suit your exact requirements

"Taste of Volunteering" Projects:

Your Volunteer Project will be within the Sunderbans Jungle Camp on Bali Island. The Camp itself is already a successful project for a sustainable source of income for the ‘poachers-turned-conservationists', along with sustainable development of the local community and conservation of the wildlife and flora of this unique eco system.

You will have the opportunity to assist in various areas of the camp such as maintaining and repairing the clay embankments (the longest man-made dike in the world!), mangrove plantation, construction of a proposed 10-bed hospital, and assisting in general village upkeep.
Trip Summary
This 11 day trip showcases the best of Calcutta and the remarkable Sunderbans wetlands area, where former tiger poachers are now committed tiger conservationists.
You will spend 3.5 days assisting in various areas of the camp such as maintaining and repairing the clay embankments (the longest man-made dike in the world!), mangrove plantation, construction of a proposed 10-bed hospital, and assisting in general village upkeep.
In addition, you will interact meaningfully with the local people, and get to go on numerous bird and game adventure cruises through these remarkable wetlands.
Sunderbans is mysterious, unpredictable, vast, untamable and perhaps, the last true wild frontier in the Indian sub-continent. We take you to the world's largest estuarine forest, a landscape dominated by great tidal creeks and waterways and home to some of the most sought after birds and animals, including the famous ‘swimming tigers'.

Your first two days will be spent exploring the vibrant city of Calcutta with an informative local guide. You will visit many museums and monuments and immerse yourself into this city's vibrant history. Soak up the ambience of Calcutta on the popular Heritage Walk and tram tour.

Commencing from Calcutta you will be driven through the beautiful countryside before boarding your boat for a cruise to Bali Island, home of the Sunderbans Jungle Camp.

Sunderbans are a part of the world's largest delta formed by the rivers Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna, here you will experience game cruises and birding tours through this amazing piece of the world. Your cruises will be aboard motorised boats, taking you into the home of the man eating tigers, estuarine crocodiles, sharks and snakes. The dark and foreboding attractiveness of the mangroves offer the chance to encounter myriad birds ~ and of course the unforgettable sight of the most secretive great cat in the world. We will also stop on land at various watchtowers for a closer look. Safety is always paramount and the watchtowers are housed within wire cages so no strolling in tiger-land!

Your experience in Sunderbans does not end with the wildlife, you will have the opportunity to visit the village and interact with the local community. Enjoy a taste of their lifestyle, local crafts, cuisine and even be entertained in their local rural theatre. The people of Bali Village are your hosts. They are the transformed conservationists and are gainfully involved in the camp. They will take you around the forest or on a cruise through the creeks telling you the story of tigers, birds and flora. They are the people who intimately know each and every turn of the river and every creek.

Your volunteer project takes place within the Sunderbans Jungle Camp, assisting the local community to have a better quality of life through the maintenance and upkeep of their village. Your visit contributes to a great extent in supporting the sustainable development of the local community and the conservation of the forest and the great cats.

Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive Calcutta - Heritage Walk (D)
Day 2: North Calcutta Walking Tour (B,D)
Day 3: Transfer to Bali Island and Sunderbans Camp. Bird and Game cruise (B,L,D)
Day 4: Full day Bird and Game cruise (B,L,D)
Day 5: Village walk and adventure cruise (B,L,D)
Day 6: Full day Bird and Game cruise (B,L,D)
Day 7-9: Volunteering (B,L,D)
Day 10: Volunteering in morning and transfer to Calcutta (B,L,D)
Day 11: Trip ends, transfer to airport (B)
B = Breakfast, L= Lunch, D = Dinner

What are the benefits to the local community?

- You will provide an income for the ‘poachers-turned-conservationists' in the local community. Your accommodation will be locally owned and run, you will eat in local restaurants that source your food locally, and of course you will have a local guide
- Through the volunteer component of your trip, you will have an opportunity to contribute directly to the local communities you visit. You will contribute to an environmental conservation project or assist the local community to have a better quality of life through the maintenance and upkeep of their village.
- Your Volunteer Project has been sourced through consultation with the local community to identify which ways a small group of foreigners without necessarily any specific skills could be of benefit to them, and to ensure that your Volunteer Project is one that involve travellers working side-by-side with the local people to improve their circumstances
- In addition, your trip cost includes a donation to the Volunteer Project.

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