Sustainable Travel
Trafalgar Falls on Dominica is a picture of sustainable travel. Photo: Tonya Fitzpatrick
“We cannot hope to create a sustainable culture with any but sustainable souls.”
– Derrick Jensen
Sustainable travel stands hand in hand with responsible tourism, sharing a common focus on the impact of tourism on local communities. However, sustainable tourism takes it a step further by addressing conservation and the environmental impact of tourism development.
Sustainable travel strives to revolutionize tourism by minimizing its negative impacts in the long term and effectively protecting natural and cultural environments. As a conscious traveler, you have the power to make eco-friendly choices that contribute to these goals.
Reduce your carbon footprint, opt for local or indigenous products, volunteer for conservation trips, and actively engage in protecting nature and its resources. Together, we can pave the way for a more sustainable future for travel and our planet.
How can we explore the world while in lockdown? Although we can’t travel at the moment, it's important to remember that we will be able to again soon. For now, staying home and enjoying some travel alternatives is the best way to satisfy our wanderlust.
f there is a bright side to this pandemic, it’s that it’s forced us to slow down. To spend more time with loved ones, to learn how to adapt to challenging and changing circumstances, and to observe how powerful collective action really is. And that forced slow down has made Mother Nature a little happier!
With the world on edge due to the coronavirus pandemic, it appears that social distancing and mandatory shut-ins have affected the Venice canal waters. The waters are crystal-clear, which has led to the sights of swans, fish and dolphins. Italy has been locked down since March 8, which means the tourist hotspots of the streets and canal are empty. The water is typically full of debris and cloudy matter thanks to the infamous gondolas that tourists tend to partake in. However, with all this on hiatus, marine life is enjoying the waters allowing residents to sit back and enjoy from the comforts of their home. If one looks for the lights at the end of the rainbow or the silver lining in a worldwide crisis, this would be it! Italians took to Twitter to share and celebrate the news, with some locals saying nature is taking back its space amid [...]
As travelers seek ways to minimize their impact on the environment while moving about the globe, Amtrak trains are standing out as an increasingly desirable option. The eco-friendliness of this transportation option is a big selling point, as the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that trains use about 50 percent less fuel per passenger than cars and 33 percent less than planes for the same trips.
A climbing ban on the sacred Uluru rocks in Australia brought hundreds of people to get in one last climb before enforcement takes effect. The ban, which was passed in 2017, recently went into effect after the Anangu aboriginal people claimed it was a sacred place for many thousands of years and should never have been considered a rock to climb. The problem began at the start of the early 20th century when more visitors came to the area.
Travel to a country where no visas are required and learn how easy it is to reconnect when you disconnect.
While it may receive over 37 million visitors per year – making it seventh place on the list of most visited countries in the world in 2018 – a recent study has found that the UK is statistically more dangerous to visit than Rwanda, Romania and Azerbaijan.
It may be seen as one of the last bastions of adventure travel, but the recent boom in tourists travelling to the Arctic Circle is having a devastating effect on its environment, being damaging to both the local landscape and its inhabitants.
In recent years, Venice has introduced a number of laws and regulations in order to crack down on the large number of tourists that flock to the city every year, including a tourist tax of up to €10 for day trippers which caused controversy at the beginning of this year. The Italian government has now gone a step further by announcing plans for large cruise ships to no longer be allowed to dock in the city’s historic center, instead being rerouted to the Fusina and Lombardia terminals outside of the city center.
Amsterdam is a city with many recognizable features like winding canals and famous historic buildings such as the Anne Frank House. It’s also one of the world’s most bikeable places, and it’s renowned for its cafe and coffee house culture. But in December 2018, Amsterdam lost one of its most iconic symbols – the I amsterdam sign.
Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau is promising a crackdown on the number of cruise ships that can dock in the popular Mediterranean city. According to Colau, the city doesn’t have a lot of capacity. However, she also promised citizens that they would have better air quality. Barcelona’s air quality levels often go beyond the regulations set forth by the World Health Organization. Colau said she wants the city to work on every front. Barcelona will also be declaring a climate emergency, and putting forth ideas such as banning highly-pollutive vehicles from coming into the city and boosting low-emission zones. She also wants to decrease plastic use, improve the recycling efforts, reduce speed limits and boost the number of car-free zones. The city of Barcelona is a hot spot cruise destination spot in Europe with over 2.5 million visitors coming here in just 2018. However, cruise ships are also the biggest cause [...]
Outpost, a luxury pop-up camp, has been set up in Aysen, which is a remote area of northern Patagonia, to help people reach some of Chile’s less traveled tourist locations.
