As the world becomes more globalized, travel becomes a more integral part of our life. Millions of people travel each year, all to different locations of the world. Unfortunately for those that love to visit new places, traveling isn’t the most environmentally friendly activity. Lots of waste is usually produced while traveling, while many nonrenewable resources must be used in the production and maintenance of transportation vehicles. Whether you’re traveling inside the country to Fort Worth or taking an international trip to Paris, you will have a carbon footprint traveling. That being said, there are ways for travelers to reduce their carbon footprint and engage in more eco-friendly travel. How exactly can you go about this? Here are some tips for eco-friendly travel.
Eco-Friendly Hotel Habits
An important thing to practice on eco-friendly trips is environmentally friendly hotel habits. When you are at a hotel, you should practice the same conservative habits that you practice at home. This means you should turn the lights off when you leave the room and shouldn’t use a new towel every day. You also should still limit your shower usage to a reasonable time and try to unplug any devices that aren’t being used. Just because you are away from home and in a hotel does not mean that you still can’t practice environmentally friendly habits. Engaging in eco-friendly hotel habits can greatly reduce your trips’ environmental impact.
Reusable Flasks and Containers
Some of the biggest ecological damage from travel stems from the waste that comes from eating and drinking on the go. Using things like plastic water bottles and styrofoam containers can really add up over time. In addition, these things often take a long time to break down and deteriorate, meaning they do extended damage to our environment. Thankfully, you can counter this by packing reusable containers and flasks for food and drink. This will greatly reduce the waste you produce while you’re traveling and will make your trip much more eco-friendly.
Pack Light
Another important aspect of eco-friendly travel is packing light. This will make you consume fewer products from home, likely resulting in you producing less waste on your trip. In addition, packing light on a flight can greatly reduce its carbon footprint. The less you pack, the less the plane has to carry. As a result, the plane releases fewer carbon emissions and the ride is much greener.
