Provence Guru Responsible Travel Policy
Traveller Conduct
All Provence Guru clients are provided with our “Traveller Information and Code of Conduct” guidelines in advance of their trip.
Environment
Provence Guru is a small company with one member of staff based in the Luberon village of Lourmarin. It operates out of a home office.
The company does not produce paper-based marketing materials. All tour information is provided on our website www.provenceguru.com or in pdf form upon request.
Our small office is supplied with Luberon-source well water which is filtered and UV treated. All tour participants are provided with a re-usable water bottle at the beginning of their stay which can be replenished with the same Luberon-source water throughout the stay.
On arrival all clients are provided with a welcome package of artisan-produced local products including a re-usable shopping bag produced by Lourmarin school children. Sales of the bag support the school’s environmental educational projects such as the Classe Verte (Green Class) and Classe Velo (Bike Class). These 4-day overnight programs take primary school children out into the local nature park to stay in campsites/eco lodges and inspire a love of a nature in the future generation. By the end of 2021, through purchases of reusable shopping bags from the school association, Provence Guru will have contributed an estimated €1,000 to these programs.
Chateau Constantin where all clients of Provence Guru are accommodated is a local vineyard in the process of converting to organic production. By basing tours at the Chateau Provence Guru is helping to subsidise this more expensive method of wine production which in turn protects the abundant local flora and fauna. From 2020 all Chateau Constantin wines will be certified organic.
Economic
Provence Guru is based in Provence. It is a registered French company and works exclusively with local residents and businesses.
All tours are led by Jamie Ivey a local resident for 14 years. All guiding inside the tourist sights visited on our tours is conducted by registered local tourists guides.
Provence Guru tours accommodate all guests at Chateau Constantin. The vineyard employs 4 local people on a year round basis and a larger seasonal workforce during the harvest.
Provence has a rich food culture and an abundance of fresh ingredients. Evening meals provided at the Chateau are provided by a local caterer using local ingredients. All staff employed by the caterer are local. Breakfasts consist of croissants and pain au chocolat produced in the village boulangerie as well as a seasonal fruit selection sourced from local farms. Restaurant recommendations at lunch time are exclusively made to restaurants cooking fresh food from local ingredients.
Social
Provence Guru runs small group tours outside the main tourist season. It’s period of operation is from April to the beginning of June and from September to mid-October. By doing so the company seeks to mitigate the effect of over-tourism on Provence’s main tourist attractions.
Provence Guru recommends all guests visit the Chateau de Lourmarin (see Traveller Information document) on their final afternoon. The Chateau is a local arts foundation that supports young artists and is key to the provision, performance and availability of arts in a rural area.
End of year review
Provence Guru reviews its responsible travel policy on a yearly basis every December. The objective of the review is to seek ways in which the company can maximise the way it and its clients contribute to the local economy and minimise the negative effects of tourism.