If you book a guided garden tour with us, your activity is carbon neutral, good for the planet and feel good for you too. It feels good for us, in fact low carbon is a way of life for us.
In Beautiful Gardens of Wānaka guided garden tours operation, we reduce our emissions every year. We also offset twice more than our remaining emissions.
- we have planted at least 6 trees per year on our property
- we have donated 8 trees to Te Kakano to plant in the community
- we have donated a part of the profits to the Love Wanaka initiative.
This makes our business carbon net zero (non-certified) this year again.
We are already reaching the goal that Lake Wanaka Tourism and the local Council has committed to by 2030 for the district.
In 2023, the business has signed the Tiaki promise and joined the TIA Tourism Sustainability Commitment.
| In a nutshell | Season 2023-24 | 3-year Goal |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicle | 372 kg of carbon emissions | Electric vehicle charged with solar panels for zero emissions |
| Waste | 2.5 kg of waste (incl. landfill, recycling & compost) | Zero waste (only compost)** |
| Manaakitanga and Kaitiakitanga | Bespoke tours, special needs, regeneration education | Indigenous knowledge inclusion |
| Offsets | 4 trees planted* (6 trees will offset a ton) + 6 trees donated to Te Kakano | Continuing planting trees for the planet and the birds (not only offsets) |
** We are pleased to report that we have achieved zero waste in the 2024-25 season. Update 20/02/2025
How did we reduce?
The vehicle emissions have decreased despite the number of tours doubling since its creation in 2020. This was achieved with rationalizing tour distances and economical driving. The tour vehicle is a Nissan Serena 8-seater hybrid that was driving 11.2km per litre when it was bought and now averages 12.9km per litre of petrol. Our goal is to drive all electric as soon as possible and we have started exploring the market of electric people movers with a range suitable to our tours.
Guests can opt to buy a tree for the local community nursery Te Kakano and the company matches every purchase. 6 trees were donated for the 2022-23 season, 8 in the 2023-24 season. This alone offsets the carbon emissions of the tours and we also plants lots of trees on our land which is one of the gardens of the tours.
Broadleaves and celery pines are both native trees that used to grow in the Wanaka area.
Griselinia is also a very popular hedging, a bright, shiny evergreen that grows well.
A focus on reducing waste from the tours resulted in less than 2 kg of waste sent to landfill in the whole 2022-23 season. Florence contacted the local supermarket who agreed to put muffins directly in her box instead of the usual plastic tray and wrap. She has selected Healtheries home compostable tea bags for most teas. “It is not that difficult to improve sustainable practice, it is just a matter of setting your mind to it”, she says.
In the 2023-24 season, we measured waste and compost. Composting ourselves, the total waste sent away is 1.58Kg, 665g of recycling and 904g to the landfill. Less than 1Kg of waste for the whole season! That’s pretty good.
In the 2024-25 season, we offer loose tea, packaging free foods and reusable glass bottle milk. Zero waste.
Kaitiakitanga is an important message of the tours and is embedded in the business. While the tours visit beautiful conventional gardens, we also see natural gardens in practice, organic or permaculture style, the occasion to show how to fertilize naturally, manage grass, save water, regenerate land or restore native biodiversity without fossil fuels nor chemicals, thereby being gentle on the planet.
During the tours, we talk about other local gardening and regenerative initiatives, eg. Grow Wānaka, Love Wānaka and the Regenerative Tourism local commitment, QEII lands to visit, etc.
Florence shares the knowledge and practice of regenerative lifestyle in the tours with guests who wish to know more. “I never knew one could live sustainably, it’s life changing“, one guest said. The immersion in gardens beauty is connecting guests with nature, creating a deep far-reaching experience, leaving us all elated and inspired with ideas to apply at home.
More about our Sustainability and Regeneration practice here.
Guided Garden Tours 
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