Everyone travels these days, whether it’s to and from work or going to a new country. If you really think about the impact this could have on our environment, it really does have a huge impact and it’s not always a good impact. We really need to learn how to travel ethically and have a more positive impact. If you are thinking about booking your next trip abroad or are in the process of it, make sure you take some time to think about how you can make your trip more ethical and have a smaller impact on the enviromnment.
WHAT IS ETHICAL TRAVELLING?
Every time we plan our trips we make lots of huge decisions. Whether it’s booking our accommodation or finding places to eat? A way to think about it is you visit your favourite place in the world and when you are there you act a certain way whilst you are there. Then you think about everyone else who visits there and acts exactly the same way you do.
Now fast foward 20 years, is your favourite beach still pristine or is it covered in garbage with dying coral reefs? We always like to pretend that one person can’t make a difference but the more we think about it, that one person could change everything for everyone else to follow and make an even bigger impact for the better.
Travelling ethically is all about being mindful of the choices you make whilst travelling to have a more positive impact on the country you are visiting for the future. We want to leave the country in the state we’ve found it or in even better condition if possible.
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To me, ethical travel means exploring your destination from a place of respect and reverence rather than one of carelessness and entitlement.
5 SIMPLE WAYS OF HOW TO TRAVEL ETHICALLY
Try alternative modes of transport
If you have decided to travel around your destination, make sure you pick out the most eco friendly modes of transport and ones that use less fuel to burn. I always like to opt for another mode of transport other than a taxi, especially during rush hour or busier times on the road. In a taxi even when stationary it will be burning fuel as the taxi drivers do not turn the engine off (this is unless a taxi is a hybrid). You won’t be getting very far but will still be burning the fuel that affects the environment and air quality.
Eat at locally sourced restaurants
The best thing about travelling is eating were the locals do and really feel the vibe of where you are visiting. I love learning about local traditions and trying local cuisine even if it’s somewhere in Europe and slightly more closer to home than Asia let’s say. Eating at locally sourced restaurants means you are saving on the imported foods and goods to be sold and supporting a local farmer or fisherman for their job.
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Book ECO flights
If you have booked flights with Skyscanner, you might have seen the little green leaf with ECO symbol next to some of the flights in your results. These are flights you might want to look at booking in order to reduce the CO2 levels when you are flying to your next destination. Skyscanner will calculate the greenest route based on the aircraft, the number of stops and the seating capacity to find the more eco friendly flight available. Selecting this will not affect your flight plans in anyway but will definitely have a better impact on the environment when you are flying to your next destination.
READ MORE: 8 Tips On How To Pack Your Liquids Efficiently For A Flight + My Ethically Friendly Liquids Bag
Stay in an eco lodge or eco hotel
Staying in an eco hotel or resort is very high on my bucket list! If you have any recommendations, please let me know of ones you have stayed in and would recommend. If you book into an eco resort or hotel it can really help the environment as they produce their own power, use local produce to create breakfast and other meals, wash their linen by power and lots of other amazing ways to save the planet.
Support local tour guides and small companies
This is a little bit similar to the point about local restaurants, but there is nothing better than supporting a local tour guide or small company which produce goods for tourists on a smaller scale rather than mass produced goods. I love when I’m travelling finding quirky handmade shops that produce items that you will not find anywhere else and you are supporting a families livelihood where the money goes directly to them.
I will always try to find something I’d like from a handmade shop that has been made by someones hands and not a machine. If they use local materials and natural materials it’s even better as there hasn’t been any transportation of materials from overseas so you are saving fuels being burnt there.
Avoid animal shows but support sanctuaries
The worst thing that really grinds my gears is animal shows where the animals are forced to perform for an audiences entertainment. No animal was born to do this so why do they still exisit. They are really cruelty to the animals and a huge majority of the animals suffer and are tortured to perform or if they do not perform. I prefer to support animal sanctuaries that aid recovery and breed endangered specieies to help the population of dying animals.
My most favourite animal sanctuary was the Gibbon Rehabilitation Project in Phuket, Thailand. They help aid and guide mistreated Gibbon monkies to recovery from the hands of humans keeping them as pets. During their time in recovery they will be taught how to feed, clean and fend for themselves as well as communicating with other Gibbons to socialise and survive in the wild before being released into the jungle.
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Have you got any tips to become more ethically friendly whilst travelling? Let me know in the comments below.
Happy travels,
Cool, I didn’t know about that green leaf in skyscanner, good to be aware of.
I agree with you on animal shows. In this day and age, it is surprising that they still are there and people visit them.
Thanks for helping us travel more green!
Karen | https://OurCarpeDIem.com
You’re welcome and I’m glad you liked the tips 🙂 I know right, some people are still so in the dark about the animal shows and animal parks that drug animals so you can stroke them and get photos with them.
Very cool post, good on you for your forward thinking and mindful behavior. Enjoy your future travels!
Thank you!