Did it ever cross your mind that your holiday can be a huge burden for the planet? Everybody needs to relax and simply turn off, but it shouldn’t be at the expense of our planet. The good thing is that you can relax, travel and discover new places in a sustainable way.
In this article you will find out how companies linked with responsible tourism behave, what are the negative impacts of irresponsible holidays and you will get tips how to behave ecologically on your deserved holiday.
Recently, we could see interesting trends in the world. Below are the most interesting ones that are related with holidays.
- Airlines are reducing their emissions and trying to use fewer plastics. Air New Zealand Airline came up with a sensation novelty, the company offers meatless environmentally friendly burgers.
- The shipping industry (including cruise ships) is reducing its emissions thanks to the International Maritime Organisation regulation. Read more on our blog.
- Hotels are putting ecological measures into practice, such as energy-saving shower heads, change of towels on demand, LED bulls etc. An example of good practice is Sandymount Hotel.
- In the transport sector, Flixbus introduced an optional fee for your carbon footprint. Just pay for instance 28 crowns and your journey to Germany will be carbon neutral.
- Environmentally friendly equipment to use in the nature is more popular. Thanks to eco drugstores, e.g. Econea.cz, you can go on holiday with an environmentally friendly cream or a bamboo toothbrush. Company Eko-plasty.cz will certainly delight you with a wide range of easily decomposable dishes made from sugar cane, corn, bamboo and palm leaves.
- Fashion is also not behind. If you plan to run or hike during your holiday, you will be pleased that Adidas now produces shoes from recycled plastic.
Holiday – it depends for who...
People should definitely enjoy their holiday, but they often forget about their manners towards the visited place. Subsequently that can have negative impacts…
Transport itself brings a lot of pollution, especially air travel. It dramatically increases your carbon footprint, which you can count here. A high proportion of CO2 is harmful to both human health as well as the environment in a fundamental way.
How important is a drinking regime, especially in summer, is no need to be explained. However, it is necessary to point out the issue of bottled water in PET bottles, which often end up in the sea, on beaches or in the woods.
Also, accommodation can be problematic. We do not mean the quality of equipment, the sea view or willingness of the staff. Hotels have an enormous energy consumption, often throw remaining or unused food away and their rooms can be very energy intense. Their waste may go straight into the sea.
Entertainment is undoubtedly a big part of each holiday. But walking in the woods, bathing in a pound, surfing in the sea is completely different from noisy racing motorcars, swimming with dolphins, which is very stressful for them, or an inappropriate behaviour during visiting natural beauties (e.g. biodiversity destruction, disturbing animals, throwing rubbish away).
Being eco is no science
Did you fly by plane? It’s clear that you cannot go to Thailand on a bicycle. However, you can save the nature in the destination where you are staying by cycling or walking. Did you play the guitar with your friends near a forest? Guitar playing belongs to a campfire and not in a place, where you can bother the natural wildlife. You can choose the right place for your fun and next time you might be more considerate. In addition, we have a few tips for you to make your holiday “greener”.
Straws! They are a big issue and many restaurants, coffee shops and other companies have told them NO. For instance Starbucks is going to cut out all straws in all their coffees shops (28 thousand). And if you want to enjoy your drink with a straw, you can bring with you a stainless or bamboo straw, which you can buy on the website Eko-plasty.cz.
From extremely hot weather to air-conditioned room is not only detrimental to health, but air-conditioning itself is not ecological, and if you do not regularly maintain it, it can be very dangerous for allergic people. So, what can you do? It is better to buy a nice fan that will be useful outside. You can fight against the heat by showering with cooler water, however long showering is not eco. We must save water everywhere, even on holiday. In addition to shortening the time in the shower, you should tighten taps thoroughly and while brushing teeth you just turn off water.
Another big topic is plastic. Unfortunately, they are in seas and oceans. According to Greenpeace, in 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in all oceans. Therefore, do not forget to throw rubbish into bins and try to avoid buying unnecessary plastic. How? Use, for example, outdoor bottles or PET bottles several times and then recycle them. For shopping use cloth bags and reject useless disposable bags. After all, fruit can be weight without a bag and then put into a bag from home.
We shouldn’t forget souvenirs. If you want to make your family or friends happy, or just want to bring them a small memory, do not buy plastic figures, balls or toys. Ideal souvenirs are handmade items. Not only they are made of natural materials, but you will also appreciate the work of local people.
Lastly, enjoy your vacation, relax, discover, just remember not to burden the environment with your presence. Sustainable holiday is no drama.