Travel tells a tale of what has come before. Travel uncovers our eyes. Travel bestows the power of humans to overcome, to move forward, to do better. It's our favorite thing in the world. But like anything that provides many with incredible benefits, it also sometimes comes with its downfalls. One of the biggest? Doing it the wrong way can have detrimental effects on our environment.
In this article, we're going to dive into what sustainable travel actually is, and how all of us can build a better world by choosing to travel sustainably.
Put simply, sustainable travel, or eco travel, means finding a way to explore the world without harming natural and cultural environments. It should minimize the negative impacts of tourism, and ideally benefit the area in which it takes place.
It all comes down to value. Valuing our environment, and looking after the natural resources that our planet provides. In essence, travelers should be more aware of the pollution levels caused by travelling, and how it affects the environment, along with local wildlife, businesses, and native cultures.
The concept of sustainable trips revolves around three fundamental principles, which are commonly known as the Three Pillars of Sustainability. Let's check them out:
Now that we understand what eco travel is all about, let's find out all the fun ways to travel more sustainably.
Depending on where you are, and where you plan to go, you may have the option to drive, take a coach, train, or fly. If you're travelling in a group, it often makes more sense to car share. However, if you're a solo traveler, it may be greener to drive or take the train - it all depends on your route.
If you have the option to jump on a direct flight, take it. Most of a plane's carbon emissions are caused by takeoffs and landings, so it's best to take a direct flight and avoid as many changes as possible.
Not only is an economy seat much cheaper, but believe it or not, it's also so much better for the environment. Flying in first-class or business requires more space per passenger, resulting in a 5x larger carbon footprint.
Upon your arrival, get some workouts in and go by foot or bike when it's possible to do so. Go green, use public transport, minibuses, or even carshares to get around.
Take your time, become a slow traveler. This reaps so many rewards when it comes to sustainable trips. Mitigate the negative impacts of air travel by flying less often, and staying in places for longer. You'll even give yourself time to learn so much more about the culture and way of life!
Whenever possible, go local. Support local business owners by opting to stay in locally-owned apartments, hotels, B&B's - heck; you can even couch surf! Contribute your money to the local economy, rather than giving your hard-earned cash to foreign-owned hotels and resorts.
All-inclusive may seem like the best, most cost-effective option, but it also offers tourists little incentive to go elsewhere and discover local restaurants, tour guides, and cultural activities. Furthermore, in most cases, resort accommodation, especially in those who offer all-inclusive packages, tend to be foreign-owned. This means that your money won't benefit the local economy, and ultimately, is not sustainable.
If you love the outdoors, then camping can be a great way to travel more sustainably. Not only does this reap so many environmental benefits when it comes to eco travel, but it also provides a world of mental and physical benefits for us humans.
Traveling is not just something that people do - it's something that becomes a part of each person. It's an experience that pushes you out of your comfort zone; it provides you with an opportunity to meet some truly incredible people; to discover unique cultures and foods that will send your taste buds to another planet -exploring the world is a passion.
Live your passion, save the planet, and never look back.
Love your planet? Great, we do too! At Footy Intl, we want to help you Get Your Foot Out The Door into the world, sustainably. Join us on our journey to a better world for us and future generations to come by subscribing to our blog below.
Our power lies in numbers - let's do this.
About the Author
Karen Maristani invented writing, the airplane, and the internet. She was also the first person to reach the North Pole. She has flown to Mars and back in one day, and was enthusiastically greeted by Aliens. She has also worked as a copywriter and journalist for many years as she travels around the globe, and has helped hundreds of people publish incredible blog posts like this one right here.
]]>If you are looking to stay in a hostel that knows how to innovate, provide privacy, and still yet the freedom to meet new people, St Christopher’s Inns Village should be on the top of your consideration list. Featuring Japanese-like pod dorms that come with sockets, color-changing LED lights, and USB power points, they provide you with more privacy than usual hostel beds. However, this added privacy does not mean you are denied the pleasures of parties, DJs, and other fantastic deals, for all of them form intrinsic elements of the hostel.
Price per night starts from $25.
Hostel Anda is one of the top hostels in Venice, thanks to its quirky interior and aura. Flaunting a contemporary interior complemented with cool furniture, the hostel rocks a funky style. People love the thought put into this creation, especially the seemingly erratic but curious splashes of bright colors here and there. You will also find their urban garden, shared guest kitchen, and swing chairs extremely appealing—not only do they add to the charm of the place, but also serve as excellent common spaces to meet new people.
Price per night starts from $60.
If you are headed to Ibiza, there’s a good chance it’s to party. This Spanish city is known for its high-end party culture, a quality that attracts tens of thousands of visitors every year. If you too are one of them, you should opt for an accommodation that allows you to immerse yourself in the depths of celebration to be able to get a thorough and complete experience. Amistat Hostel is just the right place for such an experience. Here you will find everything, from a swimming pool to dancing and music workshops to watersports at the beach and exciting pool events!
Price per night starts from $35.
Interlaken is the perfect destination for you if you want to do away with the mundanity of city life and embrace nature in all its glory. And if you have decided to do that properly, you must then participate in the exciting opportunities nature has in store for its people – examples being river rafting, paragliding, skydiving, and more. Wondering how you could do that? Deciding to stay at Balmer’s is a fantastic way to do so! This hostel is situated in the heart of the mountainous city of Interlaken, providing exhilarating nature-related opportunities to its visitors. Give it a try!
Price per night starts from $114.
Take a trip back in time, and experience luxury as the royals of Budapest experienced. Lavender Circus is not your average boutique hostel – it is more than a special abode, for it sits royally in a 19th-century building with exquisite vintage furniture. Each room here is designed by a different designer, meaning that every nook of this lavish hostel sports a unique look and a fresh perspective. You can choose to either reside in a private room or a shared room based on your preferences, something uncommon in hostels. But no matter which choice you make, you can rest assured that several socialization opportunities await you in this quaint location. Offering free tea and coffee in common rooms, the hostel provides an excellent excuse to hang around with other people, building friendships and memories.
Price per night starts from $65.
If you are looking for a hostel with a personality of its own, one that intrigues and amuses you, KEX in Reykjavik will appeal to you. The creators of this hostel, remaining true to the spirit of quirkiness Icelanders are known for, named the hostel after biscuit! And if that was not enough, the place is filled with mind-boggling arrays of coffee houses, a restaurant, and a jazz club. Talk about versatility!
Price per night starts from $120.
For those searching for a hotel experience in a hostel, the Blue Hostel in Rome is the perfect answer. Here, you not only get private rooms with luxurious interiors and glamorous en-suite bathrooms, but you also get access to exciting amenities like a minibar, LCD TV, and friendly customer service. And for times when you want to switch off the hotel experience and get a flavor of the hostel-life, you can simply mingle with the traveler crowd!
Price per night starts from $170.
Colorful, funky, retro, creative, and modern – these words perfectly describe the Cube Hostel in Belgium. It is ideal for people who want to live in the heart of the most happening centers of Belgium while relishing the eccentric personality of its contemporary independent artists! Plus, there is plenty to do while you are here, like drinking at the bar, taking baking sessions, and much more.
Price per night starts from $70.
Copenhagen Downtown Hostel is heaven for all art lovers on independent excursions to the city. Wondering why that might be so? In the city’s spirit, this hostel a uniquely aesthetic accommodation. It may surprise you to know that no two rooms here are the same, for each room is designed and decorated by independent local artists. In addition to the funky interior, the hostel features a buzzing social scene, with several hostel-organized parties and experiences hosted regularly.
Price per night starts from $30.
Experience nature like never before in the fantastic, eco-friendly hostel of 7 Fells. Abandon the well-trodden paths in Finland and make an excursion to this destination among the trees in Lapland, where you can enjoy a fantastic opportunity to sleep in luxurious wooden buildings surrounded by the sounds of nature. If you are lucky, you might even catch a stunning show of Northern Lights! If that’s not enough to convince you to check it out, the hostel offers free bike rides and a sauna to add to your experience living here.
Price per night starts from $70.
Hostels are an exciting and adventurous way to explore new countries, try new experiences, and meet new people. From the various amenities each one offers to the distinct cities that surround them, your unique visit will lead to stories you tell for ages and friendships that last a lifetime.
About the Author
MK is an amateur photographer, UI UX Designer, hobbyist traveler and blogger originally from Pakistan, but now, she’s an adventurer in love with any place that doesn’t have Wi-Fi. From her journeys around the world, she’s decided that Turkey and New Zealand are her favorite countries she’s explored, with Alaska holding a spot as the next destination for which she’s most excited.
]]>This is a common tip found everywhere on the internet. While booking early typically yields the cheapest flights, booking late can have its benefits as well. Using flight apps like Hopper or Fareness, you can find last-minute flights to wherever you’re wanting to go. However, you run the risk of there being no availability and having to wait a little while longer, or of the flight being too expensive because of high demand.
One interesting tidbit is that the average cheapest day to book your flight is 54 days beforehand. Keep an eye on this window (we recommend about two weeks before to two weeks after) for booking your flight. It’s never a bad idea to set up flight tracking through websites like Google, Hopper, or credit card companies’ flight portals.
If you’ve got a bit of time to spare on your travels or are looking to add another stop along your journey, consider booking a connecting flight, or even two separate flights… this is what we call City-Traversing. Some flights will have overnight connections (be sure to check the available amenities at the airport you’re staying at!) while others may have a day-long or multi-day connection that lets you get out and explore the city a bit.
If you’re not feeling the connection, try to find the cheapest flight to the continent you’re wanting to visit, then use regional airlines to get where you’re wanting!
For example, say you want to visit Rome from Houston, but your round-trip flight runs you $1,300 flat. There might be a flight to Amsterdam that costs you $800 and a round-trip flight from Amsterdam to Rome that costs $200 on an airline like RyanAir or easyJet. You’ve taken a few extra hours out of your journey (maybe even cut some hours out!), but you’ve saved $300. Not that bad of a tradeoff for the financially savvy traveler!
City-traversing allows you the freedom to book flights whenever you’d like to wherever you’d like. If you land in Amsterdam and realize you’d actually like to explore the city for a couple of days, just wait to book your flight to Rome and start your adventure early!
You’ve probably heard this before, but everything you do is pretty much watched. Not necessarily by FBI agents hiding behind their computer screens, but by the search engine companies and airlines. If you browse flights frequently for a certain destination or for a range of dates, the companies will know that you’re looking to book a flight. Because of this, sometimes they’ll arbitrarily increase their prices.
When you’re ready to book, open up an incognito tab, or delete your browsing/history cache beforehand. This will allow you to snag the cheapest flight possible if they’ve been raising their prices!
For a while, it was rumored that Tuesdays were the cheapest day to book flights. Then it came out that Tuesdays were only the cheapest for domestic flights, while Thursdays were the cheapest for international flights. Now, it appears that Thursdays have taken hold of that title.
The chief data scientist at Hopper claims that you can save about 3.4% on domestic travel and 3.5% on international by booking on Thursdays.
Booking on a credit card is a quick and efficient way to build up credit (as long as you pay it off on time!) and to build up additional or miles or points that ultimately allow you to travel more for less in the future.
For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card (we’re not sponsored, just so ya know) gives you 2x miles for every dollar you book through them. If you buy a thousand-dollar flight from them, you’ll receive 2,000 points. They have a 1:1 trade in with airlines so that you can exchange your points for miles with most companies. However, they also will multiply your points that you use booking flights by 1.25x. That means that your 2,000 points would then be worth 2,500 miles that you could put toward lowering the cost of your flight!
Individual airlines like Southwest, American, and United all offer various credit cards and promotional sign up deals that will grant you anywhere from 40,000 to 60,000 free miles or points when you choose them. Leveraging these correctly can pay off your expenses for several adventures around the world and as you use their cards, you keep building up that account!
If you’re thinking of taking say, a Wednesday through Friday off and traveling from Tuesday night (after work) until Sunday evening, look into pushing everything back a day.
For international flights, weekdays are usually the cheapest flight option you can find. If you’re able to push your travel dates back a bit, not only can you save some money, but you might get to visit some incredible locations on your Monday abroad, since Mondays normally mean fewer tourists than weekends.
In summary, you’ll be taking off the same amount of time while having a better experience for cheaper!
When choosing where to sit, it’s pretty much unanimously agreed upon that no one prefers the middle seat. If you like the middle seat… I guess you could just ignore this section.
For longer flights that happen over the course of a regular day (i.e. when you’re not expecting to sleep a lot during the flight like you would a red-eye), aisle seats are our preference. You have the ability to stand up and walk around, use the restroom, etc. without having to bother any of the other passengers on the flight. You may be bothered occasionally by the people in the aisle or window seats getting up, but they’ll feel less inclined to do it as frequently as you can. There’s also the added benefit of putting up the armrest (the one that’s on the aisle) and extending your legs and body a bit more.
Regarding red-eye flights, our preference is the window seat. For these flights when you’re going to want to sleep for a long amount of time, a small travel pillow (or Mitchell’s favorite of a wadded up jacket) pressed between the wall of the plane and your head makes for some peaceful midair slumbers. While you might have to get up and use the restroom occasionally, you can expect a lot of sleep without many disturbances from your aisle-buddies.
In addition to these tips, a good consideration is always where you’ll be located for the flight.
If your goal is quietness during your flight, first food/beverage service, and quick deboarding, look for seats at the front of the plane. For noise, the noisiest part is typically behind the wings, due to the large amount of wind & air passing over the wings and the engines powering the plane. For service and deboarding, the flight attendants normally start at the front of each section and work towards the back, and passengers usually depart starting in the front.
If your goal is stability on the flight, consider seats that are directly between or before the wings of the plane. The wings help reduce the shaking feeling of turbulence during those rough patches and can prevent you from getting motion sick from small vibrations that occur throughout the flight.
If your goal is cost-efficiency, look for seats in the rear of the plane. These seats typically have reduced costs as they’re typically the last to board (unless you’re on a plane with rear entry/exit, in which case you might be the fastest to exit!).
While this doesn’t really have much to do with the price or comfort of the flight, it can greatly improve your experience at the airport.
We’re all accustomed to that one family member, significant other, or travel buddy that insists on getting to the airport hours in advance. However, if you’re able to fit everything into a carryon backpack, you can save yourself a lot of time spent in the airport.
With TSA PreCheck, you provide some information to the US Government, do a quick screening and a speedy interview, pay your $85 and you’re good to speed through specially established security gates, keeping electronics in your bag and shoes on your feet. When we travel using PreCheck, we arrive at the airport only about an hour before our departure time, although that’s typically more time than needed considering we get to our gate in about 15 minutes. That extra time can be perfect for downing an overly expensive preflight beer or two though...
With Global Entry, you do pretty much the same steps as TSA PreCheck (except you pay $100) and you’re good to enter a special line upon your return to the States from trips abroad… along with the TSA PreCheck benefits. Rather than waiting an hour or more to get through Customs, you can stop by your line, answer a couple of questions on a kiosk, answer a Customs representative’s questions quickly, and be on your way back home. You unfortunately have to renew every 5 years, but the process is quick and efficient if you do it online.