Watching Your Tourism Footprint the Savvy Way

With interstate travel in full swing and international borders opening up, many have planned their upcoming vacations for the year-end and beyond. After nearly two years of lockdowns and strict border controls, we may want to get away and forget about COVID-19. Travelling is a great way to broaden our horizons and see how people around the world live. However, tourism also contributes to as much as eight percent of global carbon emissions, as well as other practices that can harm nature.?

As savvy travellers and consumers, how can we see the world more responsibly??Is it possible to balance our desire to travel with our desire to care for the planet? What can we do? For a start, let’s consider some steps to becoming a more eco-conscious traveller.

Help the local economy

One way of being a conscious traveller is by supporting the local economy. Help the small businesses instead of going to cookie-cutter supermarket chains or malls. By purchasing from the local community in your holiday destination, you can help support the local economy. Where possible, also look out for fair trade products. Some places have farmer markets or shops that sell local goods directly from the producers. Immerse yourself in the local customs and culture.

Slow and steady

There is no need to rush from one destination to another. Spend more time exploring one city or town instead of planning a whistle-stop itinerary and rushing to tick off the boxes in your list of top tourist attractions. Try to take existing transportation modes when travelling where you mix and match rather than driving your own car. Opt to rent from car-sharing services such as SOCAR and TREVO for a reduced carbon footprint, and also strengthening the sharing mobility. To get around in between cities, opt in to rent e-bikes, e-scooters.? Invest in a good pair of walking shoes. Sometimes, you might find more interesting sights along the unbeaten paths. Behave as a ‘temporary local’ and not a tourist.

Consider carbon offsets

Try using websites that can calculate your carbon footprint and see how you can reduce it. One such site is The Nature Conservancy . As the website explains, a carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide and methane) that are generated by our actions. Make sure to maintain our green habits while on holiday, such as turning off the lights and air-conditioning in empty rooms, avoiding single-use plastics, and trying to reuse, recycle and reduce daily items. If you are staying in a hotel, opt not to change towels every day. That will help to save the water and electricity needed for laundry. We often do not change these items daily at home, so there is no need to do so while on holiday.

Be aware of the impact of tourist activities

During the pandemic, when tourist activities were severely curtailed, many began to see a new side to popular tourist destinations. Animals came out of hiding and locals got a reprieve from the endless noise, bustle, and even pollution from cruise ships and tour buses, and other tourism-associated phenomena. Of course, on the flip side, tourism is a key economic lifeline for many communities, so we need to balance the need for tourism income with the need to manage its negative effects. For a start, let’s make sure to keep our green practices intact when we travel. Avoid single-use plastics and bring our own food and drink containers. Learn the local recycling practices and support them.

Choose responsible activities

While on holiday, choose nature-centric or low-impact activities such as hiking, bird watching or plogging – jogging while picking up rubbish. Or just relax and recharge on the beach. Any time spent outdoors is always a good idea. Always dispose of your trash properly. As they say, take nothing but photographs and leave nothing but footprints.?

Travelling sustainably does not mean you have to give up luxury

While luxury is often associated with conspicuous consumption and a large carbon footprint, travel guides like Lonely Planet and The Luxury Travel Expert website have several examples of sustainable yet luxurious destinations.

Use your voice online

In this age of social media and influencers, don’t forget that everyone can be an influencer. So use your voice online! Spread the message on being a more responsible and more sustainable traveller. Get everyone to support local businesses wherever they go - and give these businesses a shoutout so future visitors will know about them. Encourage more people to adopt low-impact tourism. Tell your family, friends, and acquaintances, and get them on board to spread the word too!?

At the end of the day, while making a commitment to help the planet is critical for everyone, it can be difficult to make a change and stick to it if the action seems too drastic and overwhelming. Change needs to start now, but we can start with the achievable and work towards bigger goals, to ensure that we do not slide back to the bad practices of the past.?

For us at SOCAR, there is so much more we want to share about how to be a smarter traveller who supports sustainability measures, so follow the updates here on the Limitless blog for more information soon.