Tips
- A simple ‘hello’ or a ‘thank you’ in the local language can break down barriers
- Try and stay at homestays than at hotels or resorts
- Use a local as your guide – that way you will get deeper, more credible insights
- Dress smartly: shoddy dressing has never succeeded in getting anybody’s respect
- Bargain, but with a heart: remember that you are definitely better off than the seller
- Don’t indulge beggars with money, instead buy them food or give old clothes
- Eat from local restaurants as far as possible and buy from local handicraft stalls
- Protect the local environment by conserving power, water and not littering
