Much Better Adventures

The ski chalet holiday market is a mish-mash of complicated websites offering a myriad of choices, sure to confuse the browser. With so many companies offering trips, it’s difficult to know where to go, where to look, or who to go with.

The idea behind Much Better Adventures started with Alex working in an eco-lodge in Ecuador. The lodge was small, locally owned and simply didn’t have the resources, money or time to promote itself to the massive audience the internet can provide.

Without investment in the software to provide holiday information feeds to the big websites, without the margins to be able to afford the large commissions and sign-up fees which are standard across the industry, and without a reliable internet connection to make any of this possible, the lodge struggled to attract enough clientele, and the business suffered.

At Much Better Adventures we’ve been trying to address this problem. Our goal is to promote the work of locally owned and independently operated companies from around the world, with low (or no) costs, and little technological input required to set up.

We also felt that as consumers, it’s really difficult to find the small independent operators. We wanted to build a resource to put those companies in front of the public, to give them the ability to choose those companies. This means that it’s easy to find locally owned ski chalets, and those which are run with sustainability in mind on our site.

Many people have criticised the travel industry for needless waste and pollution. They say that how can we have ‘eco-holidays’ when one has to fly around the world to visit these places? It’s a question which regularly comes up, and it is certainly a valid one.

We love travel. We believe it’s unrealistic for humans to choose to stop exploring, learning, meeting and experiencing the world in which we live, through travel. So how can we do this, while minimising our impact on the world? Well, sustainability covers a range of areas – environmental, along with social and economic.

We believe that travelling with local, independent companies and those who incorporate ethical policies into their everyday operations (as our ‘muchbetter’ members do) minimises the negative impacts, and maximises the positive. More money stays in the communities, more local people are employed, the circle of local trade grows and more and more people benefit. You meet local people, you stay with local people and you avoid the mass-produced, identikit ‘resorts’ which have become ubiquitous the world over. You have a muchbetter holiday...

Over the years ‘ethical’ and ‘sustainable’ products have become a by-word for ‘more expensive’ and ‘premium’ products. But this really doesn’t have to be the case – the ski chalet holidays on our site cover all budgets and requirements.

We work with companies to help them reduce their impact, through our consultancy program. In collaboration with The Travel Foundation and Sustainable Travel International we’ve developed a package which helps companies assess their operations in relation to environmental, social and economic sustainability. Through this we can help them cut costs and reduce their impact – it’s also a great first step towards full accreditation with a range of green tourism award schemes.

We really believe that the local and independent operators are the ones you should travel with. With a wide range of active holidays from all over the world, to suit all budgets, we’re confident you’ll find your ideal ski chalet holiday on our site!