Is It Ethical To Visit Australia's Great Barrier Reef?

In recent years, the Great Barrier Reef has unfortunately been making headlines for the wrong reasons. Thanks to pollution, climate change, and overfishing, the UNESCO World Heritage Site off the coast of Australia is under threat. So is it still ethical to visit the Great Barrier Reef? It is, but there are steps visitors can take to ensure the reef is still around for future generations.

Why is the Great Barrier Reef in danger?

There are three main factors threatening the Great Barrier Reef today. Firstly, climate change has led to extreme weather, ocean acidification, and coral bleaching. When ocean temperatures rise too much, coral expels the algae living in its tissue, which causes the coral to become white (or bleached). The second major threat to the Great Barrier Reef is pollution and poor water quality from coastal development, as well as urban, land, and farm run-off. This can lead to crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks. Finally, illegal fishing, poaching, and overfishing have been impacting the reef for decades.

Sustainable ways to save the Great Barrier Reef

Snorkel with turtles at Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort

From Port Douglas, check out Quicksilver Cruises and its various eco-friendly tour options. Alternatively, snorkel and dive the Agincourt Ribbon Reefs with eco-certified Poseidon Cruises. Big Cat Green Island Reef Cruises has its advanced ecotourism certification from Ecotourism Australia. Green Island is a great reef day trip option from Cairns. Reef Magic Cruises is a Cairns-based alternative, which takes visitors to the Marine World activity platform on the outer Great Barrier Reef. They are also eco-certified, and have several practices in place to protect the reef.

Many of the 190 tropical islands along the Great Barrier Reef are also working to save the Great Barrier Reef. Heron Island has its Advanced Eco-Certification, and is home to the largest island-based research station in the Southern Hemisphere. Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort aims to be fully sustainable by 2020. As it’s located in a protected Green Zone, the island’s surrounding reef is home to manta rays, turtles, and over 1,200 marine life species. Meanwhile, Bedarra Island Resort is Australia’s most sustainable island resort, and Lizard Island Resort is another eco-friendly resort.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) has an excellent resource on responsible reef practices, which is a must-read before visiting this natural wonder. Even making simple changes in your everyday life, such as offsetting your carbon footprint, will inevitably help protect the Great Barrier Reef.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.