I love to travel. Discovering new cultures and exploring new places. Another thing I love is taking care of the environment. Aware of the current state of our planet and uncertain of where it will be when I’m in my old age, I try my best to always be environmentally friendly in my everyday life.

Tourism was responsible for 8% of CO2 emissions in 2018, and given the growing popularity of travel, this is on the rise. In 2021, global tourism grew by 4% compared to 2020. How can I combine this attraction to travel with my environmental values?

Going on vacation? Staying longer

All types of aircraft consume an average of 3 liters of fuel per passenger for every 100 kilometers flown. 1 liter of kerosene corresponds to 3 kgCO2e. An aircraft therefore emits an average of 9 kgCO2e/100km/passenger. Is it worth it to produce all that CO2 for just one short week at a seaside resort in the South?

The vacation time granted by an employer may be a limit, but if it isn’t, considering a longer stay is an excellent idea for reducing the CO2 produced by your flight, and brings many other benefits.

A longer vacation allows you to really visit a place. Someone who has spent 1 week on a beach in Mexico has not visited Mexico and knows nothing of the local culture. Staying for a month, for example, gives you time to explore the surrounding area and familiarize yourself with daily life away from home. Living a routine outside your usual comfort is what traveling is all about.

Think differently about travel

The purpose of travel? To me, some people’s reasons for traveling seem incongruous. Travel to relax and unwind? Being in a new environment, on the other hand, seems stimulating and invigorating to me. To relax, I would tend to stay at home, in my hometown, in my comfort zone, whereas travel is an adventure, an exploration. Traveling is no picnic; managing communication in a different language, finding yourself in unfamiliar places, and having to find your way around…

Traveling not for oneself, thinking only of oneself and one’s rest, but rather with the aim of discovery, brings with it a different mentality that will make the following points very easy.

Caring about the locals

McDonalds and Walmart, to name but the best-known examples, are everywhere. Almost anywhere you travel, you’ll find them, but don’t go there. You can find these big brands at home, so when you travel, try stores you’re unlikely to find at home.

It’s tempting to go for the well-known stuff, because you already know the product, or because the prices are low, but you might be surprised at the savings you can make by going to small, local shops.

Buying local when traveling has other benefits too. In large chains, employees are used to dealing with tourists and may be able to serve you in English… In small shops, this is much less common, and it’s a great opportunity to familiarize yourself with the language of the country you’re visiting. What’s more, as in many cultures, small shops often offer closer customer service. Perhaps you’ll make friends with the baker at the local bakery, and he’ll be happy to chat with you every morning when you pick up your bread.

Think local for souvenirs too. In bigger chains, you might find souvenirs made in China anyway. Unless you’re visiting China, it’s not that relevant…

Travel destination

Consider traveling to less popular places. When a country is too popular and becomes a famous tourist destination, the overdose of tourists often leads to overcrowding, and the places are slowly destroyed.

By considering less popular tourist destinations, you benefit from :

• Unusual insights into a lesser-known country. If you travel to Mexico, a very popular place, you won’t have so many surprising and fascinating things to tell your family and friends when you get back from your trip. But if you travel to Albania, for example, a country that some people may not even know where it is, you’ll have plenty to tell your family and friends about this unusual destination.
• No long queues and less crowds. When visiting an ultra-popular site like the Eiffel Tower in France, be prepared to queue for hours. By traveling to a less popular place, you’ll travel with more peace of mind and avoid crowds.
• Budget — Tourist destinations know their appeal and will often boost prices in the knowledge that tourists will flock in any case. It’s often much cheaper to travel to a less touristy country.

Leave no Trace

With a mentality of discovering a culture, you’ll also tend to respect it well. It sounds basic, but don’t litter when you’re traveling. If you don’t do it in your own country, why do it in someone else’s? (If you do it in your own country too… Stop it! Come on!) It seems so obvious, but I was surprised at how much people left their garbage on the beach during my travels in Latin America.

Avoid plastic water bottles

In some countries, tap water is undrinkable and you have no choice but to buy bottled water. However, remember to buy very large sizes (10–20L) and fill a smaller reusable bottle. Small 500 ml water bottles are a source of pollution that can easily be avoided. If you’re traveling to a country where tap water is safe to drink… no excuse to buy small plastic water bottles! Simply fill a reusable bottle at the tap.

All the environmentally-friendly measures you take at home, try your best to put them into practice when you’re traveling too. You’re a visitor, a guest. Be polite and respect the host country.

Transportation

When you need to get around the country, you might tend to head straight for the plane, which is the quickest way, but often a 2-hour flight can be replaced by a few hours’ transport by train or bus. Yes, that’s more time, but if you’re on a longer trip, as per my first point, that shouldn’t be a problem, unlike a one- or two-week trip where time is of the essence.

Traveling by alternative modes of transport is also an experience in itself. Unlike flying, you can look out of the bus or train window and see breathtaking vistas that you wouldn’t be able to see through the small window of the plane at altitude. This type of travel can also be an opportunity to meet new people. On a 6-hour bus ride, you might be more inclined to chat with your seatmates, who could be other tourists or locals, and learn more about the local culture or those of other foreigners from elsewhere.

Traveling is a wonderful activity and I couldn’t do without it. When I think about it and consider all the options, I think it’s easy to combine a passion for travel with respect for the environment. Traveling ecologically can even bring several additional benefits that make the experience even more enriching.

Happy exploring and discovering!