Even if you painstakingly recycle your paper, glass and plastics, turn the lights off when you leave a room and switch off all your plugs every night before you go to bed, you can’t ignore the fact that travelling can have a huge impact on the environment. However, there are many things you can do to lessen the guilt! Check out the list for some simple tips for how to ease your eco-friendly conscience.
1. Pack light
We know that it’s much easier to throw nearly all of your belongings into a suitcase than sit down and think about what you really need, but the more a plane weighs, the more carbon emissions it produces. If you join us on one of our cycle tours, not only will the environment thank you but your back will as well!
2. Bring a reusable water bottle
We told you these tips are simple! Plastic water bottles have a huge negative environmental impact and they are completely unnecessary. Plastic water bottles take over 1000 years to bio-degrade and U.S landfills are overflowing with 2 million tons water bottles alone. Avoid contributing to this and bring along a reusable water bottle!
3. Use your feet! (or bikes)
When exploring a city, walking around is not only doing a favor for the environment, but you will also immerse yourself in the culture and experience so much more this way. Another way to get around is on bikes, as all of our tours offer!
4. Local is always better!
On the subject of immersing yourself in the culture, making sure to only eat locally source foods and buy local products is an environmentally friendly decision that will also boost the local economy and allow you to really get to know the area you are in.
5. Buy responsibly
On the subject of buying locally, be responsible in what you choose to purchase to ensure that the goods are not having a wider negative impact on the environment. Spiceroads takes this responsibility very seriously and advise that you never buy products or goods that endanger wildlife species and their habitats, such as ivory and tiger skins.
6. Offset your flight
Flying is one of the least sustainable ways to travel, but sometimes it cannot be avoided. But some airlines offer to calculate your carbon footprint so you can offset this by donating the equated amount to a carbon reduction project, such as Carbonfund.org. However, some environmental organizations claim that airlines don’t take enough details into consideration when calculating your footprint, so for a more accurate calculator, check out carbonfootprint.com.
7. Travel in numbers
Small groups of travelers tend to have less environmental impact so travelling with a tour group is an excellent way to enjoy a greener trip. However, make sure you choose a tour company that’s environmentally responsible! There are many to choose from, but we are very proud of offering fun and exciting tours that remain committed to being eco-friendly.
We have a beautiful world to explore and we try to do our bit to keep the tours as eco-friendly as possible. As a traveler if this is a cause close to your heart then hopefully these tips will help you not only remain eco-friendly but integrate into the places you visit.