We are celebrating Earth Day every day by sharing awesome ways to be green and sustainable while traveling! Sustainable travel helps protect the natural environment and community over time. We believe in travel but know that it can be challenging to maintain an eco-friendly lifestyle when you’re on the road (or plane, train, etc.) and especially when you have little ones traveling with you.
To help you travel the best way you can, we’ve put together a list of tips for becoming an eco-friendly adventurer. We’ve also rallied the troops and collected some awesome tips and tricks from eco-friendly, sustainable, organic mommies. We’ve also included some tips of our very own, and we’d love to hear from you too! What are some ways that you practice sustainable travel?
Ask yourself if the trip is essential or not.
Before making your travel plans and booking your hotel accommodations, consider whether or not travel is necessary. You may be thinking, what other options are there? Since covid and quarantine, virtual traveling has become a more popular and more widely available option for wannabe travelers. There is actually a website for virtual travel where families can experience travel from home. How does it work? Major tourist centers are live-streamed at designated times for families to view for an affordable price.
Choosing to limit how often you physically travel reduces gas emissions, overconsumption, energy usage, and more. Waiting to travel until you can do so for a longer period of time is also helpful. Rather than taking multiple trips of a shorter duration, choose to take a trip for a longer duration (e.g., 3 weeks or longer). This is a major part of keeping travel sustainable for years to come!
Bring reusable travel products with you!
The easiest way to travel sustainably is to bring along your own eco-friendly and reusable travel products. Opt for plates, silverware, cups, and dishware that you can use, wash, and reuse rather than paper plates, plastic silverware, and other disposable dishware items. Even paper napkins can be replaced with cloth napkins if you have the option to wash and reuse them.
Lindsay Gallimore, eco-parenting mama blogger based in Alberta, Canada, @mamanloupsden, says: “Avoid single-use plastics by packing your own water bottles and even your own cups if you’re going to an all-inclusive resort that serves drinks in disposable cups. Don’t take a straw unless you need one. And depending on your destination, you don’t have to leave cloth diapers at home!”
We love Lindsay’s advice about straws! If your little ones drink better with straws, try reusable and washable straws like the FinalStraw. This one is a great option because it collapses and fits into a keychain, which is perfect for traveling!
Staying organized with eco-friendly products while traveling is essential.
Tana Siebold-Johnson, aka The Tiny Green Mom and @TinyGreenMom, adds, “Traveling & staying organized with little ones is always a challenge! To cut down on plastic waste, use patterned reusable bags like the ones from Itzy Ritzy for storing everything from snacks for the airplane or back seat to small toys, crayons & games.
Small reusable bags, in lieu of disposable plastic bags, can hold all kinds of things for little ones. They are also great for on-the-go snacking and are easy to clean out if you don’t put anything too messy in them. The larger reusable bags can be used for toiletries & socks, underwear, or swimsuits. To keep things streamlined, have each child choose a favorite pattern, so they know just by looking that it is their bag. Once you are back home, the bags can be washed & ready to go for the next trip!”
Conserve water and energy where you can.
This is a pretty easy way to help keep travel sustainable; simply be cautious about how much energy and water you are using. If you are staying in a hotel, be mindful of how long your showers are or how long you run the bath water. This even goes for running sink water while you wash your face or brush your teeth. The faucet should be turned off when the water is not actively being used. Little ones aren’t the only ones who can run water for too long!
Reducing how much energy you use is also helpful. Turning lights off before you head out for the day and unplugging electronics when you are not using them are great ways to make small eco-friendly impacts. Turning the AC up while you are away (or off altogether until you get back) helps conserve energy. You are also acting as a good role model when you apply these tips and help to instill sustainable travel habits in your little ones while they are young!
Include a local eco-friendly conservation project or experience in your travel itinerary!
If you have older kids, this is a fantastic way to show them real-life ecological conservation and is also a great way to increase your trip’s sustainability! Little ones may not understand the concept of conservation yet, but they will enjoy any chance to see some wildlife. From entire vacations dedicated to a conservation project to tours and 1-day experiences, you can definitely find an eco-friendly experience that suits your trip!
If you are heading to Corpus Christi, make sure to help release baby turtles into the ocean. This is an exciting event for ALL ages. We also think this is one of the cutest ways you can help a super important animal in the ocean’s ecosystem, and this is something the entire family can help with.
Want to dedicate your entire trip to a project? Check out this list of volunteer trips all over the world! Remember, these options are appropriate for adults and older kiddos; if your littles are still very young, save this link so you can book one of these amazing, eco-friendly volunteer trips when they are older!
-
Related Articles:
Pack less and walk more!
The @thesustainablemom, Rosanna Howard, encourages parents to bring less with them when traveling. “When my first son was 10 months old, I traveled to Paris with him, alone. I did not bring a stroller, car seat, or any other gear besides a lightly packed diaper bag and two baby carriers, a Tula structured carrier, and a woven wrap. My family and friends thought I was absolutely batty. But thanks to babywearing and a walking city with glorious public transportation, we had a fabulous vacation and traveled completely unencumbered.”
Rosanna goes on to say, “Now, with two toddlers, a double stroller is certainly a game-changer. But we still try to travel as lightly as possible. Sustainable family traveling for us means picking lodging within walking distance of as many attractions as possible, researching public transportation options, planning our sightseeing itinerary to minimize the travel between destinations (because nothing is worse than hauling kiddos in and out of the car all day), and finding out if there is any necessary gear available to borrow or rent while we are there.
Our family’s natural parenting choices to breastfeed, babywear, co-sleep, and implement baby-led weaning also significantly cut down on the amount of gear, accessories, and baby paraphernalia required to get us out the door and on the road! For green, sustainable travel with kids, less is more!”
What great advice! By limiting what you pack, walking more, and using public transportation, you can definitely minimize your carbon impact, which is super eco-friendly! Did we mention that by renting gear, you are supporting small businesses and sustainability? No more buying new things at your destination!
Implement some easy and green hotel hacks.
If you’re staying in a hotel for an upcoming trip, try to implement a few super easy ways to make your hotel stay a bit greener! Simple things like packing your own shampoo and conditioner rather than using the mini bottles provided can make a big carbon impact! Even hanging your towels on hooks in the bathroom instead of having the housekeeper bring you new ones is a way to sustainably travel. That’s the universal language for “Do not wash! I’ll reuse it!”
Another sustainable travel tip: if your room is still super clean on day two of your stay, place a Do Not Disturb door hanger on your door. This way, they won’t clean. Easy breezy! By the way, here is a great list of sustainable hotels and accommodations by one of our favorite bloggers, The Points Guy!
Buy and shop local while visiting travel destinations.
Did you know that something as simple as shopping from local artisans and shops while traveling is helpful? Wherever your travels take you, you have an opportunity to support local businesses, and shopping local means you’re shopping sustainably! Local businesses, restaurants, vacation rentals, and shops act as the economic engine of the community. They often have handmade items, organic food options, and products that are made or grown close by. These are the best items to purchase as souvenirs for yourself, your friends, and your family. So enjoy exploring the local community. It’s a great way to show your kids the local culture as well!
Rent a bike for easy transportation and to support sustainable travel.
We all know that vehicles, RVs, and other common modes of transportation are not the most eco-friendly way to travel. So why not explore your travel destinations by bike? It’s a great way to see a lot, enjoy the outdoors, and be eco-friendly while you’re traveling. You can almost always rent bikes wherever you are (and support a local business, too!). Your kids will love biking around the city, and they’ll be super tired by the end of the day too! Added bonus.
There are a few bike-share apps that may be a great option if there aren’t local shops available. Check out Lime! It’s an app that allows you to pick up bikes, scooters, and electric bikes! Remember to always stay safe and wear a helmet.
Avoid flying or choose eco-friendly airlines.
If you can avoid flying altogether, that’s the most eco-friendly travel choice. But we understand that is not an option for everyone or for every trip. If you do need to fly and want to support sustainable travel, look for airlines that invest in clean biofuel technology (rather than fossil fuels). Biofuel technology uses a mix of agricultural waste, plant oils, and wood chips. Doing so can reduce carbon emissions by up to 80%!
Believe it or not, there have been over 150,000 flights since 2008 that have used biofuels to power their planes. Some airlines that invest in clean biofuel technology are American Airlines, KLM, British Airways, and Lufthansa, among others. Before booking your flight, check out a list of airlines that use biofuel if you want to make a positive impact on the environment.
Opt for a camping trip.
Camping locally within a few hours of your home is another sustainable travel option. This is a great summertime vacation idea, and your kids will LOVE sleeping outdoors. If you stay close to home and carpool with the entire family, your carbon footprint won’t be near as high as plane travel.
And you can sightsee on your way to your camping destination! You won’t be using much power or electricity since you’ll be relying mostly on batteries and, hopefully, a super cozy campfire. Make sure you pack all your trash and dispose of it properly. Keep in mind that you may be in the natural element of some local wildlife, so treat their home as if it is yours! BONUS TIP: refer to this awesome list of sustainable travel hacks to make sure you’re camping like a professional!
We believe in travel and adventure and hope these traveling tips help you do so in an eco-friendly and sustainable way. Obviously, choosing to not travel isn’t realistic in the long run, and we don’t expect you to avoid it altogether. We simply encourage you to make eco-friendly changes and choices! Our last piece of advice: when your kids see the world and all it has to offer, they’ll value and respect it, which is sustainability in a nutshell!
What other travel tips could we add to our list? Let us know below!
Kaylee Garcia is the mama to one sweet boy and one sweet girl, and wife to an awesome husband. Kaylee and her son (he’s only 4!) have completed over 20 trips via air travel (thank you, Alaska Airlines!) on over 40+ airplane rides! They love sharing travel tips with other families since they’ve learned a lot in the last 4 years. Kaylee enjoys spending time with family, researching baby gear, and exploring the Pacific Northwest.
Good, good, good. Like this article.
Yes, these are great suggestions.
With climate change upon us and the world spinning out of control with excess waste, this is so important to k eep in mind when traveling. It’s not hard either.
I have heard of renting bikes off racks in the city, but I’d never heard of bike-sharing apps. What a cool concept!