“Tourism can absolutely change lives,” said Bruce Poon Tip, founder of G Adventures, as he concluded the small-group tour company’s second World Community Tourism Summit, held in India in September.
The event was an opportunity to gather agents, travellers, media, CEOs (the Chief Experience Officers that lead its tours) and more to celebrate the difference that positive impact tourism can make all over the world. But it was also an opportunity to highlight the work G is doing across India.
Alongside its non-profit partner, Planeterra, the company announced four new social enterprises that it is backing across the country through funding or visits on its tours.
It currently offers 26 itineraries in India, with one of most popular being the Golden Triangle route which loops back to Delhi after taking in the Taj Mahal in Agra and the ‘pink city’ of Jaipur. It’s a route I got to experience for myself.
Brand new itineraries on new tour styles Geluxe (a slower-paced, more premium travel style with upgraded accommodation) and Solo-ish (for lone travellers looking for deeper connections, which launched in October) include Women With Wheels and Anoothi Block Printing Experience.
Other projects, like Shereos and Pink City Rickshaw are CEO-recommended experiences across all itineraries that visit Agra and Jaipur.
Women With Wheels – Delhi and Jaipur
Arriving in Delhi, a city of nearly 34 million people, is daunting. Seeing Anjana’s smiling face waiting for me outside of the airport’s arrivals hall, is a welcome sight, especially as a lone female traveller.
As a Women With Wheels driver, she’s doing something revolutionary. The idea is simple. Founded by the Azad Foundation, Women With Wheels provides airport pickups and transportation by women in New Delhi, Jaipur, Kolkata, and Indore.
These female drivers are challenging cultural norms by entering a traditionally male industry and becoming the principle bread winners in their families. Financial independence also provides choice, helping women leave relationships or challenging home lives, enabling them to purchase property and educate their children. So far it has provided over 4.5 million safe rides, and trained over 4,000 drivers.
Dropping me at my hotel, Anjana hands me a feedback card which says it all. A quote from her, next to her smiling photo reads: “My journey behind the wheel isn’t just a profession. It’s a tale of resilience against violence, of forging my identity and becoming independent.”
Planeterra has helped boost the vehicle fleet and fund training. While G Adventures was the first tour operator to contract Women on Wheels as its India airport pick-up partner, plans are afoot for expansion across India.
Solo-ish and Geluxe itineraries include a Women With Wheels airport transfer.
Learn more:
azadfoundation.com/core-initiatives/women-with-wheels/
planeterra.org/women-with-wheels/
Salaam Baalak Trust City Walk – Delhi
This is a different way to see Delhi. Beyond the monuments, the temples, the colonial architecture and the storied restaurants, there are the small streets, the local neighbourhoods of the inner city.
The Salaam Baalak Trust was founded in 1988 and works to protect, house, and educate street children in Delhi. There are believed to be between 50-60,000 children currently on its streets. Salaam Baalak supports 10,000 children annually, aged between 6 and 18.
Its City Walk business provides employment for former street children supported by the trust, offering tourists a two-hour walk through the Paharganj neighbourhood close to New Delhi Railway Station, through their eyes. As well as an income, working with tourists boosts language skills. The tours help fund university scholarships and job placements for others leaving the Trust’s care too.
My guide Salman, 25, is pursuing a successful acting career alongside guiding. “I feel very proud,” he tells me. “I was on the street. Six months ago, I couldn’t speak English. Now I’m conducting the tours and doing movies.”
Salaam Baalak Trust City Walk is included in the Golden Triangle tour.
Learn more:
Sheroes Hangout – Agra
Turning off a busy street in a city that draws 40,000 visitors daily to one of the wonders of the world, the Taj Mahal, a sign reads ‘Sheroes: The World’s First Café Run By Acid Attack Survivors’.
For customers, Sheroes Hangout is a place to grab a coffee, cold drink, or even some locally-made crafts and step out of the sun. For the women that work there – each a survivor of not only an attack, but the surgery and traumas experienced after – it’s a vital hub of support and community.
Founded in 2014, Sheroes provides employment for survivors who often face societal prejudice. It also helps with rehabilitation, from medical recovery to pursuing justice.
All the ladies wear T-shirts that proclaim ‘My beauty is my smile’, and posters on the wall tell each woman’s story of resilience. Khushaboo Sharma’s reads: “Khushaboo never gave into the agony inflicted on her. You will find her working at Sheroes in her highest spirit as she plans to give her daughter a fearless life and herself an identity.”
Sheroes is a CEO-recommended experience on G tours in Agra.
Learn more:
planeterra.org/sheroes-hangout
Sunder Rang – Chandelao, Rajasthan
As I browse a colourful array of notebooks – each one in a different hand-block printed fabric – Guddi is beading a length of cord.
She was one of the first five women to join arts and craft centre, Sunder Rang, in 2007. The organisation was founded to preserve traditional arts and skills in the rural community of Chandelao, Rajasthan. The employment it provides – mainly for women – gives economic stability, meaning villagers don’t have to leave for the big city to find work.
From embroidery to soaps, garments to keepsakes, a portion of the sale of the goods goes directly to the artisans. There’s now 35 female crafters, bringing together women from different castes, and providing an alternative and needed source of income and financial independence.
“In rural areas, women are usually dependent on their husbands,” says Guddi. “Now we feel empowered that we can make our own money and be self-sufficient. I earn my own money. I spend it the way I want.”
Select itineraries include a visit and bracelet-making demonstration, while Planeterra is working with the business to help it grow further.
Learn more:
Other initiatives available to travellers:
Anoothi India – Jaipur
Block printing requires patience and a steady hand. G travellers can now test their skills by joining a printing class with Anoothi.
The social enterprise – described as for women, by women – aims to help survivors of violence, trafficking, and those from marginalised communities to gain financial independence through textile work. Block printing is a traditionally male industry in India.
Planeterra is working with Anoothi to build its tourism business, allowing it to host larger numbers of visitors, as well as scaling-up its printing unit.
The Golden Triangle tour includes a block printing class, where travellers can hear the unique stories of each craftswoman.
Learn more:
Pink City Rickshaw – Jaipur
You can’t miss a bright pink rickshaw in a sea of trucks, green tuk-tuks, and even the odd cow. Providing a unique way to view the landmarks of the pink city, these eco-friendly e-rickshaws provide women from low-income households in Jaipur with sustainable livelihoods as drivers and guides.
Visitors can visit the blush-coloured monuments of the medieval walled city, on a heritage, culture, food or shopping tours.
Pink City Rickshaw is a CEO-recommended experience on Jaipur tours.
Learn more:
