Raja Ampat and North Sulawesi diving holiday

Environment

As part of our efforts to preserve the marine environment we will only work with local suppliers who adopt the same conservation practises that we believe in. The Gangga Island Resort and Papua Paradise Resorts have installed buoys which allows boats to anchor without damaging the coral reef. Local staff and guests are asked to sign the NSWA code of practise which forbids boating malpractice to protect the surrounding reef. The resort also supports and contributes with the creation of artificial reefs in their respective National Marine Parks.

The use of plastic containers is limited only to bottled water. The resorts are currently installing reusable 19l bottle of drinking water in the guest rooms and in common areas.

Part of your holiday cost is paid as a conservation and marine park fees which contributes to the protection of local wildlife, we'll also provide in depth briefings and enforce principles on how to view wildlife above and below the surface in order that we can reduce the impact of our visit as much as possible.

In terms of consumption we aim to limit the amount of plastic and waste products used whilst on tour - refilling bottled water is highly encouraged, we make a local donation of £15 per original bottle returned at the end of each tour (i.e tour members have only used one bottle for the entire trip). We also encourage tour members to limit their usage of shampoos, laundry and cosmetic/cleaning products during the tour.

Community

All of our local partners have established mutually strong relationships with the local communities, complying with all local rules and regulations such as a minimum wage requirement and fair trade rules. Our chosen resorts are actively supporting the local communities that we operate in.

The Gangga Island resort takes great pride in its social initiatives that have been running for many years now. The property employs 60% local staff and actively improve the health, education and skill development of the people of the island. There has also been the renovation of one of the private schools with a new kindergarten having been built.

The resort also pay for the salary of the kindergarten teachers and all of the kindergarten students’ fees. To help those families who struggle to pay school fees Gangga Island awards scholarships for poor families and single parents to encourage them to keep their children in school. These initiatives are paid for with a portion of the profits from the resort. The community development and education programs run with these donations are explained to the guests on arrival with the option to donate further.