Following the recent signing of the operating and marketing contracts for two of Africa's most iconic destinations, North Island in the Seychelles and Abu Camp in Botswana's Okavango Delta, Wilderness Safaris is excited to launch a new brand in its stable: Wilderness Collection.
This new brand will provide a home for a carefully selected portfolio of progressive and innovative programmes in iconic African destinations and will build on the success enjoyed by North Island and Abu Camp over the past decade.
Two exceptional new destinations that will join the Collection and open early in 2012 are Segera on the Laikipia Plateau in Kenya and Odzala in the virgin rainforest of Odzala-Kokoua National Park in the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville).
All of the locations share a philosophy of building environmental, social and financial equity and of raising global awareness around sustainability. This shared commitment to these inextricably linked goals results in synergies that would perhaps not be as effectively achieved without the umbrella of the Wilderness Collection.
In addition to this common philosophy, each location is dedicated to unashamed, but sustainable, luxury and exceptional guest experiences. From the refined elegance of North Island, to the sophistication and elephant ambassadors of Abu Camp, the rainforest discovery and lowland gorilla encounters of Odzala and the cultural journey and modern conservation concept of Segera, the Wilderness Collection is firmly rooted in striving to provide truly inimitable experiences for our guests.
Each of the destinations included in the Wilderness Collection has a foundation based on Wilderness' core principals, "the 4Cs" - Conservation, Community, Culture and Commerce - and seeks to demonstrate that you can do well by doing good.
North Island shows that it is possible to reverse the negative impacts of our species and rehabilitate entire ecosystems. Similarly, the premise on which Abu Camp and its elephant ambassadors is based is that of elephant conservation and vast transfrontier conservation areas. Segera, in turn, aims to create a self-sustaining, responsible model that preserves a part of Kenya's natural heritage, benefits the local population, enhances responsible tourism and promotes sustainable land use and awareness of conservation issues. Odzala's vision is to use responsible lowland gorilla-orientated tourism as a catalyst to spread the rainforest conservation message both locally and globally.
All of these programmes are undertaken in a way that ensures the sustainability philosophy is integral to the guest experience.
Wilderness is thrilled to be able to provide this platform for places and people who seek to make a difference.