Responsible Travel Policy

Policy Aims

‘A journey into the Himalayas, a Journey into oneself’

It is our strong belief that a journey into the mountains is a journey to the inner self. Mountains help us to find alignment in our lives. At Swotah, we are happy to not only be discovering ourselves but also to help others do the same on their inner journey. We believe that to understand the grandeur of life, and to value the importance of what nature has to offer, one has to be in the mountains.  It is our commitment to keep this belief alive and bring awareness to others.  

Under project SWOTAH, we have undertaken the responsibility of inspiring people to be in the mountains and fulfilling their needs while they’re there. We are a team of travellers, and we believe that nobody understands a traveller better than another traveller. We're committed to delivering reliable, courteous, and customizable services with a keen eye on value. 

True adventure lies in knowing oneself and the true wisdom of the mountains can only be ingrained by being a part of it. This is what ‘Swotah’ is all about; exploring the wisdom in oneself from seeking the ageless wisdom of the mountains and nature. We know ourselves when we face the mountains. Immense masses of rocks that stand rooted in front of us; tall and strong and unyielding. Something magnanimous but unforgiving stretching along vast expanses. They tower above everything and reach heights beyond our comprehension. When confronted by those enormous structures that are above and beyond our wildest dreams, we finally stop.

Environmental Responsibility

It is everyone’s responsibility to protect the environment no matter on any reason, status or life style.

• We do not promote and do not support anything that can hurt or damage environment or wildlife.
• All the garbage is always carried away. We demand from our porters and guides to carry all the trash with them or utilize it in special zones where possible and ruled by the government. And same we expect from our travelers as it is something that everyone should follow no matter what style you are traveling. We sincerely ask not to litter and respect the Himalayas by keeping them clean.
• We do not promote bottled mineral water to create plastic free zone and reduce the use of plastic in mineral bottled water. Our guides are well trained and they know all the stops during the trek where everyone can refill their bottles with fresh Himalayan water instead of buying mineral water in plastic each time. We always use water purifier tablets to clean the water for drinking and we always warn our travelers to bring one bottle that can be used during the experience.
• Instead of buying new equipment for one time use we provide rental service of full equipment, gears or top clothes that can be used safely during the trek and then be returned after finishing the adventure.
• We actively supporting volunteering program for Doplhin research in Koshi Tappu and Karnali river. Nobody knows there are dolphins in Nepal and they are very rare. Government doesn't support much to increase the population of this rare spieces. So our aim is to promote tours called "Dolphin Watching In Nepal" and attract more attention.
• Please note, we do not print out tickets, contracts, itineraries or any other documents but always sending soft copies on email unless there is a reason or personal request. In order to reduce consuming of paper we print on both sides. Our brochures, tours, cards are digital versions and without special reason we do not keep printed ones in the office or somewhere else. Again, unless it is required for special reason like attending travel fairs, meetings or social events.
• We warn all our travelers do not feed wild animals and do not leave any food open as it can cause damage to their habitat, poisoning or simply make animals used to humans or even attack them to get more food.
• We highly recommend not that popular treks and regions to create a balance for travelers and avoid long queues on bridges, logistics and promote other beautiful regions, as Everest Base Camp is popular and during the high season in autumn and spring it is extremely overcrowded with making it hard for small groups to find a place to sleep or it takes hours to receive order in the restaurants. Meanwhile Dhaulagiri Trek is always crowd less and much more fascinating, Millennium Home Stay Trek is off beaten path and Manaslu Circuit is not touristic.

Economic and Social Responsibility

We are local company so mostly all of our employees are local people who were born and raised in Nepal. All our guides are locals from different regions of Nepal and belong to different ethnic groups. We train them, provide them with full equipment, gears, clothes, insurance, meals and salary. They do not work only for tips. Same with porters – we fully supply them with clothes, shoes, food, accommodation, insurance and salary. Even though we encourage our travelers to leave tips to appreciate their hard work and sustainability. 

We believe that society should benefit from our activities and we aim to contribute to social equality by providing scholarships to the children of porters and villagers from the remote areas of Nepal. We earmark a portion (5%-10%) of the revenues from our trips for financing the education of children who would otherwise never be schooled. Some of them are listed below:

Child Sponsorship Programs in different schools of remote Nepal

Yearly Sponsorship for the children of the porters

Promoting homestay and local business

Responsible tourism and cleanliness program

Volunteering program for Dolphin research in Koshi Tappu and Karnali river

Our unique trek “Millennium Homestay Trek” promotes local villages, authentic and unique Newari culture, more than 10 different ethnic groups. We support local farmers as we don’t give just money as donation but we buy food they grow, stationary they make and cloth with shoes they manufacture and donate it to schools. In this way we create a demand in producing and trading. We want to make authentic Newari culture respected and known and for this we encourage local villagers to make traditional performance, show the rituals, dances and songs as part of the experience. 

Before visiting and meeting ethnic communities we explain a little bit more about our culture and remind our travelers to be opened to everything, be humble and observe around. When you come to Rome do like Romans do and when you come to Nepal don't do like Romans, but do like Nepali do. That's the best way to dive into our culture and get the most of it.

From the other side our local communities learn about western culture as well. They learn how to communicate with other nations, people, how to keep houses and territory cleaner, cook food safely and how to share the moments with others. We connect locals with travelers in a very natural way.

Our guides never leave their groups and always there to assist in any aspect. Weather to translate or recommend what to eat or to tell a story or to help. Our guide is your first friend in the Himalayas and if any question occurs please refer to him immediately.

All our travelers are very well informed about the itinerary in advance, any possible changes and awareness. Before the start of every trek we do the briefing where we check all the equipment and what is missing, insurance, introduce the team and discuss the general plan for the trek, safety rules and how to act in emergency situations, in case of sickness or in case of natural disasters. It is our responsibility in front of all not to have any surprises and to stay safe.