With strong participation in voluntourism in recent years,
more companies are offering travelers ways to do good while seeing the world.
According to Tourism Cares’ “Good Travels” report last fall,
55% of leisure travelers did some form of volunteering or giving during trips
over the last two years. Of self-identified givers, 64% spent time volunteering
in their destinations, and the same percentage reported high trip satisfaction
based in part on their charitable engagement.
Now, The Travel Corporation (TTC) and seven of its brands are
adding service-focused options for travelers through a partnership with Me to
We, a tour operator specializing in volunteer travel.
The Travel Corporation, its nonprofit TreadRight
Foundation and TTC brands Trafalgar, Contiki Holidays, Insight Vacations,
Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection, Lion World Travel, African Travel and
Adventure World will collaborate with Me to We to offer the company’s service-
and culture-oriented trips to Kenya, India and Ecuador as extensions on tours
or river cruises.
Me to We welcomes visitors of all ages to participate in
sustainable development projects through affiliated organization We Charity.
Guests on Me to We scheduled departures or custom trips stay in high-end lodges
owned and operated by the company, and split their time between volunteer work
on projects like constructing a school and cultural-immersion activities like
learning beading in Kenya or attending a Bollywood-style dance class in India.
Through the new partnership, guests can follow up a Uniworld
river cruise on the Ganges with a Me to We voluntourism experience in rural
Rajasthan or extend a Lion World Travel Kenyan safari by working alongside Me
to We to build a health center.
TTC isn’t the only major group expanding into voluntourism
through Me to We. In April, Classic Vacations announced its own partnership
with Me to We through the new Classic Connections program, which taps outside
companies to broaden the product available to agents.
“When you take a Me to We trip, you not only work in
partnership with local community members, you also immerse yourself in a new
culture, foster genuine connections and see the world through a new lens,” said
Me to We CEO Roxanne Joyal. “It’s travel with a purpose.”