MONTHLY NEWS BULLETIN - FEBRUARY 2019

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Dear Trade Colleagues,

3efdbbde 088c 4546 8e1e 6cfa8a5fb8c7 I’m quite excited to catch you up on what’s been happening. February has not only been a fantastic month for us, but also for tourism in Sri Lanka. Yet again we have introduced you to a truly experiential accommodation in the misty mountains and an authentic local experience not many have witnessed. The highlight of the month was us inviting the award winning New York conservation photographer – Chris Ang – to educate and inspire Sri Lanka with his photo essay ‘Spectacularly Free’.

See you on your next great adventure!

Anuruddha Bandara (AB)
Founder
Experiential Journeys

Eco Team invites Chris Ang to unveil ‘Spectacularly Free’ in Sri Lanka

Eco Team invites Chris Ang to unveil ‘Spectacularly Free’ in Sri Lanka Eco Team, in collaboration with award-winning New York-based nature conservation photographer Chris Ang, conducted two programmes to raise awareness on conservation and sustainable tourism. The photo essay presentation ‘Spectacularly Free’ was revealed on 8th February 2019 for school kids, university undergrads, photographic societies and the general public. The second programme was conducted privately on 16th February for the members of the travel trade of Sri Lanka. Chris Ang is passionate about Nature Conservation, with a desire to increase human empathy towards nature and its species. He believes that animals, like...

Eshan - Your Riding Companion

Eshan - Your Riding Companion Eshan is our lead Cycling Guide who counts for over 20 years of experience and is a veteran of all the adventures we feature. Out of all the diverse activities, his passion is cycling and him having covered almost all the cycling routes in the country, north to south and west to east speaks for itself. Hailing from the most famous hill country destination Kandy, he has led cycling tours for up to 21 days covering the entire country. Other than cycling, birding is also one of his interests. This would be an added advantage for...

Kithul Pani, The golden palm syrup of Sri Lanka

Kithul Pani, The golden palm syrup of Sri Lanka Carefully extracted from the local fishtail palm tree, a.k.a “Kithul tree” this syrup is a heavenly liquid used as a natural sweetener and also for ayurvedic medicinal purposes. The collection fo this palm syrup, widely known as “treacle” is an art form handed down from generations. “Tappers” as they are called, climb to the top of the tree to make insertion and extract the sap. After some processing, you get the rich golden color syrup used in many of the local sweets. This is a unique real local experience you can be...

Dumbanagala Chalets

Dumbanagala Chalets Deep into the wilderness of the UNESCO world heritage site, Knuckles Mountain range lies one of the most secluded eco friendly luxury accommodation sites in Sri Lanka. Dumbanagala Chalets consists of 10 luxury rooms combined with warm Sri Lankan hospitality and mouth-watering local cuisine. Overlooking the Dumbara valley it is the perfect place to rest, relax and rejuvenate after a long hike and the ideal base to explore nature, experience culture and enjoy an adventure....

Frequently Asked Questions

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Our policy in discouraging Animal Cruelty, Tourist Traps and Staged Tourist Shows

Animals Are Friends Too: Discouraging Animal Cruelty, Tourist Traps and Staged Tourist Shows

We at ExJ stay away from tourism experiences that are staged and involve animal cruelty and shopping traps that are contrived to exploit and deceive clients.

Even though some of the popular ‘attractions’ are not included in our programmes due to the above reasons, we have no objections in our clients making their own arrangements with our Drivers to visit these places.

Why we do not promote following attractions

Turtle Hatcheries

As this concept has serious negative aspects in terms of conservation, we do not encourage our visitors to patronize the turtle hatcheries, as not all of them are really turtle-friendly. We instead encourage them to observe turtles in their natural habitats.

Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage

When we became aware that the animal welfare standards there were questionable, we stopped encouraging our clients to visit the orphanage. We are pleased to observe that the Born Free Foundation has now adopted similar measures.

Elephant back rides – Habarana

There’s uncertainty surrounding the attitude of this place towards animal welfare. There may be a few ethical operators, but in general, we are not in agreement with how the place is run. We all would love a photo of us riding an elephant, but is a lifetime of pain caused to these magnificent mammals really worth a few fleeting likes on social media?

Traditional Village Tour with a Canoe Trip and Bullock-Carts – Habarana

This is a tourist trap where a lot of the trip is ‘staged’ for commercial purposes. Such fake touristic experiences will not give our visitors an idea of what life in the country is really like, so join us as we show you the real side of Sri Lanka. And at the end of every vacation, always ask yourself, “Did you feel that your holiday was ethical, eco-friendly, and reduced environmental impacts?”

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