7 Tips For Traveling More Sustainable

Tourism and traveling impacts the environment and economy a lot without us actually realizing it. The sector of Tourism became very big and plays a role in many countries. Some countries depend predominantly on tourists and want to expand more and more in this business.

The question is if it is good when the sector grows and grows more. Are there side-effects and will the footprint of tourist become more big and deep? The answer and reaction could be sustainable tourism.

The three pillars of sustainable tourism are employing environmentally friendly practices, protecting cultural and natural heritages and providing tangible social and economic benefits for local communities. There are many aspects where we should have to improve the way of traveling. We have some tips how you will definitely make your travels more sustainable. You will reduce the footprints and will help to make tourism eco-friendlier in a pretty easy way.

Stay in local eco-friendly places

When you are in a foreign country, choose a local eco-friendly place to stay instead of the big Hotel complex or massive resort. There are various ways of how you can find those sustainable homes. Numerous websites just focus on presenting the local places: Ecobnb, a&o Eco friendly hostel. Another example for sustainable living are homestays. You will have a room with the basic things you need and you will stay with locals, where you will get to know the culture and tradition of the country in an authentic way.

Get around green

Getting around to different sights or different places of the country is not always the same and not always easy. Take a second to check if there is a sustainable way. Sometimes you can rent a bicycle or take the public transportation. Pretty famous right now are the E-Scooters which you can get at every corner of a city. Try different transportation, it´s always an adventure and makes a difference.

Volunteer

Volunteering can be a chance to give back. Be careful what kind of volunteering you choose. There are various projects where you can help and where your support is sustainably needed. As a traveler, you have to be careful to not get part in volunteer-tourism which just aims to make you pay. The easiest way to get in touch is to contact the organizations directly and discuss the conditions with them.

Get to know the locals and the language

Getting to know the locals and the language is a social sustainable aspect, which will help you to travel easier and will take down the barrier to the locals. It is easier to get in contact with the locals and will give you the chance to get to know the real culture of the country. In the same time, you form or transform the reputation of travelers in the different countries.

Leave it as you found it

A very basic “rule” is to leave the things the same way you found them. Don’t pollute beaches, take your trash with you until you can litter it probably. If there are thousands of beautiful flowers, take a look, take a picture and enjoy it without taking them with you. You can apply this attitude in nearly every situation.

Support the real local economy

Try to buy the things you need in local shops or from people who live from their handcrafts. Try to avoid buying from commercial big places. If you want to have a tour, book it at local agencies and not the global-chain agencies.

Avoid flying if you can

Probably most discussed is the airplane transportation. We know that it is economically irresponsible to take a flight. In Europe, you can get around with trains and busses pretty good. Before you buy your flight ticket, check alternative ways to get to your destination.