Free To Visit Eco Tours and Nature Experiences, How to Book

Standard 2.2 (draft): scores for this category will appear once its release checks are complete. Any scores shown above this section were calculated under an earlier version of the Standard and will be replaced.

How the Throne Standard is calculated for tours

Pack: Tours 1.0.0 · Standard 2.2.0 (draft) · Engine: Pillar · Status: Experimental, scores not yet published

Tours and operators are scored on nature and wildlife protection, transport and energy, group size and site impact, waste, food, water and transparency.

Criteria, weights and evidence levels
Criterion	Weight	Level 2	Level 3	Level 4
Nature and wildlife protection	30	to be written	to be written	to be written
Transport and energy	20	to be written	to be written	to be written
Group size and site impact	10	to be written	to be written	to be written
Waste and plastic	10	to be written	to be written	to be written
Food and sourcing	10	to be written	to be written	to be written
Water	5	to be written	to be written	to be written
Measurement, transparency and certification	15	to be written	to be written	to be written

Level 0 is dated contrary evidence, or a source we read that shows the practice is absent. Level 1 is a claim with no supporting evidence. A criterion whose source was not found, not read or blocked is unknown, which is different from 0. A certificate is checked for holder, scope, validity and product coverage; "free from" wording is level 1 until a test report or scoped certificate backs it.

The calculation

V = 25 × S ÷ W, where S = sum of (weight × level) and W = sum of evidenced weights

Each level earns a quarter of the criterion's credit per step: level 4 is full credit, level 1 a quarter.
Coverage C = 100 × W ÷ total applicable weight. Below 70% the item is unresolved; below 85% it is capped at 89.99 (3/5).
If less than half of the total applicable weight is at level 2 or above, the value is capped at 59.99 (2/5), so a page of claims cannot score well.
Key criterion: nature and wildlife protection. A 5/5 needs it at level 3 or above, otherwise the value is capped at 99.99.
Exact integer band tests: 5/5 when S = 4W; 4/5 when 5S ≥ 18W; 3/5 when 5S ≥ 12W; 2/5 when 5S ≥ 8W; otherwise 1/5.

Bands (the same in every category)
Value	Band
100	5/5
90 to below 100	4/5
60 to below 90	3/5
40 to below 60	2/5
0 to below 40	1/5

All arithmetic is exact (fractions, never rounded floating point). Nothing is rounded before the band test, and each band includes its lower bound. Values are shown cut to two decimals, never rounded up, so 89.996 shows as 89.99 and is 3/5.

A worked example, for illustration

No tours item has been scored yet, so these evidence levels are illustrative. Every number below is computed by the scoring engine. The evidence levels for this category are still being written, so no tour can be scored until they are published. Water is unknown in this example.

Illustration: a guided nature tour
Criterion	Weight	Evidence level	Weight × level
Nature and wildlife protection	30	3	30 × 3 = 90
Transport and energy	20	2	20 × 2 = 40
Group size and site impact	10	3	10 × 3 = 30
Waste and plastic	10	2	10 × 2 = 20
Food and sourcing	10	1	10 × 1 = 10
Water	5	unknown	not counted
Measurement, transparency and certification	15	2	15 × 2 = 30

Calculation
Step	Result
Evidenced weight W	95
Weighted sum S	220
Coverage C = 100 × W ÷ applicable weight	100 × 95 ÷ 100 = 95.00%
Value V = 25 × S ÷ W	25 × 220 ÷ 95 = 57.89
Result	value 57.89, band 2/5

Results

Each tour gets its own result. Documented findings (for example unremediated forced labour, or captive wildlife as a core activity) cap the final band after the calculation, and are always disclosed. Unknown is never a fail.

Evidence we use

Operator disclosures, permits, certifications and published practice. Every record keeps its source address, exact locator, capture date and a SHA-256 hash of what we read. Evidence older than two years is re-checked before it supports a high level.

Why scores are not shown yet

Before any score in this category is published, the evidence levels 2 to 4 for each criterion are not yet written; no verified product has yet been confirmed at 5/5 with published evidence; the calibration run has not been reviewed and signed off; we have not yet shown that scores separate stronger from weaker products. Until then we show the evidence we have found, not a score.