Environmentally friendly and responsible travel: Top-5 travel tips

Environmentally friendly and responsible travel: Top-5 travel tips is written by Jens Skovgaard Andersen

Tip 1: Environmentally friendly packaging and turn off the light

Here are five tips on what you as a traveler can do to be even more responsible and protect the environment. The five tips for more environmentally friendly travel are based on good advice from the editors themselves, Travelettes, GVI and Lonely Planet.

The environmentally friendly journey already starts from home. It does it by you packs easily and only the most necessary. The heavier your suitcase, the heavier the plane and the taxi, and the more fuel you use, the more pollution. It's that simple.

Also turn off the lights, thermostats and switches before you go on your holiday, so you can eliminate the standby consumption on your TV, which can otherwise swallow a lot.

Tip 2: Do as the locals do

Eat locally and buy locally. Stay at local hotels or book a local apartment. Do things that support the local community so you make sure the money is used to develop the local community and the region. For example, buying clothes made on site by a local artisan, eating the local breakfast and buying only eco-friendly juices from fruits you know are found in the area.

When choosing a local hotel, you can choose a place that tells - and shows in practice - what they themselves do to save water, heat and chemicals. Do not settle for places that only put a sticker up in the bathroom and ask guests to reuse their towels to save the world - if a hotel really believes that, they themselves should take the lead with a wide range of initiatives that customers can then support.

By buying locally - and avoiding the tourist traps - you often also save money because the prices are higher on imported goods and are generally higher where all the tourists are.

Tip 3: Consider activities with animals with your trip

Part of that travel responsibly is to consider how to relate to activities with animals. Animals that are used for entertainment activities do not always have a very good life. Elephants used for riding in Thailand can rarely naturally carry the burden to which they are exposed. So if you have been thinking about taking part in animal activities, check out the conditions and the people behind it - both for your own sake and for the sake of the animals. Unfortunately, some tour operators are just more focused on making money than on making sure the animals are well.

But what should you look for to find tour operators who protect the animals?

• They should describe in their materials how they protect the animals in everyday life
• They are registered as an NGO
• They are transparent about their business and their work with the animals.

No, it is not the easiest task in the world to figure it out, but if in doubt, you can instead seek out the animals in their natural environment instead, for example on safari. It can then also provide some completely different travel experiences, and can be done in an environmentally friendly way.

Tip 4: Think about whether your means of transport are environmentally friendly

Instead of ordering a taxi or renting a car, remember to take the bus or train when you need to get around. It emits less CO2 when you share and you experience local life at eye level. You can also take the bike or walk around to the various sights and activities. It is also an excellent way to experience a destination.

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Tip 5: Use environmentally friendly service - avoid plastic bottles on your trip

If possible at the destination, drink tap water and refill water in recyclable, environmentally friendly water bottles. You can also buy water bottles with filters in them, which filter bacteria out of the water. You can drink the water at many of the destinations we visit as Danes, including countries such as Spain, Argentina and Australia. Be environmentally friendly and save on plastic on your trip.

If you are forced to buy plastic bottles of water because it is harmful to health to drink the water from the tap, then go for larger bottles that you can take from to refill your recyclable water bottle. A bit like you probably naturally would do at home.

Last but not least, it is important to share your knowledge on how to travel more environmentally friendly and responsible with your travel companions. Talk about local transportation before you leave, involve the kids in your decisions about animal activities on site, and remind each other to buy locally when you shop on the trip. And it does not have to be a sour duty, on the contrary - responsibility on the journey often gives more travel experiences, not fewer.

Nice trip!