The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) - CITES is an international system limiting cross-border trade in various species of plants and animals and products made from them. The Convention was signed in 1973 in Washington, DC. Its main task is to reduce or completely eliminate the trade of species, the number of which state or imply that their uncontrolled extraction of the natural environment is detrimental to their survival. Although the provisions of CITES came into force in Poland in March 1990, still the problem is the lack of knowledge of its citizens as well as the adaptation of Polish legislation and its enforcement to the requirements of the Convention. The aim of the study was to present the CITES in the context of slowing the conversion of natural resources. Authors also analyzed data from the customs office and the perception of selected elements of the Washington Convention by representatives of Polish tourists.