About The Natural Adventure

As lovers of the natural world ourselves, our aim is to operate in the most ecologically responsible manner possible. And we think this should be the essence of the ‘self-guided’ concept. We are not a “mass market” operator. We choose to offer and present our holidays in a way that offers walkers the opportunity to enjoy everything that a beautiful region has to offer while leaving the smallest discernable footprint on the environment. Our hiking and cycling holidays are designed to contribute to the local and rural communities and economies that we visit. As most of our holidays are walking and cycling based, we aim to keep our operations as environmentally friendly as possible.

Our hiking and cycling holidays are designed to contribute to the local and rural communities and economies that we visit. We encourage our clients to soak in and respect the local cultures, taste local food and wines, participate in local community projects. We work closely with our local partners and accommodation providers so we can provide unforgettable experiences to our clients whilst contributing to sustaining and promoting local culture and traditions.
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The Natural Adventure is one where we promote and protect our precious landscapes. It’s why we were founded in 2009, creating low impact adventure itineraries in the Balkan countries. By highlighting the likes of Bulgaria or Bosnia-Herzegovina for walking holidays, for example, we engage with local people committed to conservation, we reinforce a pride of place for local communities, and we support families to keep living in some of the planet’s most pristine and remote locations, by providing income and incentives for them to do so.

We now operate in over 50 countries, showing people that they can have a superb holiday by walking or cycling, going gently and graciously.

In terms of the bigger picture and the climate crisis, we promote public transport within our destinations, we rarely use car rentals and we recommend getting to places without flying when possible. ....less

Rekichka (from Bulgarian, “small river”) was established in 2002 by The Natural Adventure Company’s founder, Alex Pazderski.

Rekichka is a non-profit organisation, focused on the areas of social enterprise and education, promotion of environmentally friendly travel, biodiversity protection, as well as mitigating local conflicts and tensions through economic growth and cross-country cooperation in the field of responsible tourism. Rekichka operates primarily in the Balkan countries and has completed a number of initiatives that have positively impacted many local communities. Rekichka has no religious or political affiliations and no corporate donors apart from The Natural Adventure Company.

100% of your donation goes directly to local communities in need in the regions where we operate. This way you will give back to the places you visit on your travels by creating opportunities for local people to make ends meet during these challenging times.

Thank you for your support and for making a difference! ....less

When Peter Duncan took up Alex Pazderski’s invitation to make his first visit to Southeast Europe and Bulgaria, he was faced with an abundance of surprises. He happily admits, “Whilst I had visited many other regions of the world, this was a part of Europe, almost on my doorstep, which I knew so little about”.

Wouldn’t it be great, if somebody showed you the way, arranged comfortable accommodation, took care of your bags for you, and provided 24/7 local support, leaving you the freedom to explore on your own… but with all the legwork done for you, all in the most cost-effective way possible?

Co-founded by Peter Duncan, ex-UK Chief Scout and BBC Blue Peter man, and Alex Pazderski, an avid hiker and acclaimed expedition kayaker, we are among the best experts in organising walking & cycling holidays and adventure trips for independently minded people.



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'Safe Travels': Global Protocols & Stamp for the New Normal
WTTC alongside our Members, governments, health experts, and other industry associations are working together to achieve effective recovery protocols by developing meaningful action plans that optimise sector-wide recovery efforts.

Part of our protocols includes providing the public & private sectors with insights & toolkits for interaction & implementation to ensure that people are and feel safe however WTTC, our members, and the sector can not guarantee 100% safety. It is paramount to have common rules. Ultimately, we envision a future of travel that is safe, secure, seamless and provides an authentic and meaningful experience to the traveller across the journey; one which supports the livelihoods of millions and contributes to sustainable economic growth.

The protocols align the private sector behind common standards to ensure the safety of its workforce and travellers as the sector shifts to a new normal.

The SafeTravels Stamp was created for travellers to recognise destinations and businesses around the world which have adopted the SafeTravels health and hygiene global standardised protocols.

Please note that while the protocols take into account current WHO and CDC guidelines, they are living documents which we will update as new information becomes available about COVID-19. ....less

We have always designed our holidays in a responsible way that gives back to local people and gives you a more rewarding experience. We believe that sustainable adventure travel is a great form of wealth redistribution and it is making a huge difference in the lives of many people in the countries where we operate. We feel that we have a responsibility to our local partners (most of which are small family-run companies) and the small communities that tourism benefits.

We aim to have a positive impact on the environment by being a leading voice, an educator and influencer of the industry on relevant sustainability issues. That is why we were among the first companies to join www.tourismdeclares.com which – launched in January 2020 – is a network of organisations, companies and individuals working in tourism who have come together to join other industries and regions in declaring a climate emergency.

By declaring an emergency, travel companies are publicly committing to the following five actions:

Developing a ‘Climate Emergency Plan’ detailing their planned response.
Transparently sharing progress publicly every year.
Ensuring their plan focusses on cutting carbon emissions, in line with current advice from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change stating that, by 2030, we need to cut global carbon emissions to 55% below their 2017 levels to keep the planet within 1.5 degrees of warming.
Working together with competitors, suppliers and partners to share best practice and grow the community.
Advocating for system change across the industry and calling for urgent regulatory action to accelerate the transition towards zero-carbon air travel. ....less

In April 2020 as a response to the COVID-19 crisis, we launched the Support Local Communities Initiative. We have enabled an option when booking a tour for customers to make a donation to support our local partners. 100% of the donations go directly to our local suppliers. This way clients will give back to the places they visit on their travels by creating opportunities for local people to earn some much-needed income.

We are also very mindful of the fact that, while so many of us are enjoying the freedom of travel again, our friends in Ukraine have suffered the exact opposite. Russia’s war in their country has been the most horrific happening in Europe in recent times, and we continue to stand in solidarity with Ukrainians during this time. We also continue to offer a way for you to support them by buying a virtual tour of their beloved Carpathians, or else by donating directly to our chosen charity there. ....less

Our aim is to operate in the most ecologically responsible manner possible. And we think this should be the essence of the ‘self-guided’ concept. We choose to offer and present our holidays in a way that offers walkers the opportunity to enjoy everything that this beautiful region has to offer while leaving the smallest discernable footprint on the environment. Our detailed tour information packs include a section on environmental responsibility and detailed instructions related to the ‘leave no trace’ policy, protected animals and plants in the area, etc. We encourage our clients to use the info packs and maps in electronic format. We commute to our office only when it is really needed and most of our employees work from their homes, thus significantly reducing the number of commutes.

In 2011 another of our founders, Alexander Pazderski, made a widely publicised record-breaking kayaking trip on the Danube, paddling in winter conditions from Vidin to Silistra (almost the entire Bulgarian section of Danube, more than 400 km) in only 4 days. This trip typically takes 12 days if you are an experienced kayaker. The challenge was aimed to raise awareness of four endangered bird species in Bulgaria living along the Danube: the Phalacrocorax pygmaeus, Aythya nyroca, Haliaeetus albicilla and the Pelecanus crispus. ....less

Member of Responsible Travel, Adventure Travel Trade Association, World Travel & Tourism Council ....less

All our accommodation in each destination is hand-picked and regularly tested by members of the Natural Adventure team so you can rest assured you will return to comfortable accommodation at the end of your days walking.
In remote locations where we believe the hiking includes spectacular views and nature, we stay in locally owned hotels or local guest-houses. These are always clean and comfortable and serve local fresh locally sourced food. In specific locations where we believe there is a genuine opportunity to experience a unique local flavour, we also stay in local guesthouses where our clients are greeted with traditional hospitality, clean and comfortable rooms and locally sourced fresh food.

We typically use local public transport, buses and trains to transfer our clients at the beginning and the end of the itinerary. We encourage our clients to use public transport where possible and offer private car transfers which are neither economical nor environmentally friendly only where there are no alternatives, or as additionally charged options. Baggage transfers between hotels are typically made by local drivers and not by taxi companies. By using local transport services we support the local economy in the regions where we operate.

We are still the only company which offers self-guided walking holidays in Kosovo, the youngest country in Europe. We believe in its potential as a tourism destination and have been partnering with the Swiss charity Swisscontact on a project for encouraging and promoting sustainable tourism in Kosovo. As part of this project our founder, Peter Duncan visited Kosovo in 2015.

In Bulgaria, we are supporting the local NGO Rekichka, which has been implementing a number of projects related to the development of sustainable tourism and biodiversity protection in cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme and the European Union.

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Starting in 2009 by developing several pioneering trekking itineraries in the Balkans, we now offer 600+ self-guided walking holidays and cycling tours as well as a range of meticulously curated small group and privately guided tours, family and discovery trips. Having principal offices in London, Dublin and Sofia and 50+ field offices/representatives worldwide, we can serve our customers anywhere they go, providing 24/7 support.

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