Now more than ever, people are worried about their impact on the environment. Many of us like to travel, so don’t want to give up this luxury, but can you do it while still being green? Here are some tips for cutting your carbon footprint when you travel, while still seeing the world and taking in some amazing sights.
Swap planes for trains and boats
In the past, people would spend days or even weeks getting to their destination, and this kind of slow travel is making a comeback. After all, it’s so much sweeter getting to the destination when you’ve spent time getting there. Look at vacation options such as luxurious Galapagos Island tours in a small cruise boat, where you’ll travel in style and enjoy the journey as much as the destination.
There are a number of advantages to this kind of travel:
- You get to really know a destination – you don’t just fly in and fly out of one area, you travel through it
- It can be less expensive than taking internal flights
- You can travel on a budget or in luxury – most trains and boats have standard and first-class sections
While it means you spend more time travelling, this kind of travel can be satisfying and give you a new perspective on a country.
Stay close to home
Sometimes, you don’t have to go far to see some amazing sights. A lot of Americans, for example, will always book somewhere they have to reach by plane, but there are likely to be some amazing destinations just a few hours from you that you haven’t considered. California is a great destination if you live on the West Coast, with beaches to rival those you find overseas, while on the East Coast you can visit North Carolina, Maryland and other areas of natural beauty.
Limit your travel
Limited vacation time means you might not get to go overseas a lot anyway, but if you are someone who takes multiple vacations a year, it’s worth reconsidering whether this is the best choice. It may be better to limit yourself to one luxury trip a year, rather than lots of budget ones, as that’s fewer airmiles and you get an amazing experience to look forward to.
Visit places with sustainable tourism strategies
Want to visit somewhere beautiful, but worried about your impact on the environment? Visit places where sustainable tourism policies are in place. Sustainable tourism focuses on lessening the impact of tourism on certain areas of the world, usually places with natural beauty that could potentially be ruined by too many tourists. This often takes the form of protection for certain places, with limits on numbers and strict rules for visitors.
Going green doesn’t mean you have to eliminate travel from your life. However, you may need to think about where and how you travel and whether there are environmentally friendlier options out there. From slow travel to discovering your own country, there are lots of ways you can cut your carbon footprint.