Everyone deserves the chance to travel. Yet, all too often, seeing the world is a privilege reserved for the global elite. At Elevate Destinations, we bridge the divide. Our goal is to connect local youths to their own environments, as travelers and as stewards.
Through our innovative Buy a Trip, Give a Trip model, your trip purchase creates fun, new travel opportunities for local kids. For the first time, they experience nearby natural and cultural wonders. They see the sites, have fun, and make the kind of travel memories that we take for granted.
Here’s just one example of Buy a Trip, Give a Trip in action:
The big day:
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
The travelers:
20 children, age 10-13, from the School Padre Nello Guillivi, on the outskirts of Jicaro Island Ecolodge in Nicaragua. They were selected as the best students in their grades for academic excellence, as well as good participation in sports, clean-up days, and environmental activities within the school.
The excursion:
A day of zip lining and a boat trip on the beautiful Jicaro Island, one of the Granada Isletas of Lake Nicaragua
The details:
On a very special Wednesday morning, a group of kids from a rural grade school in Nicaragua assembled, full of excitement and a little nervous. Today they were being treated to something they didn’t even believe existed – a zip line tour through the canopy of Jicaro Island! As they harnessed up, they listened to the safety briefing. Then it was go time. What a rush of thrills and freedom as they glided along the wire through the treetops, one by one.
Afterwards, they sat down to a nice lunch at the Mi Viejo Ranchito restaurant. Then, as the last hurrah of the day, they took a boat ride to the Cocibolca Marina, then boarded the bus back to the school.
Firsts:
- Visiting the canopy layer of a forest – before, they had doubted it was even possible!
- Wondering how they could come back to have such a fun experience in the future
- Exploring the marina by boat, just for fun, to see the flora and fauna on the water
Partner Organization:
Jicaro Island Ecologe, in Granada Isletas, Nicaragua. This much-acclaimed ecolodge has a sustainability team dedicated to four different areas of work – Building Jicaro, Conservation and Community, Giving Back, and Local Produce. Partnering with the Elevate Destinations Buy a Trip, Give a Trip program, the lodge was able to identify local school-age kids to benefit from the gift of travel. They picked kids living in the outskirts of the lodge with their families and attending the local school. Some of them come from more remote areas of La Playita, Costa Sur and Chocote Community.
