Kakadu and Katherine Gorge tours

This Australian-based operator is a member of Ecotourism Australia, an organisation whose mission is to nurture, consolidate and promote ecotourism. Ecotourism Australia is committed to helping travel operations become more environmentally sustainable, and it contributes financially to conservation solutions and projects that involve and benefit local communities.

This trip is run in conjunction with a local operator based in Darwin, gateway to Kakadu. This operator is committed to the conservation and preservation of natural and cultural heritage and has also instilled these values in their guides. Tour guides do a wonderful job teaching visitors about the beauty and complexity of the Australian outback, including wetlands, and explain why areas like Kakadu are World Heritage listed. The local authorities work closely with the tourism industry to provide a wealth of interesting information for tour operators about World Heritage areas and in return tour operators help monitor and manage the sites they visit. Equally important is setting a benchmark for tour leader training and conservation practices, to ensure that standards are continuously maintained.

‘Kakadu Wetlands & Gorges’ takes travellers to remote Kakadu National Park and enables them to experience this epic adventure with the help of a local tour leader and various assistants, who are proud to show you this amazing part of the world in which they live. By travelling through wilderness areas and Aboriginal communities and walking around secluded coastal regions, travellers are made aware of the importance to preserve these places so that they can be appreciated by future generations. To support tourism programs in northern Australia, this operator is endeavouring to train local staff on a variety of issues, from environmental awareness to First Aid. This not only assists in the conduct of a tour but also provides guides and assistants with important life skills. By employing guides born and bred in the region, this operator is also supporting the local economy. This operator is a member of Aboriginal Tourism Australia (ATA), the primary national organisation for Indigenous tourism within Australia. ATA provides leadership and a focus for the development of Aboriginal tourism, consistent with Aboriginal economic, cultural and environmental values. On their adventures, travellers are privileged to learn about and experience the way of life of the traditional owners of the land. Employing Indigenous Australian Aboriginal guides allows for travellers to experience things from different perspectives.

After visiting the Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre, an impressive building built in the shape of the local pig-nosed turtle, travellers head to Patonga to meet Mandy Muir, a traditional Murumburr woman who will lead an informative river walk and explain the Aboriginal and European history of the area. Afterwards there is the opportunity to discover more about the Aboriginal culture and traditions by learning how to use pandanus plants to weave basket and mats, as well as the local ways to make jewellery. The trip takes travellers north, across the Jabiluka Floodplains, to Ubirr and view the Aboriginal rock art that bear testimony to some 23,000 years of seasonal occupation. Through offering employment and steady revenue, tourism can ultimately make a real positive difference to local communities.