Nature-based tourism relies on high-quality natural environments that are aesthetically pleasing and which support rare, charismatic or particularly abundant species. Such phenomena attract domestic and international visitors, who often pay substantial amounts to experience nature. This indicates that the associated use values people hold are substantial and can transcend socio-political borders. Indeed, high quality natural environments, and the biodiversity they support, offer many benefits to people, including use and non-use values. These values vary spatially, and although the reasons for this are complex, the benefits from conserving biodiversity are clearly experienced more widely than the associated costs, such as loss of livelihood options. However, it is less clear how we might use our understanding of how values vary spatially to implement mechanisms to support biodiversity protection. Although the benefits of international tourism for biodiversity conservation are debated, transferring revenues from tourists who cross international borders to those who bear the costs of nature conservation could be one way to support conservation. However, this approach carries risks, as tourism can be subject to rapid changes in travel patterns and demand. Ensuring that other mechanisms, such as formal international agreements, are in place is likely to make biodiversity conservation management more resilient. The authors examine the role of borders in nature and biodiversity protection and the importance of transfrontier collaboration in managing natural areas for tourism and other uses, as well as for nature protection.