Sustainable Travel

Welcome to the Bundaberg region, where Great Care begins.

Care for our curious sea turtles, magnificent manta rays, intricate corals and giant marine life that call the Southern Great Barrier Reef home.  Care for our incredible mumma turtles and adorable hatchlings who visit our shoreline every Summer. And Care for our vast farmland, rich red soil and hardworking locals who provide fresh produce for the nation 365 days a year.  

This is where great care begins, where every day the people in our community and our local businesses make sustainable choices to help preserve our natural surrounds for generations to come. From implementing eco-friendly packaging, to no-waste policies and practices that minimise run-off into our oceans, we are proud to be a region continually striving for, and innovating to be even more sustainable.

ECO CERTIFIED

As an eco-accredited destination, we have a whole bevvy of beautiful operators with the green tick of approval from sustainability bodies such as EcoTourism Australia and EarthCheck.

This means that they are dedicated to sharing our world-class wonders with travellers and are always doing the right thing by the environment, so future generations can experience the Southern Great Barrier Reef magic too.

This way, you can Travel for Great with ease, and focus your energy on things like choosing whether to snorkel in the lagoon or coral gardens, if you need a 2nd farm fresh ice cream for the day or which top shelf rum to taste😉

The Bundaberg Region was the 2nd Destination in Queensland to receive the globally recognised ECO Destination Certification through Ecotourism Australia. As the Southern most destination on the Great Barrier Reef, and home to the nation’s most significant endangered loggerhead turtle rookery, our tourism industry, local government and the entire community are pretty darn committed to taking Great Care for our little slice of paradise, and ensuring its thriving for years to come – and the ECO Destination Certification recognises that!

BE INSPIRED

From off grid island escapes, feasting on produce that’s been picked from the paddock next door, to connecting to Country on cultural tours and diving into Citizen Science programs, it’s never been so easy to roll up your sleeves and get involved. Well actually, it’s so easy you can just sit back, relax and soak up the sunshine of the Southern Great Barrier Reef, and our rad operators will take care of the rest.

WORKING TOWARDS NET ZERO

Our tourism industry understands the importance of addressing climate change and contributing to global net zero emissions efforts. In 2023, we worked with the world's leading sustainability advisory EarthCheck to develop the Bundaberg Tourism Industry Carbon Baseline Report. This means that, as an industry, we can get busy actioning the changes that are needed to move towards a low-carbon tourism model that is sustainable and resilient in the long-term.

To do this, our industry are working together to develop a Climate Action roadmap that will engage key stakeholders in the destination and beyond to join us, in taking climate change action by measuring tourism’s greenhouse gas emissions, reducing emissions as effectively and efficiently as possible, and making a positive contribution to the restoration of natural carbon sinks (aka areas such as Barolin Nature Reserve that absorb more carbon from the atmosphere, than they release!).

The industry’s emissions recorded at a local level will be fed into the total state and national emissions, so we are actively contributing to working towards Australia’s target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050.

As Lady Elliot Island Custodian Peter Gash once said ‘I don't just want to leave a legacy, I want to live a legacy’ – and we couldn’t agree more! We're movers and shakers here on the Southern Great Barrier Reef, with some incredible experiences that are already leading the charge:

• Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort - the Eco Resort operates on 100% solar energy. This equates to saving approximately 38,010 kg of carbon emissions every year.
• Lady Musgrave Experience - their innovatively designed three-level pontoon features one of the most sustainable and eco-friendly builds in the world. Powered solely by the sun and the wind, leaving zero impact on the environment surrounding it.
• Bundaberg Rum - the first tourism operator in Australia to achieve Sustainable Certification through Eco Tourism Australia! They have reduced their Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by 9% through their green steam processes.  

As visitors to Bundaberg Southern Great Barrier Reef, we encourage you to take Great Care of our wonderful region, consider ways to travel that reduce emissions and choose operators that are committed to protecting our precious environment for our future generations (and so you can keep coming back year after year!). 

TAKE GREAT CARE FOR OUR TURTLES

Every year from November to March, our shores come alive as mother turtles haul themselves up the beach to nest, and hatchlings begin the first steps of their journey as they make their mad dash to the sea. Dedicated turtle rangers, researchers and volunteers at Mon Repos and our islands work to ensure the protection of these animals, their nests and their babies. Year-round, these turtles cruise our waters, calling the Southern Great Barrier Reef home.

ECO ACCOMMODATION

While exploring our backyard, come stay at one of our eco-friendly accommodation options. Showing they are continually taking steps that leave a minimal impact on the environment, a number of operators in our region are eco-certified. From using environmentally-Friendly cleaning products to implementing soler power, and encouraging guests to think green and turn off appliances when not in use, our accommodation providers are playing their part to help protect our region and its surrounds.

SUSTAINABLE CULINARY EXPERIENCES

A foodie’s paradise, our backyard is full of mouth-watering food and drinks that are sure to keep your belly full. In feeding visitors and locals, our culinary operators ensure they are making eco-friendly and sustainable choices wherever and however they can. Reducing carbon emissions in their factories, recycling waste water, donating food wastage to animal rescues and introducing plastic-free alternatives are all initiatives of our operators.

SUSTAINABILITY ACROSS AGRICULTURE

Growing 25 percent of all Australia’s fresh produce in our backyard, our farms and agriculture industry play an important role in our local community. From roadside stalls open daily, to resturants and cafes showcasing the ingredients hand-picked by our farmers, we are fortunate to have such easy access to delicious food. Implementing practices to minimise energy usage, placing water storage for recycling and to filter run-off, and using bi-products to cut down on waste, are all steps our farmers are taking to help reduce their impact on the environment.