Science-inspired tours and cruises for curious minds

We want to help you discover science through the world of travel. We want to achieve that in a way that doesn’t harm the environment, people, cultures or wildlife. There is no avoiding the fact that our tours and cruises contribute to the problem of climate change. As a science magazine who operate a travel company, we wrestle with this quandary, which is why we have set out the following guidelines around impacts, relationships and sustainability for how New Scientist Discovery Tours and its partners operate.

How we operate

At New Scientist Discovery Tours, we partner with a select few tour operators and cruise companies who facilitate the running of our tours and cruises, each with their own set of sustainability practices. We are involved in the ideation and creation of the tours, but not directly in the operation of the tours.

When choosing tour operators to work with, we carefully consider their sustainability practices to ensure that the impact on environment, cultures and wildlife is minimal and/or are members of the Association of Independent Tour Operators (or similar body) who work with their members to embed sustainable tourism practices. You can read more about each of our partners’ sustainability practices and policies by following the links below.

Partner sustainability policies

• Intrepid Travel
• Natural Habitat Adventures
• Kirker Holidays
• AE Expeditions
• The Ultimate Travel Company
• Geocultura
• Discover the World

By choosing to travel on one of our tours you are supporting the restorative charity projects, carbon offsetting schemes, green investments, emission reduction targets and green office policies which our partners employ.

New Scientist sustainability policies

We recognise that flying is a luxury that comes at a considerable cost to the planet. While air travel remains a challenge for sustainability, we are committed to minimising its impact wherever possible. We do not include international flights in our tours so that guests have full freedom to make their own informed decisions. We encourage our guests to consider alternative options to flying through offering rail travel wherever practical. Many experts see carbon offsetting as a useful short-term tool for mitigating the effects of our activities on the climate, when employed in conjunction with emission reduction practices. If you wish to calculate the carbon impact of your flight and offset emissions, we could recommend the official UN platform for carbon offsetting, which ensures that your money benefits only emissions mitigation projects certified under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

We aim to protect and celebrate the cultural, ecological, archaeological and scientific significance of the destinations we visit. Our tours are designed in collaboration with local communities to ensure economic benefits remain local and traditions respected. We and our partners strictly follow animal welfare guidelines and avoid any activities that exploit wildlife, as outlined in our partners’ policies above. By prioritising responsible tourism practices, we aim to preserve the integrity of these places for future generations.

We will only offer tours and experiences that align with our values and recognised best practices in sustainability, cultural respect and animal welfare. Each experience is carefully reviewed against these standards, and where best practice is uncertain, we choose the most responsible and precautionary approach. Our commitment is to continuously monitor and update our offerings to reflect the highest ethical standards, as upheld by all at New Scientist.