Guest post by Annie Wallace
Whenever you travel you are going to be doing at least some harm to the environment. It is part of the dilemma of the carbon footprint; everything from a ride in a bus to flying in a plane can do it. Even walking through a forest and disturbing the habitat of wildlife is enough to make some influence on your surroundings. It is inevitable, especially as a dominating species.
But there are positives, too. Seeing other cultures, looking over and gaining an appreciation of the earth around us and learning about other places is enough to give a sense of wonder and protection of out own home regions. Most environmentalists agree that it is worth the risk and the positives far outweigh the negatives.
However, that doesn’t mean that you have to forget your convictions while you are away from home. Whether in another city or on another continent, there are plenty of ways that you can minimize your damage to the planet and travel in more eco friendly ways. What makes it even better is that these tips can be used by the hardcore environmental activist or the traveler who has never so much as recycled a glass bottle. Since you can also save money by being more green, there is no reason not to try.
1. Getting There
When actually getting to your destination, it is important to plan a trip that costs the least amount of fuel. The more fuel is used, the more something will cost, so this should be a second nature response. But many people will choose convenience over anything else, and something the more fuel-heavy methods seem easier. But in the end they cause more problems then they are worth.
If you are driving make sure to plan the most direct and fastest route. Try to stick to highways, which take less fuel than if you were traveling through city streets. Keep to less congested areas, such as moving to side freeway roads used for trade transport instead of tourist or local ones through the city itself. Also, if multiple people are going, pack as many per vehicle as you can.
If you are flying keep with direct flights. Stop-overs might be nice if you want to see another place in between, but taking off in another plane wastes a lot of fuel per person. Sticking with one will mean one less takeoff point. It will also be cheaper, even if it is a long flight.
When possible you should try to use buses, trains and subways. These are the most efficient and eco-friendly means of travel, and are also extremely cheap in comparison to some other methods. Especially in countries where public transport is a major part of getting from place to place.
Of course, you can also walk, bike or use alternate transport services like horses, carriages or even tuk tuks.
2. Packing For Your Trip
Recent security makes it hard to be eco-friendly when packing. While we used to be able to bring anything we needed on a plane, much is now on the blacklist. This means more people are buying travel sizes than ever before, as they are made to contain only the allocated amount of liquids.
Instead of doing this, which is very bad for the environment and also annoyingly expensive to keep buying, bring empty, reusable carrying cases and bottles. Non-plastic are best. When you get to where you are going you can get a full size of whatever you need and move it to the case. You can also buy smaller reusable packages and fill them before you leave with what you have at home.
3. Choosing Your Accomodations
More and more businesses are moving towards being more green. From tax breaks to a consciousness that resources are not unlimited, there are plenty of reasons. You can find green hotels using the Green Hotel Association. These are not hotels that are built as tree houses or anything like that. Plenty of well known brands, such as Comfort Suites, are on the list. There are also a lot of approved vendors for everything from toiletries to transportation you can check out.
Be Conscious
Of course, the best thing you can do is be aware of what you are doing and your surroundings. Try to act wisely when buying products, stay away from brands with a reputation for being damaging to the environment, use company recycling bins, turn out lights…all of those logical things you would normally do.
All it takes to be eco-friendly when you travel is a little forethought.
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Annie is a frugal blogger who writes for Home Loan Finder. Check out this very thorough green guide on buying solar panels to save money from Home Loan Finder.
Related articles
- Eco Friendly Travel IS Possible (hotelclub.com)
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