As a company focused on providing people with life changing tours that open their eyes to a whole kaleidoscope of new, wondrous and vibrant experiences, we are also committed to our social responsibilities in helping some challenged communities in Asia.

For years now, we have helped aid and assist projects in different countries in South East Asia where we operate most of our tours. This is our way of giving back to the community and to support Responsible Tourism. One of the truly great organizations that we are proud to be a part of is an INGO in Vietnam called Loreto.

Loreto is an organization dedicated to the reduction of poverty through beneficial, qualitative and responsive educational opportunities for underprivileged and disabled students.

It is a children-oriented future builder in the form of education for underprivileged and disabled children particularly in desperate and remote communities throughout Vietnam to embellish social change and development.

They run projects to help communities off the beaten path that allows less-advantaged Vietnamese children to have a chance at a brighter and happier future.

One of the ways they do this by building and renovating schools to give kids a chance at a real education. In these rural areas the schools are run down and are often too small to actually fit all the children inside. These schools mean that the underprivileged children of Vietnam across 6 provinces have a safe and clean learning environment where they can have a real chance at an academic future.

Another way that the Loreto Program has helped the less fortunate kids in Vietnam is by supplying them with ‘School Packs’.

A lot of the families that these kids come from really struggle to make ends meet. They make very little money, if any at all; they have just enough to feed their families. So when it comes to sending their kids to school they either don’t have the means or the motivation to do so. In Loreto’s endeavors to give these children a chance at an education, they decided that they could help by providing underprivileged children with the resources they need for an education. This means making sure that they have school uniforms, stationery, learning equipment and educational resources. This give the children the tools they need to learn.

During its years of running, Loreto has really gotten to know these kids and their families. They now truly comprehend what it is that these kids need to have a shot at a brighter future. One thing they’ve learnt along the way is that one of the major factors for these kids not getting educated is because of commuting distances. Due to schools being so few and far between, it means some kids have to walk for what can be up to hours to get to and from school every day.

Due to these long commutes, they get tired and end up dropping out of school as it is just not fees able to walk this far every day.

Loreto decided that a simple solution to help fix this would be to give these kids bicycles. They call this their ‘wheels for education program’. Giving these kids bicycles means they no longer have to walk long distances and they now have an easier, faster, and far less exhausting way to get school! This has seen a dramatic reduction in drop outs and has also given other children a feasible way to get to a school that lived just too far away from the schools before!

Starting from a sole coordinator back in 97’ to a Team of 9 members currently! Loreto Vietnam-Australia Program (LVAP) is a vibrant, spirited group of wonderful, effective multi-task achievers – who have a shared passion for the kids of Vietnam! Using their vitality, energy and vigor they have and will continue to change the lives of less privileged kids in Vietnam and Footsteps in Asia will continue to support them in this truly amazing cause.

If you would like to read more about Loreto and to see what an amazing difference they are making to the lives of children in Vietnam, then check out their website at http://www.loretovietnam.org/ to grasp, clasp and capture the vitality, energy and vigor that the Loreto Team is prompting through our involvement with many Provinces and kids and families and villages in so many parts of South Vietnam

From a sole coordinator (1997) to a Team of NINE members (2014)! Loreto Vietnam-Australia Program (LVAP) is a vibrant, spirited group of wonderful, effective multi-task achievers – who have a shared passion for the kids of Vietnam.

Tropical Journeys has a commitment to the environment and to the people who live in our places of business. We believe responsible and sustainable tourism is not just a punch line, but is an absolutely necessity to continue providing our services to our guests in Asia into the future.