Responsible tourism in the Caribbean

What you can do
If you like the idea of a resort, seek out those that operate responsibly. The best resorts build a loyal and skilled local workforce, reduce energy costs and waste, source fresh local produce and offer an exciting range of sensitively planned excursions. This model benefits the destination, the local people and the tourist.

You won’t struggle to find small, locally run accommodation in the Caribbean either, so do seek that out as an alternative to resorts and all inclusives. These not only keep money within the local community, they deliver a really personal and intimate experience of the destination – win-win, in fact.

If cruising floats your boat, pick a small cruise ship or yacht and take to the waves with a clean conscience, on a clean, non-polluting vessel that supports local people and docks at small harbours that can’t be reached by large liners, spreading the economic benefits of tourism wider and keeping them respectful, too.

Many Caribbean Islands have a good record for conservation of wildlife and birds. St Lucia, for example, has brought its endemic St Lucia parrot species back from the brink of extinction in recent decades following island wide campaigns and a breeding programme. It also does good work to protect the eggs of turtles that nest here from sand mining and poaching.

Sadly, though, the Caribbean islands are simultaneously home to some really questionable captive animal centres. There are several dolphinariums around the region, where tourists can swim with, pet or watch dolphins perform. And there is also the Cayman Turtle Centre in the Cayman Islands, where visitors can hug and pass around young turtles and can swim with adult turtles in a lagoon. The Centre markets this as a rare chance to be in contact with endangered green sea turtles, which are in decline due to egg poaching, habitat degradation and entanglement with fishing nets. What most visitors don’t realise is that this is also a farm, where the turtles are bred in captivity and then killed for their meat, which is traditionally eaten here. The way the turtles are kept is also a source of deep concern. These solitary animals are kept in tanks containing hundreds of turtles. In the wild, they can dive to 150m, but in the farm are kept in shallow tanks. This is farming with the worst animal welfare standards, all dressed up as a unique tourist opportunity.

At Responsible Travel we believe keeping dolphins, whales and turtles in captivity is morally and ethically wrong. We don’t promote any tours that include zoo visits either and we encourage travelers to enjoy seeing wildlife in the wild, where it belongs, in ways that support conservation of habitats and species.

What you can do
World Animal Protection has a campaign to stop sea turtle farming. Join its online petition to urge a global cruise line to stop sending tens of thousands of its passengers to the Cayman Turtle Centre each year.