Be a responsible tourist!
Being a responsible tourist – Supporting the local community
“Take only photographs, leave only footprints”
We are particularly biased towards the beauty of the South West of Scotland.
We do our part to minimise negative environmental impact, whilst supporting the community economically, and hope this post helps you to do the same!
Supporting the local community: responsible tourism
Responsible tourism is about what you do to make the places we live in and visit as prosperous as possible.
Some ways we can do this are:
To buy locally sourced produce – we have Roan’s dairy just around the corner at Barnbarroch, local meats at Kilnford Barns, which are sold through Kilnford farm shop in Dumfries. Merrick fish visit Barend every Thursday morning selling locally caught sea produce.
Could you make use of the local public transport instead of using your own vehicles?
This not only helps you to save some miles, but also to give back to the community a little.
There is a bus service running daily from Sandyhills beach, just across the road!
https://bustimes.org/services/372-dumfries-sandyhills
Take the scenic route to Dumfries, you may find some places you never knew existed, and from there you can get to almost anywhere!
Supporting the local community: local events
Check out these websites to see if there are any local events you can support while on holiday:
https://www.crichton.co.uk/whats-on/
https://www.dumfries-and-galloway.co.uk/entertainment/whatson.html
https://www.visitsouthwestscotland.com/see-and-do/events/
For such a small, rural location there is a lot going on!
Supporting the local community: dairies and farms
Around 80% of Scottish land area is used for agricultural purposes?!
This is around 6.2 million hectares.
Insert map pic here
We are home to many dairies which you can visit and sample produce from!
- Cream O’Galloway (near Gatehouse of Fleet) offers ice cream making experiences, followed by some ice cream tasting in their cafe!
- Drummuir farm (Near Dumfries) Have a variety of homemade ice creams to try, they even offer a taster menu and “make your own sundae” option, and a small play park for small children!
- Loch Arthur (near Beeswing) has a beautiful organic cafe within an authentic farm shop, they sell their own farm produce as well as other locally sourced and eco friendly delights.
- Glen Urr Ice cream at Halmyre Farm (near Castle Douglas) sell their own homemade ice creams and produce too, on a smaller scale, but the flavours are to die for!
- Roan’s Dairy, just around the corner – Sell many of their own products as well as other local dairy produce such as Rowan’s Glen (near to Newton Stewart) and offer a doorstep delivery service (yes they will even deliver it here to Barend- and we can have it in your lodge ready for arrival)
Supporting the local community: Sightseeing and the environment
There are many National Trust spaces in Dumfries and Galloway, it costs a little for entry but this all goes towards the upkeep of these fantastic buildings for the future generations to enjoy!
- Caerlaverock Castle
- Drumlanrig castle
- Threave gardens and Estate
Along the same lines – there are RSPB bird sanctuaries in the area too, there is one at Caerlaverock (so why not visit the castle too for a full day out!), and one right around the corner from us at Mersehead, again there is a small entry fee but this goes towards the care these places provide for the birds.
Why not spend an afternoon beach combing!
There are over 200 miles of coastline in Dumfries and Galloway.
All you need is an eager set of eyes and a few containers!
You may find some treasures and if not – help tidy up the countryside by bringing washed up rubbish back with you.
Sandyhills is one of the best sandy beaches in the area. there is a beautiful that joins on to another nearby beach at Portling, this walk takes you on a path through some of the fields and overlooks the sea.
Another lovely local walk is the Jubilee path between Rockliffe and Kippford, a short coastal walk between two shell beaches!
If you’re looking for some more ideas we have some links below to other posts on our website:
https://barendholidaylodges.uk/outdoor-activities-2/
https://barendholidaylodges.uk/tours/
https://barendholidaylodges.uk/family-fun/
Save the planet
