Passion Points: Family

The Elms hotel, Abberley, England; courtesy of von Essen hotels
The Elms hotel, Abberley, England; courtesy of von Essen hotels

Fiji Family Excursion Text Size A A A

More and more travelers, especially parents taking their children, are looking to combine activity-filled journeys to far-flung places with an educational and/or philanthropic purpose. For environmentally aware families, there are still spots left on an eight-day trip to Fiji this August, organized by California-based Seacology. An environmental non-profit, Seacology focuses its efforts on island conservation around the world—the majority of species’ extinctions occur on islands—and seeks to prevent such ecologically destructive actions by donating money and resources to communities in need.

Travelers on the August excursion to Fiji’s island of Vanua Levu will witness some of the non-profit’s undertakings firsthand. Seacology’s projects on Vanua Levu include a preschool in the small village Nukubalavu and a new community center in the village of Ketei. Seacology is constructing the latter in exchange for the demarcation of a 900-acre no-take forest reserve. Upon arriving in each village, participants will take part in a kava ceremony, a traditional Fijian ritual that’s typically given for visiting dignitaries and tribesmen or those (like Seacology) with an invitation.

Accommodations are at the very child-and eco-friendly Jean Michel Cousteau Fiji Islands Resort, which has topped numerous green hotel and sustainable travel lists over the past few years. For families (there is no age limit on the Seacology trip), the hotel has a variety of lodging options—with many rooms featuring smaller day beds and rollaway beds for younger children—and a complimentary kids program, called the Bula Club (Bula means “hello” in Fijian and is as ubiquitous as “aloha” is in Hawaii). Throughout the week, there will be rainforest hikes, lectures and demonstrations given by marine biologists, snorkeling and scuba diving expeditions and a Saturday morning excursion to the local market in Savusavu. In other words, this will be one of those philanthropic/educational trips that allow you to have fun while doing good.

Trip runs from August 11th through August 18th and starts at $2,360/person, including hotel fare but not airfare. A $1,000 tax-deductible donation per person is also requested to help fund Seacology’s efforts.

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