Sustainable Travel 101: 4 Smart Tips to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

4 Simple Tips to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

Lazy, hazy vacations are made for rest and relaxation, as well as fun and frolicking. And while vacations should be carefree, you can also travel in a way that’s kinder to the environment by making sure you reduce your carbon footprint while you’re away. I spend several months of out of each year traveling the world to create videos and film episodes of my travel show, Alice’s Adventures on Earth. Along the way, I’ve picked up some helpful tips to reduce your carbon footprint when you’re away from home, and I think these tips will make it easy for you to start traveling more sustainably, too!

Making a conscious effort to be more environmentally-friendly in your travel is a huge step forward. I may include affiliate links in this post to products that I use to reduce my carbon footprint, and if you make a purchase through them, you can help me earn a small commission to keep this blog up and running. Now, let’s dig into those sustainable travel tips!

​These are my best tips to reduce your carbon footprint when you travel. 

1. Recycle and Be Resourceful 

​Recycling keeps waste products out of incinerators and landfills, which release devastating carbon emissions and methane gas into the atmosphere. Although we all know to recycle our glass bottles and paper goods, there’s plenty more that we can do when we’re traveling to make an impact and reduce our carbon footprint.

At home, it’s possible to recycle glass, plastic and paper goods just by depositing them in the appropriate bins, and it’s also easy to recycle large appliances such as freezers and dishwashers. Because of this, 378,200 tons of electrical appliances are traded in each year in the UK alone. But if you’re keen to go green while on the go, how do you make sure you’re doing your bit by recycling while traveling?

Some of the easiest ways to do this are by carrying recyclable toiletries, always taking a reusable water bottle, ensuring you have bags for the local supermarket shopping, and being mindful to buy loose fruit and vegetables instead of those packaged in plastic. You can check out my curated list of favorite sustainable travel products here. Producing less waste so there is no need for trash in the first place is the key to traveling sustainably.

2. Go Digital

Going digital is a great way to reduce waste and trim your carbon footprint when you travel. There are a variety of ways to make an impact on our planet by going digital! Instead of printing your boarding pass and tickets, download them on your phone. Say no to straws, napkins, and plastic waste when on airplanes and at restaurants. If you’re traveling with a group, encourage others to do the same to amplify your impact. 

3. Feast on Local Food, Not Chain Restaurants

​One exciting element of traveling is immersing yourself in a new culture and a big part of that is trying new food. But the food industry’s enormous carbon footprint comes from producing, growing, processing, transporting, and cooking the food you eat. In an effort to reduce your footprint on the go, try to eat fresh fruits, vegetables and grains while on holiday and avoid imported foods flown in from other countries.

Choose eco-friendly hotels that have their own vegetable and herb gardens and are run with a sense of responsibility in mind. Sustainable hotels often only cook local, organically grown produce and also have systems in place to only use renewable energy. If you’re self-catering, or even better, camping, shop at farmer’s markets and buy seasonal food that hasn’t been artificially ripened with toxic gases.

Check out my sustainable travel gear list here.

4. Forgo Fast Fashion 

​It’s easy to think you need new clothes for a holiday, and the quickest and cheapest way to buy these is to opt for fast fashion. But fast fashion is poorly made and only ends up in landfills that again produces that lethal methane gas. The price you pay might be cheaper upfront, but the cost to the environment is huge.

Instead, shop more consciously when at home, investing in clothes that are well made, will last longer, and are ethically produced. Or, take it one step further and save that suitcase space for picking up locally made brands that haven’t been imported, and skip those mass produced souvenirs when you’re in the destination, too. Unique, hand made items from local artisans or a great postcard hold a lot more meaning and your friends and family will appreciate it more.

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What’s your number 1 tip for eco- conscious travel?