The judges at the Responsible Tourism Awards (announced at the World Travel Mart in London in November 2008) declared New Zealand the overall winner - BEST DESTINATION - for proving that it is possible to develop a national strategy which uses tourism to help make better places to live and to visit.

New Zealand has implemented many of the principles of the Cape Town Declaration on Responsible Tourism in Destinations and demonstrated what national government can achieve - working with the private sector, local communities and local government - by harnessing tourism to benefit their people and their environment.

If more national governments followed their example, tourism would make a much more positive contribution around the world.

WINNER; NEW ZEALAND - For developing an integrated approach to tourism development at the national level and managing it: identifying and then attracting those tourists who contribute most to the economy, focusing on yield rather than merely on numbers of arrivals, spreading the benefits of tourism and fully integrating environmental issues into its quality standard Qualmark Green.

*The Responsible Tourism Awards.

OVERLAND NZ SUPPORTS RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL, SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AND CARBON OFFSETTING.

After many combined years of travel we have seen first-hand a rapidly changing world. Everyone in our team cares with a mad passion for the future of our planet, its wildlife and its people. As an ethical organisation we fully support the values of responsible and sustainable travel. We recognise that our responsibility extends to not only to our passengers but also local communities, this country, its wildlife and nature ie a commitment to environmental and social responsibilities. We feel that travellers should be aware of the impacts, negative or positive, that their journeys around the world have.

All of us at Overland NZ make a marked effort to recycle as much plastic, cans, paper, bottles, cardboard, printer cartridges and batteries as possible. We use scrap paper for making written notes and printing, and we do strive for as paperless a working environment as possible. Where possible we send our doucuments, vouchers and invoices via email to reduce paper usage. We turn off our monitors at night to conserve electricity. Our mantra has become one of waste minimisation, reuse and recycling.

New Zealand is a beautiful country, so we ask all our passengers to help keep our towns, cities, parks, beaches and native bush free from pollution and waste. We also ask everyone who travels with us to respect our unique flora and fauna. A healthy environment is vital to the success of New Zealand's tourism industry so travellers should leave the environment and community better than when they found it.

How we are upholding our Responsible Tourism policies:

1] Food: we source and buy as much fruit and vegetables from Local Markets as we can. This of course sees the money ploughed back into New Zealand's food industry rather than going offshore.

2] Accommodation: The majority of campsites, farm stays, lodges and hotels we use on tour are Locally owned and operated.

For instance -The main farm stay in the South Island is called Buscott Station. It is situated in the Southern Mackenzie Country between Twizel and Omarama on State Highway 8, in an original homestead on a working Merino sheep and cattle station. The farm is family owned and you can have a tour of the farm with the owner.

In the North Island we will be staying at Tarata Fishaway Retreat Lodge on the RangitikeiRiver. Also family owned and operated, you can go trout fishing with the owner. The owner also offers guided rafting tours on the river.

A lot of the Camp Grounds we will be using are DOC Camp sites. These are Department of Conservation owned sites on Conservation ground. The money goes direct to the Department of Conservation. DOC is the central Government organisation charged with conserving the natural and historic heritage of New Zealand on behalf of and for the benefit of present and future New Zealanders. Its mission is "to conserve New Zealand's natural and historic heritage for all to enjoy now and in the future".

3] Local Guides - We use Local Guides where necessary ie for Ice Hiking on Fox Glacier, certain kayaking and trekking tours in Abel Tasman NP, the Cape Reinga + 90 Mile Beach tour, the Bridge to Nowhere tour, Milford Sound, water tours in the Bay of Islands, Goat Island Marine Reserve, the Mitai Hangi and Maori Village in Rotorua.

5] National Parks - there are 14 National Parks in New Zealand and Overland NZ visits the following:

Fiordland National Park - Milford Sound etc. We stay at Gunns Camp at Hollyford. This camp is owned by The Hollyford Museum Charitable Trust.

Paporoa National Park - Trekking, horse trekking, kayaking and rock climbing. All activities operated by small New Zealand tourism companies.

Abel Tasman National Park - No entrance fee, but many activities are charged and most of these have percentages going back into the maintenance and upkeep of the park.

Tongariro National Park - New Zealand's oldest National Park. It is a World Heritage area because of the important Maori significance.

Aoraki Mount Cook National Park - We visit LakeTekapo and the Church of the Good Shepherd.

Whanganui National Park - this is where we visit the 'Bridge to Nowhere'.

Westland National Park - We stay at Fox Glacier. Part of this NP is also one of the 3 New Zealand World Heritage areas.

Mount Aspiring National Park - we skirt this as we visit Wanaka and Te Anau.

Arthurs Pass - Any passenger going on the Tranz Alpine (Greymouth on the West Coast to Christchurch) will travel right through the middle of this NP.

We also visit the Marine Reserve of Goat Island - Not a National Park per se butit is a MarinePark….It has been used extensively for scientific research, has helped as a training ground for diving. The marine life is left to recover and flourish, allowing scientists to investigate ecosystems in the absence of human pressures. Passengers can do a tour on a glass bottom boat which has been specifically designed and built to give visitors the best possible view of the marine life without going underwater. Part of the fee goes back into the Reserve.

• ­We re-use plastic bags or try not to use them at all
• We re-use our water bottles
• We switch off our electrical equipment when not in use
• Campsites are checked for all rubbish before we leave them
  
• Rubbish is always disposed of appropriately ie recycling bins for paper, glass, plastic and cans

How you can be eco-wise when travelling in New Zealand:

How you can offset your carbon emissions:

Check out www.climatecare.org. This is a great website where you can actually calculate your flying miles ie from London Heathrow to Auckland for example, and it gives you ideas on how you can offset your carbon emissions. It can even help you calculate all household emissions. Other sites are: www.co2balance.com and for New Zealand: www.carbonzero.co.nz.

Click HERE to read more about Carbon Neutrality and Carbon Offsetting.

These are all just a few examples of how we can help to sustain our environment. We would love to hear any further ideas and suggestions. Please email us on info@overlandnz.com. We would be more than happy to put them our site.

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