Our role and approach

Oculus Travel LLC designs bespoke journeys using accommodation, transport and experiences provided by independent travel partners. Travel has environmental and social impacts. This policy explains how we approach those considerations and the limits of what our recommendations represent.

Choosing travel partners

Our recommendations draw on Gayle Higginbotham’s first-hand experience and trusted specialist partners’ current, first-hand knowledge. Research supports that professional judgement. We are open about what Gayle has personally experienced.

Alongside the guest experience and suitability for each client, our assessment considers how partners operate, including their approach to staff, local communities, wildlife and the environments in which they work. This is a qualitative assessment informed by the information available to us. It is not an independent environmental audit, certification or verification of a partner’s legal compliance.

Recommending a property, operator or experience does not certify its overall environmental or social performance. Practices vary between providers and destinations and can change over time.

Environmental information and claims

We do not present travel as impact-free or describe a journey as sustainable, regenerative or environmentally beneficial simply because it includes a particular property, activity or conservation initiative. We do not claim that a journey is carbon neutral or that a donation or carbon offset cancels its emissions.

Where we share specific information about a provider’s environmental practices, community activities or certifications, we identify the provider and the scope of the information. We seek supporting information before using such statements in our own communications and avoid presenting them more broadly than the evidence supports. A provider’s certification applies only to its stated scope; it does not extend to Oculus Travel or automatically to an entire itinerary.

Our own descriptions must be accurate and supported. Attributing a statement to a third party does not replace that responsibility.

Conservation and community interests

Our Philanthropy page introduces conservation and community initiatives that may interest clients. We can help clients explore relevant interests and connect with people involved. Inclusion on that page does not mean that every booking funds an initiative or that Oculus Travel has donated to every organisation featured.

Any specific contribution included in a journey will be explained separately. Donations are arranged directly with the relevant organisation; Oculus Travel does not collect or administer charitable donations.

Questions and updates

If a particular environmental or community consideration matters to your travel decision, please raise it during planning so we can discuss the available information and its limitations. If we become aware that information we have shared is inaccurate or outdated, we will review it and correct or remove it as appropriate.

This policy will be reviewed as our practices and the information available to us change. Questions can be sent through the contact details on our website.

Further information

• US Federal Trade Commission: Environmental Claims, Summary of the Green Guides
• New York General Business Law: Section 349
• New York General Business Law: Section 350
• European Commission services: Questions and Answers on Directive (EU) 2024/825

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