Andean Lodges: 10 interesting facts about our community-based ecotourism enterprise
Andean Lodges: 10 interesting facts about our community-based ecotourism enterprise
Community based tourism is the core of every single Andean Lodges experience, it is what made us who we are today, and it is the way we pay respects to our communities, our people and our andean roots.
This spescific form of tourism comes from two communities that came together to create this wonderful brand we call Andean Lodges, it is our way to share our culture with the world.
For most people who are not familiar with this concept, we give you 10 interesting facts about Community-Based tourism and how we do it:
1) The native Andean communities of Chillca and Osefina in the Ausangate region were the first in Peru to develop an ecotourism project in partnership with private investors, based on the extraordinary natural and cultural resources of the land they inhabit.
Our Anantapata Lodge was built by members of the Chillca community. The local people entirely manage its operations.
2) Machuraccay Lodge, located at 15,846 ft. (4,815 m.) a.s.l., is one of the highest altitude ecolodges in the world.
3) The Chillca community farms the highest altitude potato crops in the world.
4) There are only three traditional societies in the world in which animal herding is the fundamental livelihood activity, and the means of obtaining most life-sustaining resources.
The Masai in Africa, and the Saami in Norway, and the native Quechua llameros or llama herders of the Andean highlands. The trek around Mt. Ausangate allows you to meet and interact with the llama herders who inhabit this zone.
5) On our treks, each hiker is accompanied by a llama entrusted with carrying their gear. This helps to protect the mountain’s environment, since llamas, with their lighter weight and well-adapted hooves, have much less negative impact on the trails than horses do.
6) A keynote species of mammal occasionally found in the Andes is the Andean Cat (leopardus jacobita), a small wild feline that is in danger of extinction, and is an emblematic species of the Ausangate region.
7) On your Andean Lodges Mt. Ausangate trek, you’ll be awakened every morning by the sweet native songs of the local Quechua women.
8) We provide you with a comfy pair of slippers to rest your feet after each day of arduous hiking.
9) You’ll have the opportunity to learn a few words of the ancient and still spoken Quechua language.
10) A native community member lives at each ecolodge, and is happy to share stories and conversations with visitors about the local Quechua culture.
If you are intrigued by some of these interesting facts, please be sure to contact us for more information on the very best trekking experiences in Peru’s Andes Mountains at: andeanlodges.com.
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