Do you suffer from the so called "flight shame"? Would you like to make small differences to be a little greener? Or do you like to live as conscientiously as possible? With these five sustainable travel trips you will reduce your footprint.
1. Travel by train
Are you planning on taking a flight of three hours or less? A train ride is an easy alternative. For example: You are in Paris but need to be at a congress in Amsterdam. Going by plane, you will need to go to the Airport two hours in advance for the security and luggage check, wait in line at the gate, fly for 1h20m, wait for your luggage again, and take a taxi/metro/other to the city centre. If you had taken the Thalys train, you could have boarded in the centre of Paris, travel business class with Wi-Fi for 3h20m and disembarked in the heart of Amsterdam. This would have saved you time and money while you travel in a more luxurious seat with a clearer conscience.
Not only is a train ride a better alternative for short international flight routes, but also for transportation on a national level. Going from Amsterdam to Eindhoven for instance is faster by train than by car, you will not have to park, will depart and arrive in the midst of the city centres and do not have to worry about traffic jams.
2. Carry a reusable glass water bottle
In the Netherlands the tap water is clean and drinkable. There are taps everywhere so replacing your plastic bottles by one glass bottle to carry around will be a small change with a huge effect on plastic consumption.
3. Change your eating habits
If you like meat, we won’t be the ones telling you to quit ordering that juicy mixed grill. There are way more possibilities in changing your eating habits than swapping out a burger for a salad once in a while. An example is consuming more local food. In the Netherlands most avocados are shipped in from the Americas. By eating fruits, vegetables and other locally produced goods, you will be more eco friendly and the food will be more fresh and delicious too!
Another way of being conscientious with food consumption is reducing waste. After a long day of travelling or doing activities, your hunger might encourage you to order three side dishes with your main course. After you've finished half of it you however will soon find yourself full and wasting the rest. It's always possible to order extra when needed, but unwasting food is sadly not yet invented.
4. Take a bike ride or a walk
When visiting a city in the Netherlands, it is easy and rather inexpensive to rent a bike. All places in the Netherlands are designed for bike users and walkers, so for short distances, you'll be faster by travelling on a bike. The best benefit of going for a walk or a bike ride, is that you will see more and experience the environment in a totally different way. Additionally, this will be a great excuse for not going to the gym later… ;)
5. Choose certified accommodations, venues and activity providers over non-certified ones
Since consumers care more and more about living conscientiously, many businesses are adapting culture and operations. Every part of travel: accommodation, activities, venues, restaurants, transport and so on all have certified and more sustainable options. The choice is there. This sounds easy, however with sustainable trends on the rise, a lot of business try to sound sustainable. These so called ‘greenwashing’ business aren’t always easy to spot. Are you having trouble with finding local businesses with a clear conscience? Feel free to get in touch with us to help you search for trustworthy providers that suit your travel plans.
