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About Visit Natives
Our mission
We support tourism that benefits indigenous peoples
In general, most tourism doesn't benefit indigenous people even when it takes place in their ancestral lands. Our trips support local families and communities in receiving greater economic benefits.
This will reduce the need for individuals to leave their homes for better financial opportunities in cities while preserving indigenous peoples' traditional way of life and cultural heritage.
We preserve indigenous cultures
Indigenous cultures are an essential part of our world's identity and diversity. However, these communities face many challenges that threaten their very existence.
We embrace and support indigenous languages, cultures, beliefs, and knowledge systems, and ensure that these vital pieces of our collective history remain intact for generations.
We promote sustainable travel
Our goal is to promote sustainable tourism in light of the challenges brought by climate change, particularly for indigenous communities who rely on nature.
Indigenous peoples have a unique ethical and spiritual connection with the environment, which we can all learn from. Our aim is to help travelers reconnect with nature and appreciate its beauty.
Visit Natives's Consept
Indigenous tourism offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in a culture that is rich in tradition and history. All our tours and expeditions are not just designed, but also led by the indigenous people, ensuring an authentic and unique experience.
Our indigenous hosts don't just welcome travelers, they embrace them as family. Their warm hospitality, extended to family members, neighbors, friends, and unknown visitors, makes your stay with us not just authentic and memorable, but truly special.
With us, you're not just a visitor-you're part of the community. You're welcome to observe and participate in everyday life, from feasts to rituals and ceremonies. It's an opportunity to create memories and friendships that will last a lifetime.
Trips that matter
Explore the lands of indigenous peoples, where 80 percent of the earth’s biodiversity thrives. These incredible natural marvels are the ancestral homes of Indigenous communities like the Maasai, Hadzabe, and Sami reindeer herders. By opting for sustainable Indigenous tourism, you actively contribute to preserving unique cultures, traditional knowledge, and the rights of Indigenous peoples to their native and ancestral lands.
All the sustainable
Our tours are not just about minimizing our travel's environmental impacts and maximizing benefits for local people. They are about offering an authentic experience. You stay with indigenous hosts in their homes, villages, and homesteads, living as they do and experiencing their way of life. You sleep in a tent or a cabin, and you eat local food that is prepared by your indigenous hosts from local ingredients, adding to the authenticity of your experience.
Our experiences take place in remote areas with no electricity, roads, or Wi-Fi. You can slow down and enjoy nature with minimal impact on the environment.
We are comm
Ethical tourism
Visit Natives is committed to protecting the rights of Indigenous peoples. Our dedication is evident in our close collaboration with WINTA (World Indigenous Tourism Alliance) and our strict adherence to the Indigenous Tourism Engagement Framework. This commitment ensures the preservation of Indigenous rights through responsible tourism.
Our framework, based on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples 2007, the Larrakia Declaration 2012,and the United Nations Tourism Ethics convention is not only robust but also aligned with other significant international guidelines on the rights of Indigenous peoples. This alignment provides a strong foundation for our work.
How we share profits
70 % Goes to the indigenous host family & community
30 % Goes to Visit Natives
Our story
My name is Anniina Sandberg, and my passion for the world's Indigenous cultures and people led me to create Visit Natives. While conducting anthropological fieldwork, I lived with the Maasai, which was a transformative experience. I observed and participated in their daily lives, fetching water, joining in feasts, and even drinking cow's blood straight from the vein. This was a life-changing experience that inspired me to create Visit Natives.
Since then, I've been yearning for similar experiences—something truly unique, where one could immerse oneself in the lives of indigenous people and learn from their culture and nature. The allure of their culture and way of life is irresistible, and I find myself drawn back, missing my Maasai family and friends who welcomed me as one of their own, treating me like a daughter.
Years passed, and I pondered over what I truly wanted to do. Driven by my love for travel, fascination with indigenous cultures, and commitment to sustainability, I birthed my dream job, Visit Natives. This venture is not just about exploring new places, but about making a positive impact while doing so. It's about supporting and preserving unique cultures like the Maasai, and many more.
So, why not join us on our next adventure? Travel with Visit Natives and make a difference!
Meet our team
Anniina Sandberg
Anniina is the founder of the Visit Natives. She has an MA in African Studies from the University of Helsinki. Her expertise is intercultural communication, indigenous cultures, and ethnography. She founded Visit Natives because she wanted to create her dream job where she can work with and help the indigenous peoples.
Lea Munah
We believe in the power of women to improve their lives and the world around them. Lea is a Maasai widow from Moipo, Tanzania. As an esteemed elder, she works closely with Maasai women to ensure that their perspectives and solutions are heard loudly in our efforts to empower women through sustainable indigenous tourism. Lea also hosts guests in her home, a Maasai boma.
Nils Sara
Nils is a native Sami reindeer herder from Kautokeino, Norway. He manages all the homestays in Norway and he welcomes guests to his home too. Nils has dreamed about sustainable indigenous tourism for a long time. He is very passionate about his work and he makes sure that all the homestays are made of high quality.
Oddbjorg Hetta Sara
Oddbjorg is Nils's wife and she is also a native Sami from Kautokeino, Norway. Besides her own day job as a teacher, Oddbjorg gives Visit Natives consultancy on issues involving the indigenous peoples and she is also our databank. If you don't know something, ask Oddbjorg!
We collaborate with
Center for Responsible Travel
