Tribewanted: Not Your Average Timeshare Vacation
Monday, June 19, 2006
An island in the Fijian archipelago is the setting for a new Survivor-themed timeshare-esque vacation concept.
So, who’s heard about the new Survivor-style timeshare vacation, Tribewanted? Is this a vacation, or a thinly-veiled attempt to get people to pay to labor on someone else’s island, while being video-taped for posterity?
Tribewanted describes these activities on Adventure Island as, of course, the “adventure of a lifetime.”
“It is Tribewanted’s aim to create a sustainable and ecological community on Adventure Island and to encourage tribe members to actively take part in this challenge.” The community opens September 1st 2006 but is already building online.
Tribewanted’s motives notwithstanding, what they do have is great PR and an interesting website.
Joining the Timeshare Tribe is certainly affordable; at $220 up to $660, the timeshare tribe is open to many vacationers. “Tribe Members” can join for one to three years. At the end of the three years, the island, which is actually being leased, will be returned to its owners, who may or may not open it up to the public again.
A new slice of the ecotourism pie, Tribewanted’s goal is to have a “positive impact on both the environment and the communities it is working with in Fiji. They are keen to promote responsible tourism and actively engage in developing a sustainable eco-community on Adventure Island.” Perhaps most interesting is Tribewanted’s ultimate goal, “To promote and raise awareness for sustainable and eco-friendly living and travel as a real option for both tourists and communities around the world; showing that you don’t need to be an eco-warrior to blend with the environment.” Hurrah!
If the real chief of the island, Tui Mali, decides so at the end of the three years, everything will be dismantled and removed. Or, the adventurous experiment will be continued. Either way, there are currently about 4000 more tribal places available, and current members hail from all around the world.