Responsible Tourism

Responsible Tourism helps local communities
Travelmole responsible tourism award

Explore believes passionately in responsible travel (RT) and tourism and has promoted it right from the start, 26 years ago.

Carbon Offsetting

We are now offsetting all customer flights. Read more about our policy here.

Responsible Travel

Travel can bring many benefits to the traveller and the countries visited such as learning about different cultures and contributing to the local economy. Sometimes though the impact can be negative - local people may be exploited and their environment damaged for instance.

This is why exploring as a responsible traveller is as important as enjoying the holiday.

We believe that:

First Choice Responsible Tourism Award 2005


  • People who work for Explore should be treated fairly and paid a fair wage
  • We should learn about and respect the customs and culture of the country we are visiting so that we do not offend local people
  • We should try to ensure that local people benefit economically from tourism by employing them as leaders and guides, eating out in local restaurants and using family-run hotels where possible
  • We must minimise our impact on the environment by travelling in small groups, offsetting our carbon emissions and reducing waste

It is not just about what we do overseas - in our office in Farnborough we try to ensure we are true to these principles.

Our awards

We are not perfect, but we are working hard to achieve these aims.


In 2005 we were delighted to be awarded Highly Commended in the Responsible Tourism Awards.

AITO responsible tourism award

AITO 3 Star Award

When the Association of Independent Tour Operators ran Responsible Tourism Awards in 2002, Explore was the winner. Explore has 3 star responsible tourism rating - the highest achievable.


Travelmole awarded Explore the best Responsible Tourism website in 2006.

RT audit

We audit every single one of our tours for its RT (responsible tourism) credentials. All aspects of tours are considered, from the use of fuel to transport options, treatment of animals and our positive impacts on the local economy. This way we know where we are and what we need to do. We know we are not perfect but we are working hard to improve performance and RT will always be a core value at Explore. Got questions or comments? Email us at rt@explore.co.uk.

Our role

Fran Hughes, Explore's Responsible Tourism Manager

Fran Hughes

We can't change the world but if we all do our bit it is amazing what a difference we can make. Check out the below links to see what we are doing. Check out your trip dossier, our RT policy and the travellers tips to see what you can do!

Take a look at our Responsible Tourism policy.
To find out how you can help see our 'what you can do' page

Fran Hughes is Explore's Responsible Tourism Manager - email her with your views franh@explore.co.uk