VentureCo - travel, ethics, purpose

Duration: 15 weeks

Destination countries: Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia

Main activities:
• Nine weeks of cultural orientation and project work:
• Two-week intensive Spanish language course in Quito with salsa dance lessons, cooking course and local visits
• One-week Spanish language booster course in Cusco.
• Two-week community project with the Book Bus in Ecuador
• Two-week Andean conservation project with ECOAN in Peru
• Two-week community project with the Amigos Foundation in Cusco, Peru

• Six weeks of expedition travel including:
• Jungle survival skills course
• High altitude trekking skills course
• Pacific surf school
• Expedition trekking in Cordillera Huaywash and Salkantay route to Machu Picchu
• 4 x 4 Atacama Desert and Salt Flat crossing in Chile and Bolivia
• Island visits on Lake Titicaca
• Amazon expedition trek in Peru
• Cultural visits in major cities en route
• Visits to archaeological sites including Chan Chan, Nazca Lines, Sacred Valley of the Incas and Machu Picchu.

Scroll down below to find Language School Dossiers, Project Files and Expedition Logs and more.

Choosing the destination is the first step of your Gap Year journey, what are you going to do when you get there? Time flies when you’re having fun but are you taking advantage of all the wonderful opportunities that abound during your Gap Year? With such a huge array of travel options, planning your trip can be hard work.

With over 25 years of travel experience to count on, VentureCo know the kind of places that you are likely to want to visit and, just as importantly, the kind of places that you would rather avoid. We don’t do guided tours however, instead we help our groups plan and organise their own Venture around a viable framework of activities and destinations. 

In this area for: 14 days
Accommodation: Clean and comfortable hostels
Transport: Mini-bus transfers and occasional taxi

Whether you are a seasoned traveller or on your first big trip the most important skill you’re going to need when you step off the plane in a foreign country is the ability to communicate. Sign language may work well enough to get you through customs and immigration but by day two you’ll be scouring through your phrase book looking for the words to explain what it is that you are flapping your arms about for.

For more than 10 years VentureCo have been providing one-to-one Spanish language tuition that concentrates on conversation in real life situations. Tuition is geared towards the lifestyle and activities that you encounter on the Venture and because it’s one to one you start at your own level and proceed at your own pace. For both beginners and advanced speakers our language course will boost your confidence and get you on the road to cultural immersion.

Classes are held every morning from Monday to Friday and there’s a programme of activities for the afternoons and weekends. Getting out and about is an important part of life in the school and at weekends especially, it’s good to take a break and explore the surrounding countryside.

We are here for: 10 days
Activities: Outdoor and camp craft skills, high altitude trekking, jungle survival.
Accommodation: Tents, mountain huts, jungle shelters, hostels
Transport: Local bus, dugout canoe

We start with high altitude trek training through Cotapaxi National Park in the high Andes. Cotapaxi Volcano soars above our trail and there’s an option to try for the summit if you’d like to “bag” your first Andean peak.

At the headwaters of the Amazon basin we have a new environment to contend with and our jungle survival school will soon have you coping with life in the world’s greatest rain forest.

Coming out of the Amazon, the expedition finally delivers us to the Pacific coast and the first Project. You will arrive having experienced new and challenging environments and will be well acclimatised to face the challenges of the Book Bus project

In this area for: 14 days
Accommodation: Volunteer House in Puerto Lopez
Transport: The Book Bus
Activities: School visits and reading sessions with children, down time activities include swimming, National Park visits and an off-shore boat ride to Isla de la Plata.

The Book Bus - Literacy in Motion

Reading isn’t just one of life’s great pleasures, it is an essential life skill; it improves literacy, develops a positive attitude towards learning and is crucial to the academic and social development of young people. Despite the importance of literacy, large class sizes and lack of resources mean there are few reading opportunities for many children in Ecuador.

The Book Bus supports schools by providing mobile library facilities and volunteer story-tellers to help children become confident and literate readers for life. Working mainly with rural schools, our volunteer crew divide huge classes into small groups and inspire the children to read by personalising the reading experience through story-telling, individual interpretation and creative arts. This simple and effective support is sustained by provision of books and resources to each school library.

Living in Puerto Lopez is a fun experience. Our Volunteer House is home for the project and we all share the everyday activities like cooking and cleaning as a self-supporting group. With the beach only 10 minutes walk form the house, mixing work and play is easy!

In this area for: 7 days
Accommodation: Clean and comfortable hostels
Transport: Comfortable inter-city coaches
Activities: Warm water surfing on pacific beaches, exploring pre-Inca ruins in the desert north, sea food platters galore.

When the stark desert of northern Peru eventually meets the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean the result is a string of fine beaches with sleepy fishing villages and rolling surf. Inca Venture stops off for 3 days of lessons at a surf school in the village of Mancora which offers a great variety of surfing conditions all in warm water, (so wetsuits aren’t required for most of the year) As long as you are a confident swimmer, you should be up and riding the waves by day 2 of the course, even if you are an absolute beginner. You’ll soon find that surfing is not only good exercise for your body, but that it is also immense fun and very addictive.

We journey deeper into Peru to explore Chan Chan, a vast mud-walled city that represented the pinnacle of the Chimu civilisation; here we discover its story and learn of giant pyramids, lavish tombs and the bloody warrior tribes that finally succumbed to the might of the Inca empire.
Accommodation here is in a beach-side hostel in the fishing village of Huanchaco. Once you've had your fill of local history you can indulge in the fine seafood on offer in the village or practice your surf skills on the beach's long waves.
 

Next : Andean Ecological and conservation project in the Cordillera Huyahuash region.

In this area for: 14 days
Accommodation: Camping during the project
Transport: Truck and bus to project site, trekking back to base
Activities: Reforestation, light construction work, community survey work

Polylepis trees are the only native tree in the high Andes and as well as being an extremely important source of fuel and construction material for indigenous people, the tree and its root system hold the mountainside together and retain water. The Andes Mountains are an area of high rainfall, with the attendant risk of serious soil erosion if deforestation is allowed to take hold. Ecologically, Polylepis forests prevent erosion by retaining water. More retained water means less soil erosion, which means more trees, which means more animal species and a wider range of plant species. It’s all related and the lynch pin to this ecosystem is the Polylepis tree.

In this area for: 10 days
Accommodation: Clean and comfortable hostels
Transport: Comfortable inter-city coaches
Activities: Big city life in Lima and Arequipa, offshore marine wildlife sanctuary at Paracas, The Nazca Lines, optional horse riding, mountain bike and sand-boarding in the Atacama Desert, Chile.

Lima was was a Spanish stronghold during the colonial era and it became a wealthy city thanks to the vast riches plundered from the conquered Incas that passed through on their way to Spain. A walk around the historical centre gives an exciting peek into the past and if you sample the night scene you'll be salsa dancing until dawn.

After our break in Lima we follow the coast south to Paracas from where we skim out into the Pacific Ocean to the Ballestas Islands where literally millions of sea birds soar above huge sea lion colonies and, believe it or not, penguins!

Back on shore we head inland and upwards to a remote plateau where ancient man created a series of lines and etchings in the desert floor. These are of course the Nazca lines which survive today as one of the worlds great unsolved mysteries; we view the lines from a watch tower and there are optional flights that lift you high above the desert floor for the aerial view.

We take a break from travelling in Arequipa; this is Peru's second city and it's famous for a pleasant year-round climate and colonial architecture. The food's good here too and a day or two to relax will slip by easily.

Our next big destination is Chile's Atacama Desert, the driest region on earth.
San Pedro de Atacama is a sleepy oasis in the heart of the desert. The early conquistadors passed through here in pursuit of Inca gold, today it is a safe haven from where you can explore the dunes and valleys of the desert on horse back, by mountain bike or even on a sand board!

Next : Boliva, high altitude salt flats, the “Silver City” of Potosi, La Paz and Lake Titicaca

In this area for: 12 days
Accommodation: Basic mountain huts on the Uyuni Salt Flats, family stay on Lake Titicaca and clean and comfortable hostels elsewhere.
Transport: 4 x4 vehicles to cross the Uyuni Salt Flats, passenger ferry on Lake Titicaca and comfortable inter-city coaches elsewhere.
Activities: Wilderness travel across the Uyuni Salt Flats, mine visit in Potosi, market visits in La Paz, island hopping on Lake Titicaca.

Loading your pack onto the roof of the 4x4 is the first step of an adventurous trip across the Andes to Bolivia. Our sturdy vehicles follow rough tracks past smouldering volcanoes and flamingo filled lagoons to reach the vast white expanse of the Uyuni Salt Flats. The only signs of human settlement are isolated border posts, worked-out mines and remote settlements before finally reaching Uyuni to take the bus to Potosi. Incredibly, this region is where Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are reputed to have been active robbing banks and payrolls from the local mines.

The Spanish built Potosi after discovering a huge silver deposit in Cerro Rico and for a while, the city became the biggest and wealthiest in the western hemisphere. We stop over to visit the mines and the huge silver vaults in the “Casa de la Moneda”. which have changed little since the 17th century.The Andean highlands aren't noted for its cuisine but we have tasted alpaca, llama and guinea pig in Potosi’s restaurants and found them all to be delicious!

The road to La Paz crosses the Alti Plano, a high plain that extends north to Lake Titicaca and into Peru. La Paz at 3,700m is the highest capital city in the world and you can see anything from a witch craft market to museums to an English pub as you puff your way up and down its hilly side-streets. A day trip to Tiahuanaco reveals the ruins of another mysterious pre-Inca civilization and an array of cybercafés keeps you in touch with the greater world as you treat yourself to a wicked pastry.

Lake Titicaca is home to the Aymara Indians who populate many of its islands and from the depths of the Lake rose the mythological “Children of the Sun” who went on to establish the mighty Inca Empire. We have time to explore the islands including the floating Uros islands in Peru where communities still live offshore on man-made islands made from reeds. Overnighting with families on one of the islands gives an insight into their distinct culture.
Back onshore, we take the bus to Cusco.

Next : Peru, Language school and community project.

In this area for: 14 days
Accommodation: Family stay in Cusco and bunk house accommodation during project.
Activities: Intensive Spanish Language lessons, 20 hours spread over 5 days. Weekend visit to the Sacred Valley of the Incas, 7 day community project with disadvantaged children from Cusco.

Cusco was the mountain capital of the Incas until the 16th Century; Spanish conquest and more recent development has resulted in a city that combines imposing Inca stonework with magnificent colonial architecture to produce a city that is one of the most talked about destinations in the world today.
A one week booster session of Spanish lessons is a practical and fun way to further improve your language skills; home stay accommodation adds to the sense of cultural immersion during this week.
The Amigos Foundation supports various community initiatives in and around Cusco and we will be working with them to establish a day-care centre for disadvantaged children from the area. The two week project will provide facilities and materials to install a mini library and arts and crafts workshop.

Next : The Amazon and an Andea trek to Machu Picchu

In this area for: 10 days
Accommodation: Camping and lodge in the Amazon, camping on the Salkantay Trek, Hostels when overnighting in Cusco and Aguas Calientes
Transport: Amazon: By bus or truck to the Amazon, by boat and canoe through the river system. Andean trek: On foot to Machu Picchu and by train back to Cusco
Activities: 5 day Jungle wildlife trek, 4 day Andean trek to Machu Picchu. A day to explore Machu Picchu itself.

East from the Peruvian Andes, the Amazon rain forest stretches like a vast green carpet for thousands of miles. Our expedition descends into one of its most untouched regions to explore under is towering canopy. We travel by river and follow animal tracks to experience life in this huge yet incredibly fragile ecosystem. With expert local guides there is a good chance that we'll spot the jungle wildlife which includes monkeys, caiman (alligators) and many bird species. Previous groups were thrilled to spot anaconda and giant otters so keep your eyes peeled! Accommodation is under canvas when we are trekking through the forest and in a comfortable lodge before departure to Cusco.

Swapping our jungle clothes for trekking gear we pass through Cusco to the trailhead of the Salkantay Trek. This four day trek passes in the shadow of the towering snow capped peak of Salkantay – one of the Incas most sacred mountains. We are supported bu a mule team who carry the bulk of our equipment. Overnight camps are set amidst spectacular Andean landscapes and the trail winds it way along scenic valleys and over high passes at impressive altitudes in excess of 4000m. All the hard work is rewarded by a special “back door” view of Machu Picchu from a little visited viewpoint.
The trek ends at the town of Aguas Calientes where the hot springs invite weary limbs for a recuperating soak. Early next morning we descend to Machu Picchu and spend the day exploring this wonderful “Lost City”. Such sites as the “Temple of the three Windows”, the “Hitching Post of the Sun” and the climb up Wayna Picchu are all evocative of an era when the Incas ruled supreme in their mountain kingdom.
Our final night will be in Cusco where celebrations often last well into small hours of the morning!

Here are just some examples of what Inca Venture could do for you!

Language School and Cultural Orientation

* Develop your Spanish oral, writing and reading skills.
* Learn about a different culture.
* Learn about the food, dance and music … and do it!
* Appreciate the differences between you and your host country;
* Appreciate the similarities between you and your host country, which is greater?
* Experience the trials and tribulations of working with disadvantaged children on the Amigos project in Peru

Community Development Projects

* Experience the trials and tribulations of working with disadvantaged children on the project sites
* Improve your communication skills as you liaise with the local community
* Gain an understanding of project planning and group management, including risk assessment, group security and arranging food, accommodation and transport.
* Learn about safety and hygiene whilst in the field.

Expedition

* Develop your navigation and mountain leadership skills.
* Gain experience of high altitude trekking.
* Bushcraft: Learn how to travel responsibly, causing the minimum disruption to communities and habitats.
* Learn about the unique fauna and flora and unusual wildlife of South America, from the High Andes to the Amazon jungle and the Pacific coastal islands.
* Gain an understanding of expedition planning and group management, including risk assessment, group security and arranging food, accommodation and transport.
* Learn about safety and hygiene whilst in the field.
* Learn to cook for 3 people (your “tent group”) on a specialist high altitude MSR camping stove!
* Learn about campcraft: setting, managing and striking camps so that the environment doesn’t know you were ever there!