Our Responsible Travel Journey

1) Leaving A Softer Footprint

We measure, reduce, and neutralize the carbon emissions from every tour we run. In collaboration with Cooler, we’ve footprinted the carbon use and emissions for each of our tours. At the end of each tour, we report the number of guests on the tour and pay Cooler to purchase carbon pollution contracts from the open markets to neutralize our collective carbon footprint. Gondwana Ecotours is certifiably carbon-neutral, and we continually work to lower our environmental impact through responsible logistics, efficient transportation, and low-waste operations.

2) Support Local Communities

We seek out and partner with locally owned hotels, guides, and activity providers—often small family-run businesses or community-based organizations. This ensures more tourism dollars stay in the destination, strengthens local economies, and provides authentic experiences for our guests. On our Alaska tours, for example, this means working with local wilderness guides for kayaking and boating excursions, staying at family-owned lodges, or eating seafood sourced from local waters and cooked by resident chefs.

3) Respect Cultures & Traditions

We travel with curiosity and humility. Our itineraries are built to honor and learn from the cultures we visit—whether that means sharing a meal with a local family in interior Alaska, meeting a gorilla veterinarian in Rwanda, or listening to Indigenous perspectives in Tanzania.

4) Protect Wildlife & Ecosystems

We choose activities and partners that prioritize wildlife welfare and habitat conservation. On our tours, this means following responsible wildlife-viewing practices–like observing bears from safe distances in Alaska, joining National Park Ranger-led gorilla treks in Rwanda, or enjoying remote game drives in Tanzania that allow you to watch wildlife undisturbed in their natural habitats. Each of our encounters are memorable, respectful, and non-intrusive.

5) Give Back Along the Way

From day one, we’ve contributed to nonprofit organizations that protect ecosystems and support disadvantaged communities—even before we turned a profit. Over the years, we’ve donated tens of thousands of dollars to conservation groups and community initiatives across the destinations where we operate. These partnerships and donations directly benefit local conservation and/or community projects and make a tangible difference. Examples include donating money, building materials, and more to a community-driven primary school in a remote Maasai community in Tanzania; donations to Rwanda’s Gorilla Doctors, who monitor and treat endangered mountain gorillas in the field; and donations to Costa Rica’s Sea Turtle Conservancy Center in support of research and conservation.