From the bottom of our hearts, we would like to thank you for the trust and support you’ve placed in Next Continent over the past year. Every tour you’ve joined, every like on social media, every eBird checklist submitted, every eNewsletter read, trip report written, and every shared moment in the wild has helped shape who we are today.
This past year marks Next Continent’s biggest year of operation yet. From humble beginnings, our team has come together from an assortment of backgrounds: biology, conservation, social work, education and tourism, just to name a few. While our paths were different, another year has passed united by one shared belief: an endless passion for natural history, ethical ecotourism, providing a world-class standard in wildlife experiences, and a sustainable future where both people and nature can thrive.
In our traditionally non-traditional way of operating, 2025 has been a collection of ups and downs, new partnerships across the conservation and tourism sectors, and a steady stream of new projects and tours. Our team is now bigger than ever, and we are proud to be growing the work we continue to do across the country.
We are particularly proud of a few things that feel distinctly Next Continent flavoured, and we hope you don’t mind us sharing them here.
In 2025, we launched our first traineeship program, supporting young individuals looking to venture into the world of wildlife guiding. We are deeply proud of this initiative and look forward to continuing creating opportunities for young citizens to follow their passion for wildlife in a nurturing and fully supported environment, promoting wildlife tourism not just as a job, but as a long-term and fulfilling career.
The success of this program can be demonstrated by the two young women who less than a year ago, were completely new to wildlife guiding and are now leading their own independent trips in some of Vietnam’s top wildlife-watching locations. Both have proven themselves exceptionally talented and dedicated, and we are incredibly proud to have witnessed their growth into professional and capable young guides. Congratulations to Trang and Ha.
While we’re talking about equality, we are equally proud to be the only female-owned and operated ecotourism company in Vietnam, and to have a guiding ratio of 1:2 female to male guides. We strongly support equality across the company and are proud to promote our exceptional team of female guides. A special mention must go to one of our lead guides, Tien, who only a few days ago led an extended five-day tour covering birds, mammals, herps, insects and plant life — certainly one of the longest female-led specialist wildlife tours ever run in Vietnam. Congratulations, Tien! We are so proud to have you on our team.
As always, conservation remains front of mind, and we would like to acknowledge our partner organisations that continue to work tirelessly on the ground. To us, conservation means tangible change through meaningful funding and collaboration with professional conservation efforts and local communities. We are proud to have financially supported groups such as the Endangered Asian Species Trust, where we sponsor our own Southern Yellow-cheeked Gibbon, Southern Pygmy Slow Loris and Black-shanked Douc Langur. Through the Free The Bearsorganisation, we have also contributed funds to the rescue of two Moon Bear cubs who were victims of the illegal wildlife trade. In addition, we support the exceptional work of Education for Nature (ENV) through donations to their efforts to end illegal wildlife trade and poaching. We also wish to acknowledge our official partnerships with The Civet Project and the Saola Foundation, and we look forward to finding even more ways to support their work in 2026 and beyond.
Over the past year, we have been grateful to welcome an extraordinary diversity of guests from across the globe. We’ve hosted everyone from young explorers and families to some of the most dedicated birders, herpers and mammalwatchers.
A huge thank you must go to our core guiding team, who are without question some of the most passionate and hardworking wildlife lovers anywhere in the world. They dedicate their time and lives to learning and sharing Vietnam’s wildlife and natural history with the world. From epically big, multi-week tours to their free time (where they meet up simply to go birding or herping together!) the culture among these young people is deeply inspiring, and we could not be prouder of the walls they are knocking down together.
Of their achievements, there is far too much to summarise here, but a few highlights are worth mentioning. One was an exceptional mammal research trip led by Thanh and Huy, which resulted in incredible encounters with the almost-never-seen Southern White-cheeked Gibbon and Owston’s Civet, two of the holy grails of mammalwatching.
The management team would also like to make special mention of Hoang Quy, our principal wildlife guide here in Vietnam. Don’t let his age fool you, he is an extraordinary young man who has played a key role in the success of our itineraries, the training of our team, and the development of an inspiring, conservation-minded approach to Vietnamese ecotourism. A similar mention must go to Tung, our principal herping guide, who is breaking down barriers in herping tours by championing more ethical approaches and designing highly educational tours here in Vietnam.
We would also like to give a special shout-out to Vu, our dedicated driver, who ensures safety across our tours, coordinates our driving team, and has become an extraordinarily talented birder, mammalwatcher, herper and photographer in his own right! For any of our guests who have been lucky enough to have Vu as their driver, you’ll know exactly what we’re talking about!
Of course, if you’ve ever received an email from us, visited our website, or checked out any of our videos or posts on social media, you’ll know we need to make an extra-special acknowledgement to Giang. They are the makeup artist and marketing magic wizard of Next Continent, responsible for the beautiful design and creative content you see across everything we do.
A final thank you must go to our exceptional office and administration team Mai, Tam, Oanh and Hang. We truly believe these are some of the most hardworking, supportive and inspiring young people in Vietnam. Their expertise, patience and professionalism are what allow us to deliver the experiences you have come to love. This team is under the exceptional guidance of Nga, our wonderful general manager, who is quite simply the kindest and most remarkable leader a team could ever hope for.
As we look ahead, we are deeply aware that the choices we make as travellers matter more than ever. Every journey taken with Next Continent directly supports conservation on the ground, meaningful employment and training for local guides, and long-term relationships with local communities who share these landscapes with us. None of this would be possible without the curiosity, care and trust of our guests, who turn wildlife encounters into lasting impact simply by choosing to travel thoughtfully.
From our side, we feel incredibly grateful (and a little humbled) by how far this year has taken us and excited for what lies ahead. We look forward to continuing this journey together, protecting what makes these places extraordinary, and welcoming you back into the forest in 2026 and beyond.
Once again, thank you for walking alongside Next Continent.
Let’s explore together!
