9 Ways To Make Your Travel Journey More Eco-Friendly
From being on the road a lot myself, I personally know how difficult it can be to maintain living an environmentally friendly life the whole time. Travelling will of course, in most cases create a bigger environmental footprint than when staying at home as you’re out of your everyday routine. This isn’t to say that we can’t follow these top tips to help reduce the carbon footprint and enjoy an eco friendly lifestyle no matter where we are.
Treat your hotel like your home
A great tip to remember is to try and act like you would at home when you’re staying in a hotel. Avoid getting clean towels each day when it isn’t necessary, make your bed each day and put the sign on your hotel door that says your linen doesn’t need to be changed (As nice as it is, we definitely don’t need fresh sheets every day). Try not to take long showers and turn off all the lights, TV and aircon each time you leave the room. These are all smalls things that can make a big difference.
2. Avoid bottled water
Take your reusable bottle with you on your travels. If you’re staying in a country where the water is safe to drink, fill up your water via the tap. If you’re staying somewhere like Asia, a lot of their hotels have now installed water filters that you can use to fill your reusable bottle with safe drinking water.
3. Take a reusable bag
We all know to use a reusable bag when at home, so why should it be any different when travelling? These bags are so easy to fold up and chuck into a suitcase and are so handy to help you cut down on the amount of wasteful packaging whilst on the road. Plastic bags can take up to 500 years to biodegrade, so lets try to use them as little as possible.
4. Stay in hotels that are Eco
When planning your trip, make sure you book to stay at hotels that support eco-products. Some examples of these eco products are recyclable toilet paper like who gives a crap, using locally sourced bathroom products and providing loose leaf tea instead of tea bags etc.
5. Walk or Use public transport
Taking public transport or walking (when you can) are some of best things you can do for the environment when travelling. Catching Ubers or using private transport create additional carbon emissions, so why not take the time to walk or use public transport. It is not only a great way to see the sights of your travel destination but it also cuts down on the carbon emissions that are generated by travelling privately. If you’re however choosing to a rent a car, try to choose the smallest vehicle you can and opt to renting a hybrid.
6. Enjoy the local deliciousness
Instead of buying your food from the supermarkets, snack on organic food from the local markets or purchase your ingredients from local vendors. This is a great way to cut down the carbon footprint of your meals and snacks. If you a beer lover, enjoy the locally brewed beer and cut down on the ‘beer mileage’.
7. Less luggage
The heavier a plane, the more carbon emissions it will produce during the journey, so every kilo counts. This is the same for trains and cars, the heavier they’re, the more fuel they use, therefore try to only pack what you need and make it as light as you can.
8. Say no to straws
When travelling, depending where you’re and what activities you have planned, you will likely stop to have a drink or two and if not, then you will probably or have a drink with breakfast or dinner. When you do, say no to the plastic straws and drink straight from the cup.
9. Recycle/Reuse
Before your travels you will probably purchase new products such as, toothbrushes, clothes, make up etc. When you’re packing, remember to recycle the cardboard from these products and try to only buy what you actually need. Before purchasing, take a think if you really need those clothes? Or can you wear clothes that you already own instead of buying new ones?