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About us
Travel to the Core of Things is a social business with the aim of offering high quality products based on a human approach to the places we work with and guided by a set of principles for producing ethical, socially responsible and nature based products and activities.
From a social perspective we are devoted to rescue and to promote the cultural, natural and human heritage of off the track rural regions of Spain as an active value of these regions.
From the natural therapies perspective we have a holistical approach to health assuming that nature heals and fostering our clients interaction with nature to enhance their perception of oneness and foster their mindfullness and self-esteem.
OUR PRINCIPLES
All our activities and holidays are driven by 3 main principles:
We promote local culture and small local businesses. We work with people of the destinations. We contribute to rescue traditions and local stories about to be forgotten. We use only local service providers and we ensure the benefits reach as widely as possible (far from all in packs). Moreover, we distribute 10% of our benefits to local associations.
This product has been developed by local people with the aim of opening the doors of their homes so that you get to know the valley through their eyes and have access to their family histories. One of the aims is to provide a human understanding of the valley, its people, traditions, history and surroundings. We foster interaction between guests and visitors giving you the autonomy to discover it by yourself. To accomplish this approach we only operate with individuals or small groups to avoid disturbance of local culture and to foster true interaction.
We aim at transmitting our region through a sensorial experience of our natural surroundings; the life of the villages and its people; the smells; the sounds; the cuisine. We contribute to protect our natural surroundings promoting organic initiatives;promoting natural areas as an active value of the regions; and raising awareness about the local flora and fauna.
OUR QUALITY
We undertake a deep investigation of each and every experience offered to you: the people, the traditions, the natural surroundings and the culture. We share everyday life with local traders throughout the 4 seasons of the year. We collect the human stories and the legends of the area. We develop all activities and products together with local people passionate about their region. Each investigation takes around 1 year and a half for selecting the best strolls, the activities of the traditional trades’ open doors days, and training the local people who will collaborate as hosts of the holidays. The outcomes are high quality activities with an attention to detail where every experience has a meaning and where the main objective is to offer the visitors the possibility to appreciate and enjoy the places as much as the people participating in the initiative.
For the natural therapy health products we apply a holistic methodology folling the principles of body awareness and awakening (through physical activity), mind relaxing orientation (through sensorial led activities, playfullness and semistructured guided activites) and soul enhancing focus (human centered approach in the design and the approach to the client, mindfullness, oneness fostering).
OUR TEAM
Our main added value is that each holiday is designed and organized by around 20 local people including local hosts, local traders, owners of rural houses and members of local associations, all passionate about their region, culture, natural surroundings and way of life.
We include below a brief summary of our team:
Passionate about travelling and cultures he has worked for more than 10 years in social businesses and tourism projects all around the world. Some years ago he decided to set up this social business around tourism in Spain and he is currently coordinating the whole initiative.
Valerie is a Belgian women living since 2001 in Benialí. She is an enthusiastic mountain walker together with her husband and children, she is in love with the valley since she spent her holidays here as a child and decided to quit her country to start a new life in Alicante where she met her husband and has nowadays a family with two children. Valerie is acquainted with the trades related with agriculture (her family has olive and cherry trees) and she is also thinking on setting up a cultural initiative in the region.
Paul, together with his wife Sally, decided to quit their accountancy and bank manager jobs in England more than 10 years ago and decided to start up a new live in Spain and they finally chose La Vall de Gallinera. They are both passionate about the natural surroundings, the culture, and the traditions. You will enjoy with the sense of humour of Paul and you may even see him acting as one of the Moors in the Christians and Moors festival held every year in the valley.
Claudia, born in Germany, and raised in Spain, is currently living in a town nearby la Vall de Gallinera. Claudia is currently working as a baker (selling organic bread in the regional markets) and she is passionate about people, cultures, nature, yoga and everything related to a natural life-style. With Claudia you will enjoy with someone knowledgeable about the people, the places and always willing to laugh and to learn new things.
She, together with his couple Paul, decided to quit their accountancy and bank manager jobs in England more than 10 years ago and decided to start up a new live in Spain and they finally chose La Vall de Gallinera. They are both passionate about the natural surroundings, the culture, and the traditions. You will enjoy with her sense of humour and her deep understanding of the valley.
Is another incredibly active English woman living in the valley since the 80’s who has worked in different parts of Spain as almost everything and who has lately served as a cultural guide for senior English travellers. Julie has a wide deep understanding of Spain, Valencia and Alicante; the agricultural trades (she and her husband have olive, almond and cherry trees); and its people; and very much likes sharing it with visitors. She has been as well an active member of the valley participating in a social project.
Gemma is an active Spanish woman from the village of Benissili, at the top end of the valley. Unlike other young people that who fled to bigger cities such as Valencia or Alicante, she and her husband decided to come back to the valley where she was born and raised. Once here, she has been involved in several activities for boosting the valley such as launching the regional market or being president of the SME’s association. Further, she is helping in the family organic agriculture business whilst taking care of her baby daughter. With Gemma you will get to know the valley from the eyes of someone with a global understanding of the valley always proud of where she is from
Together with the local host, there are 11 people involved in the initiative as local traders (shepherds, beekeepers, cooks, etc.). Click on the link to discover them and their trades throughout the 4 seasons of the year. Read more on the traditional traders team.