Responsible Travel Ethics

ROW is dedicated to responsible travel and works to protect the areas within which we operate. With superlative guides and artfully orchestrated itineraries, our goal is to connect people in a meaningful and personally relevant way to the places we visit. We work to inspire guests to become actively involved in preservation and conservation.

One of our core values is respecting the Earth. We practice this at all levels at ROW, including our office operations where we try to minimize our footprint through wise energy use, recycling, reducing and reusing. We buy all of our coffee for U.S.-based trips from “Seeds for Change” and use the “Save Our Salmon” blend, thus providing coffee that is Fair Trade and Shade Grown while supporting a worthy cause.

We minimize motorized travel on our adventures, preferring to see a small geographic area well rather than hustling through a large area. We are sensitive to wildlife, but equally important, we help people understand what they are seeing by illuminating the life history of the plants and animals we observe. On all our trips with camping, we practice “Leave No Trace” techniques, and we have been for 29 years.

Another responsible travel core value is giving back. We do this in a number of ways. In our home state of Idaho we positively impact dozens of businesses from whom we purchase supplies and services. Our entire office staff is local. Our River Dance Lodge employs locals, and we are a major contributor to the Idaho County economy. We donate over $15,000 in goods and services to various charities in northern Idaho, eastern Washington and western Montana. In 2008 we ran our first annual “Raft for the Cure – Coeur d’Alene” which raised $5,000 for our local chapter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

One example of our international efforts is in the Galapagos where we employ a number of local guides and fishermen who are transitioning to the tourism-based economy, as the Galapagos National Park would like them to. Our land-based trips leave a large percentage of total trip revenue in the Galapagos. Because all of our international trips are small group trips (12-16 guests) we are able to use local independent hotels, restaurants and transportation.

Local Guides: The majority of our river guides are from the West, or Northwest, and many hold college degrees in related fields such as geology, biology and recreation management. Over 75 percent of our USA-based guides are “Certified Interpretive Guides” through the National Association of Interpretation, having received training on sharing natural and cultural history in a meaningful and relevant way. As a company, we provide numerous opportunities for continued guide education, including guest educators on trips and special guide clinics.

All of our international trips are led by born-and-raised locals. This adds to the authenticity of our adventures and gives our guests an inside-view of the country they're visiting. In Ecuador, all of our guides are bilingual Ecuadorians with degrees in natural history related subjects and are certified guides. In Croatia, our local guide hails from the island of Vis and when he's not guiding he is a vintner. Every one of our local guides adds immensely to the richness of the ROW travel experience. Along with local guides, Founder Peter Grubb leads some of our more exotic trips and has a personal knowledge of each destination and itinerary.

Responsible travel requires innovation and dedication, and ROW applauds organizations that are working to help keep our wild places wild. Visit our Save Idaho Salmon page for information about a topic we consider very important and are working to raise awareness about.

ROW is actively involved with and financially supports the following conservation groups. We encourage you to visit these websites to learn more about issues facing responsible travel.

	Founded in 1985, the Clark Fork Coalition is dedicated to protecting and restoring the Clark Fork River basin, a 22,000-square-mile area draining western Montana and northern Idaho. We have a 23-year-long record of substantial achievements improving the health of the watershed.
	Hells Canyon Preservation Council protects and restores the inspiring wildlands, pure waters, unique habitats and biodiversity of the Hells Canyon-Wallowa and Blue Mountain Ecosystems through advocacy, education and collaboration, advancing science-based policy and protective land management.
	IGTOA is a nonprofit association of travel companies, conservation organizations, and other groups that seek a lasting protection of the Galapagos Islands. We lobby for conservation, fund projects, and promote and practice sustainable tourism.
	Idaho Rivers United is a conservation organization representing all who love the freedom, adventure and solitude of Idaho's rivers. Since founding in 1990, IRU has become a powerful force for safeguarding Idaho's imperiled wild steelhead and salmon, protecting and enhancing stream flows and riparian areas, and defending and promoting the wild and scenic qualities of our great wild rivers.
	The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics is an educational, nonprofit organization dedicated to the responsible enjoyment and active stewardship of the outdoors by all people, worldwide.
	Save Our Wild Salmon is a nationwide coalition of conservation organizations, commercial and sport fishing associations, businesses, river groups, and taxpayer and clean energy advocates working collectively to restore healthy, sustainable wild salmon to the rivers, streams and oceans of the Pacific Salmon states.
	Sustainable Travel International promotes responsible travel and ecotourism, supports sustainable development and helps travelers and travel providers protect the cultures and environments they visit.