Your Flights Change Lives
10% FOR RURAL COMMUNITIES
Connecting you with community-based tourism enterprises
Your Impact
Tourism is responsible for roughly 11% of the global economy, but in many forms of tourism, virtually $0 reaches the hands of local people. Instead, tourism can pose a threat to the culture, rhythm, and way of life in many rural communities.
You’re helping us change that!
We pledge 10% of profits to support rural communities around the world.
Through our Outposts Program and other initiatives, we aim to uplift rural communities through tourism, celebrate and support rural ways of life, and connect people with community-based tourism enterprises.
Tourism – when done right – can change lives for the better.
Thank you for helping improve the lives of people around the world.
OUR MODEL
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CONNECT
Outposts
We connect our customers with local people, their businesses, their culture, economies, spiritual and religious practices, and their general way of life.
We hope this connection fosters understanding across many cultures, resulting in new intercultural dialogue and lifelong friendships with the people you meet.
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COMMUNITY SUPPORT
Profits Staying Local
We empower community tourism enterprises that directly support local people. We connect them to a global network of unique projects, and our customer base.
By helping these projects thrive, rural communities are able to reinvest profits in their own economies, education, healthcare, environment, and other cultural priorities.
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ADVOCACY
Using Community To Advocate
By recommending and supporting causes that positively impact rural communities, we change the perception of tourism, and start a conversation about the impact tourism has on rural communities.
Every community deserves a voice.
IMPACT PROJECTS
Supporting rural communities around the world.
Cultural Preservation Project: Siem Reap, Cambodia
JANUARY 2025-CURRENT
We believe travel should connect people to culture and community. With support from Pomelo, our local team member organized the creation of a community stage just outside of Siem Reap, Cambodia. Built on the property of a local family who endured great hardship during the Khmer Rouge era, the stage now serves as both a cultural hub and a new source of income for them. It mainly hosts traditional dance performances, giving young performers a place to practice, share their traditions, and earn money through live shows, while also offering space for community events and gatherings. It’s a place where resilience, culture, and opportunity come together.
Outpost: Siem Reap, Cambodia
OPENED DECEMBER 2024
Sarom and his family faced major challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the loss of their businesses and primary source of income. Through our Pomelo Grants program, and with support from our local team on the ground, we were able to help Sarom make significant upgrades to their existing guesthouse. The renovations concluded in late 2024 and included major structural reinforcement to the the existing foundation, updated guest rooms, a deck with views of the surrounding lotus farm, in addition to a new restaurant space.The vision for the Outpost is to host community gatherings that celebrate dance, culture, and connection, all of which are already beginning to take place. The project is located just outside of Siem Reap, next to a peaceful lotus farm. The area offers a quiet village atmosphere and an opportunity to experience authentic Cambodian countryside life.
Learn more about Sarom’s Outpost here!
Outpost: Pansawan
Mae Rim, Thailand
OPENED SEPTEMBER 2023
Tee is the proud owner of Pansawan Restaurant and the heart behind our first Pomelo Outpost. Born and raised in the local village, she knows the community and its traditions inside and out. With the help of a Pomelo grant, she was able to build and furnish a small bungalow on her property, creating the very first Pomelo Outpost.
At Pansawan, you can eat, stay, and connect with Thai culture in a meaningful way. Guests can spend time with Tee, learn to cook traditional dishes, explore her village, and experience the slower rhythm of Thai time.
Tee is a strong presence in her community, and a visit here is an opportunity to share in her story and the life of the village.
Learn more about Tee’s Outpost here!
Rice Scholarships
Siem Reap, Cambodia
2023-2024 SCHOOL YEAR
Many impoverished Cambodian families face the difficult choice of withdrawing their children from school to put them to work. Their tasks primarily involve collecting refuse and scavenging for food, with some being responsible for caring for younger siblings while their parents are at work.
Pomelo Travel Impact, in collaboration with our partner organization, One Family At A Time, has been instrumental in supporting up to 20 primary and high school students in securing an education for their future. We extend our assistance by providing 20 kilograms, approximately 40 pounds, of rice each month to every student and their family, contingent upon the students achieving an impressive 85% attendance rate verses the historical range of students range of 35% to 55% per month.
Through our commitment to these students, Pomelo Travel Impact not only paves the way for their brighter futures but also aids their families in breaking free from the cycles of generational poverty.
Outpost: Bali, Indonesia
OPENED SEPTEMBER 2023
We teamed up with a local surf instructor, Donny, and his wife, Sri, to start a new homestay business that is 100% owned and operated by them and their family. Located in a beautiful Balinese village, guests have the opportunity to stay in a traditional Balinese housing compound.
Traditional houses in Bali follow unique building methods that align them with the cosmos according to Balinese Hinduism.
Enjoy great surf, active Balinese traditional life, and an unforgettable view of the rice fields and volcanos.
Learn more about Donny’s Outpost here!
Outpost:
Oahu, Hawaii
LAUNCHING 2025
Not enough money from tourism goes directly to the local families living in Oahu. Instead, larger corporations and foreign interests benefit and local people are able to determine their own relationship with tourism.
Another glaring issue: Tourism and economic factors force local families to find housing off-island. This separates people from their families, loved-ones, and the island they call home. We realize tourism in Hawaii is inevitable, so we’re attempting to channel the energy from tourism to support more local families.
Project in progress. More information coming late 2025.
School Supplies Donation:
Bali, Indonesia
MARCH 2023
We teamed up with our friends at Akin Clothing to donate school uniforms and supplies to children in Northern Bali in communities that are off the tourist trail and don’t receive the benefits of tourism on the island.
All the items donated to the kids are sourced locally providing jobs and income within the community.