Responsible Travel Tips : How To Explore The World & Respect Mother Nature
“ We wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment” - Hilarie Belloc
Hello! I’m Kelly, a travel and green lifestyle blogger and content creator at Roaming free . I have a background and passion for wildlife biology and conservation as well as a strong love for travel and photography. I’ll be sharing with you my tips on how to travel responsibly and respect mother nature at the same time.
Traveling is the most enriching and rewarding experience. The personal growth and experiences that come from traveling to a new place are life changing. Learning about new and different cultures, art, languages and environments is extremely fulfilling. Once you get your first taste of travel, traveling becomes a need. I have been so fortunate and grateful to travel to various parts of this world, embracing the beauty and knowledge that different places have to offer. I believe that the most important aspect of having the privilege to travel is having respect. Respect the people, respect the culture and respect the surrounding environment.
The UN World tourism organization (WTO), defines sustainable travel as the “management of all resources in such a way that economic, social and aesthetic needs can be fulfilled while maintaining cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biological diversity and life support systems”.
Travel comes with responsibility. It is up to each of us to ensure that we don’t leave our mark on the places that we visit. Admire and learn from the place you travel to but don’t leave your footprint, leave with only memories. Ensure that the next person to visit has the same opportunity as you, to absorb in the beauty and culture of that place.
Each traveling individual can make minor changes to how they travel to help achieve the goal of sustainable travel. Sustainability is a lifestyle, small changes can be made by you and me to make a difference! There is so much to see and do around the world, let’s ensure that future generations can have the same opportunity to fall in love with traveling.
Tips for green travel Pack light
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Take only what you need, only take the essentials to lighten your load. Where possible travel with only carry on.
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Avoid plastic bags by carrying a tote bag or small backpack with you, for day trips and any shopping you may do.
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Travel with reusables: A water bottle, reusable straws and a food container to minimize waste.
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Swap travel books, guides and maps with other travelers instead of buying new.
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Save trees by not printing tickets, maps and guides. Use E tickets for flights, tours, shows etc. Try an app that works offline, which has maps and guides for the place you’re visiting.
Smart transportation
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When flying, choose the most direct and non-stop option. You can also consider the use of a carbon offset program, airlines (who use this program) will calculate your carbon footprint (greenhouse gas emissions from your flight) and charge a fee to remove these emissions from the atmosphere by giving this money to a third party working towards a sustainable future. Examples include companies who plant trees and help to prevent deforestation.
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Where possible, avoid flying to a destination. If your destination only takes an hour by plane, consider other options such as a train, bus or even carpooling.
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If you are renting a car for your trip, use a hybrid or electric vehicle!
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Biking and/or walking around a new city or town is a great way to travel. You get to see a lot more and get lost in the atmosphere of the place you are visiting! Walking around and getting lost is always my favorite thing when visiting somewhere new!
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Stay in a eco hotel or lodge. This type of accommodation practices green living and has minimal impact on the environment. Some Airbnb places are also listed as eco-friendly.
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Stay in a hostel or backpackers. Share a room and make new friends!
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When leaving your accommodation for the day and/or night make sure to turn off all lights, heating/air conditioning and any TV’s/ music devices.
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Reuse sheets and towels, it is not necessary to change these daily.
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Take a shower instead of a bath, and try to limit the amount of time in the shower!
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When visiting a place, it is essential to be respectful of the people, culture and environment.
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When dining out or buying ingredients to make your own meals, buy from local markets/ stores and try to buy only ingredients that are from that region.
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Listen to and learn from the local people, enrich your experience by immersing yourself in the culture.
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Buy long lasting and meaningful souvenirs from the local markets.
Respect nature
- Be kind to everything that lives, embrace the beauty of the place you are traveling by respecting the boundaries. Do some research to ensure that you are not buying any products that come from endangered fauna or flora.
- Respect the wildlife from afar, do not feed or approach.
- When camping and hiking, follow the guidelines for that area, use local guides. Stick to the marked trails and make sure to take any liter with you. Leave no trace of your visit!
- Conserve water. Take a reusable water bottle with you and avoid bottled water. If you’re traveling to a place where the tap water isn’t safe to drink you could treat your own water by taking a purifier filter or iodine tablets with you.
- Dispose of any liter, recycle items where possible, don’t pollute.
Give Back
- There are many opportunities for a volunteer travel trip! Give back to the community and mother nature by embarking on a trip where you can work with the local
- community in various areas such as conservation/environmental programs or public health awareness programs. Do your research to find an ethical program, that ensures the help/money is going directly to the local community/local environment.
- Respect the people and the world around us and make the switch to sustainable travel.