Check out the full post with an interactive map at http://ecotourismtimor.com/best-of-timor-leste-part-1/ You can also like us on Facebook, Google+ and share blog posts. See www.ecotourismtimor.com Thanks Best of Timor Leste - Part 1 Timor is both diverse and incredibly beautiful. From the tops of mountains to the bottom of the sea every visitor has their favourite little spot, restaurant and beach. Now it’s your chance to share. We’ve compiled a list of our favourite places to go, things to see and experience. Some are on the (faint) tourist trail, whilst others are difficult to access gems. But we have tried to focus on the experiences that are less well known and give the best representation of the culture, history and environment of Timor. So keep this in mind before you start protesting about why Castaway Bar on a Friday night not being included in the most authentic experience. Like...

Follow this blog (and see the pictures) at www.ecotourismtimor.com   Tourism in a Nutshell Tourism exists everywhere in many forms. In some cases tourism is defined as any trip that takes you 50km or more from your house or dwelling. This post will introduce a few approaches to tourism in Timor Leste. We’ve divided them into three broad categories, all of which are quite diverse. 1)      Foreign Owned Businesses 2)      Locally Owned Private Business 3)      Community Based Ventures It focuses on Community Based Tourism, as this is the approach we see as most important and beneficial at this stage of tourism development.  So without further ado, here we go: Foreign Owned Private Businesses Following the arrival of a large UN contingent in 1999, foreign owned bars, restaurants and other services boomed in Dili. Whilst initially set up to cater to expat demands for cold beer and western food, they are...

Ecotourism Timor Blog   You can follow this blog at www.ecotourismtimor.com   Hi and welcome to the first entry for the brand new, exciting blog focussing on all things tourism in the brand new country of Timor Leste. Ok so its not that new (Timor declared Independence in 2002 after centuries of Portuguese, Indonesian and United Nations occupation) but its only finding its feet as a tourism destination. For many years now, expats have been extolling the beauty of the country, its environment, culture and most of all, its people. The main problem has been that the reason many of these expats are in Timor (UN Police, Australian Military, NGO’s etc) has also been the main reason that the majority have stayed away (Safety, Civil Unrest, attempted assassination of the President etc.). In conversation with many Australians (who live as little as an hours’ flight from the capital of Timor,...