“Make good, conscious choices every step of the way”
There is a chain in travel that starts with a booking and runs through flights, hotels, down to guides on the ground. You really want to make sure there is little leakage, so your money is always doing good.
We all want a trip with a positive impact. It doesn’t mean that it needs to be eco-lodges everywhere, but using a travel provider who has done their due diligence to make sure the chain has a positive impact on the environment and on local communities.
It’s about travelling in a different way. When we fly, we should aim for newer aircraft and direct routes with airlines that invest in renewables, such as Finnair and KLM.
We should also aim to stay in destinations for longer – we call this slow travel – rather than flying into a place and then leaving quickly and in a property that really advocates local employment.
Fogo Island Inn in Newfoundland, Canada, is a really interesting example. When you go on the website, there is an economic nutrition label. It shows you exactly the split of where your money goes as a tourist. It’s fascinating. I think transparency is the future.