Beyond the Beach Chair: How to Leave Your Favorite Coastline Better Than You Found It

As we walked the shoreline and filled a bucket with random pieces of trash, we laughed like we were at a beach party, not a cleanup. I met a group of friends who had decided to meet up in the Virgin Islands for a little fun at the beach. They had found out about the cleanup, and decided it was something they all wanted to do together while on their trip. I was there with my family, and we all had a great time. It may have looked like we were picking up trash (and we were), but what we were really doing was giving back to a beach community that we loved—and that’s a really good feeling. 

Many beach visitors are eager to find ways to give back in some way while they’re traveling, and want to go home with more than a tan. Pair some relaxing time at the beach with some meaningful experiences, and you’ll have the best of both worlds. If you’re looking for ideas, here are a few of our favorite ways to give back on your beach vacation. 

World Oceans Day is June 8, and Beach.com has partnered with organizations across the country to support multiple cleanups happening across the United States. Last year was our first nationwide cleanup and more than 450 volunteers picked up 1,259 pounds of trash. We hope to keep even more trash out of our oceans in the second year. 

You can browse our list of coastal cleanups to see if there’s one that you would like to be a part of.  If so, you can easily join in. If you don’t see your favorite beach destination listed, you can also sign up to be a Cleanup Captain. We’re looking for beach-loving individuals in all coastal cities, and we’ll help by providing free t-shirts and reimbursement for trash bags or buckets. 

Coral reefs aren’t just pretty to admire when snorkeling and diving. They are home to an abundance of marine life. Unfortunately, though, 14% of the world’s reefs have been lost in the last decade. More information is needed to determine what’s happening, and how this can be reversed. 

In order to protect them, they need to be studied—and that’s why Adventure Scientists is working with local environmental organizations in Honduras, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Colombia. Volunteers can sign up to help survey and monitor coral reefs, and the information that is obtained from this multi-year project will be used to help define marine conservation efforts in the future. 

While it’s very cool to see nesting sea turtles come ashore, it’s also important to take extra caution while on a beach vacation during nesting season. Avoid using artificial light on the beach at night (including your cell phone), and keep your curtains shut if you’re staying in beachside accommodations. You can also help protect sea turtles by choosing accommodations that are “turtle friendly.” Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort & Spa, Dolphin Sands Clearwater Beach, and Manasota Key Resort are just a few examples of hotels that have taken steps to protect turtles through minimizing lighting. 

You can also take it a step further and sign up to be a part of a nest excavation. You should never dig up a turtle nest on your own, but these daytime digs are run by certified non-profit groups toward the end of nesting season. This is done to help determine how many hatchlings emerged from the nests, and is important information needed by biologists. Sometimes, you’ll even get the chance to help a hatchling make its way from the nest to the sea.  

Oyster restoration projects in New Smyrna Beach, Florida have shown success in helping restore the water quality of the Indian River Lagoon. Marine Discovery Center offers opportunities for visitors to sign up and volunteer for a few hours to make mats covered in oyster shells. It’s an art project that makes a difference, as the mats are later placed in the lagoon and help contribute to a stronger oyster population, and in turn, cleaner water. One single oyster can filter 15-30 gallons of water per day. More oysters means a cleaner Indian River Lagoon. 

Also, it’s important to note that in order to create oyster mats, recycled oyster shells are needed. If you’re going out to eat oysters, choose responsibly and select a restaurant that’s a part of the Shuck and Share program. Simply making good choices when going out to a good dinner can be a way of giving back, too.  

The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary conducts a citizen science project that involves monitoring humpback whales in O’ahu, Hawai’i, and Kaua’i, and visitors can sign up to be a part of this. The annual counts have been going on for 30 years, and they happen on the last Saturday of January, February, and March each year. That is peak whale season in Hawai’i, making it the perfect time to conduct this project. 

It’s really easy to do. From shore, volunteers keep their eyes on the water as they look for humpback whales. Participants will make notes about how many they see, as well as their behavior. Many people travel to specific beach destinations for the chance to see wildlife, and this is an opportunity to do that, while also giving back in a fun way. 

On an island, it’s unfortunately not uncommon to encounter stray cats and dogs. With a limited number of residents, there are only so many people to adopt. That’s why it is important to try to get cats and dogs transported to the mainland where they have a much better chance of finding a forever family. 

Sometimes shelters find adoptive homes for animals on the mainland, but many island pet rescues have established relationships with other shelters that will accept dogs and cats from the islands. Either way, the animals need a companion when they’re flying, and that’s where visitors can help. You’re going to be departing from the island anyway, and you can help by escorting a rescue pet on your flight home. Transporters who volunteer will meet up with the receiving shelter or adopting family as soon as they land back home. You simply serve as their escort on the plane. Organizations like Cruzan Satos Rescue, St. Croix Animal Welfare Center, and Ruff Start in St. Croix, USVI, Potcake Puppy Palace in the Bahamas, and Saint Nicholas Animal Rescue in Dominica can arrange transports. 

Giving back doesn’t have to be time consuming. It doesn’t even have to be hard. Sometimes it’s as easy as planning ahead and taking needed supplies. For instance, The Cliff Hotel in Jamaica encourages guests to pack school supplies for children in their local community in Negril. The resort then disperses collected supplies to those who need them most in their community. It’s a little thing that takes no extra time out of your vacation, but makes a big impact in a local child’s life. 

A beach trip should always leave you relaxed, but it can also serve as an opportunity to leave a place better than you found it. It’s not hard to help in meaningful, small ways, and some won’t even cost you time or money. Giving back is a way to have a deeper connection to the beach destinations that we love, and is a way to show your appreciation for the communities who lovingly share their beautiful beaches with visitors.