Green travel ideas from two environmentally conscious travelers

The “Rich Coast” of Costa Rica is famed for its cloud-wreathed rain forests, unspoiled beaches, volcanic hot springs, and incredible biodiversity. It was the first country I visited that had embraced eco-tourism and as a result, it is a great place for a green vacation.

Recommendations

The Villa Blanca Cloud Hotel, Spa and Nature Reserve showcases it all in splendid style, with impeccable green credentials. Head outside to learn more about your surroundings with some hands-on education about Costa Rican nature: bats, frogs, chocolate, and birds are all the topics of green tours. Visit sloths, howler monkeys, and macaws in Manuel Antonio Park, which also has beaches for snorkeling and observing sea turtles. If you want to stay at a true eco-tourism project, try Lapa Rios Rainforest Ecolodge, which is built on a 1000-acre nature preserve to show that “a forest left standing is worth more than one cut down.” Then head up into the treetops for a canopy tour among the clouds!

Great for family vacations

I highly recommend Costa Rica as a destination to take your elementary school aged children. They will be fascinated by the howler monkeys, which seem to be everywhere, especially when you want to sleep in a little later than usual. If you get a chance to see the scarlet macaws in flight at sunset, they will never want to cage a bird again. Plus, they are sure to see a sloth or two and maybe even that fabulous bird, the Resplendent Quetzal–it is on the list of every birder I know as a must see. (o.k I only know two, but they are really into birdwatching.) If you are lucky you can check out a real exploding volcano, take in a hot spring and maybe see that other amazing bird made famous by Fruit Loops, the toucan. If you do go to see the volcano, you must stay at the lodge and if sounds like a semi-truck is driving by, leap out of bed and run to your window. It is the sound of a volcano spewing. I slept through it….

Tip

The roads are really bad–two lane country roads with deep potholes all over (I mean every few feet!) If you are prone to motion sickness, find a place with well-paved, straight roads. The alternative is very small aircrafts that hop from town to town, but that can also be bad for the motion sickness prone. Other than that, I could visit this country every year and still find new places to discover. Go, it is the ultimate wildlife destination and did I mention the beaches, warm, clean and empty!

Keep Tahoe Blue! This ubiquitous sticker shows Tahoe’s green pride and the need to protect this environmentally sensitive area. The classic Northern California combination of a forest-ringed lake with frosty white slopes invites green travel activities such camping, hiking, and alpine skiing.

For eco-conscious winter-sports, I suggest you check out Sugar Bowl, the first ski resort to utilize 100% green power in their operations and with some beautiful back bowls. The secluded acreage of Granlibakken Resort will appeal to some, while others will prefer to be closer to the action at the Embassy Suites Lake Tahoe, which participates in

In the summer, kayak along the 72-mile Lake Tahoe Water Trail, or enjoy a naturalist-led tour of the Lake Tahoe Basin. If you like to mountain bike ride, I suggest the Flume trail for a terrific view of the lake or Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride for a wildly technical ride. If you are just visiting, rent a bike on Thursday and participate in the Pedal There program–a biking program designed to decrease traffic in Tahoe City.

Outdoor activities that are people-powered (such as camping and kayaking) are naturally green. You can expand your environmental horizons when you visit other places by planning activities around the area’s natural resources or learning about the local ecosystem and how to conserve it. Here are five of my top green oudoor activities that I plan on doing in the next few years:

Volunteer to teach English and eco-consciousness in Thailand or Laos

Horseback riding and interpretive nature hikes in the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona

View endangered sea turtles in St. Croix

A professional birding and wildlife holiday in East Africa

Dive with sharks and learn about conservation efforts in Fiji

These are my destinations of choice–where would you go? What kind of activities do you consider “green. Let me know.

Before you start planning a trip, you need to decide where you’re going, and since your choice of destination (and corresponding travel to/from) is a huge determining factor in the environmental impact of your trip, keep the following factors in mind.

Consider Local Alternatives: Every mile you travel in a plane or car emits carbon dioxide into the air, which is just another factor you should consider when evaluating the cost of the trip. Think of your carbon emissions just like you would a high-priced airline ticket. An expensive ticket might not keep you from taking a trip you really want to take, but it will make you think twice about how much you really want to go. When traveling long distances where your carbon footprint is going to be significant, think about how important the long trip really is to you and your family, and if you think the trip is dispensable or it might be easier to stay local, then look into a destination closer to home that might be a good alternative. If you decide to reevaluate your destination, the resources at www.Kango.com can guide you to a nearby destination that meets the criteria for activities, lodging and anything else that you’re looking for.

Travel Longer and Reduce Your Carbon “Jet Lag”: Another way to look at the carbon emissions you’ll produce on your vacation is like jet lag. You probably wouldn’t want to travel all the way to New Zealand for a four-day vacation, because you’d spend most of your time in the plane and you would suffer from jet lag the rest of the trip. Well, carbon emissions follow a similar rule. When you’re traveling a long way for a short visit, you’re contributing a huge amount of carbon to the atmosphere for a relatively small benefit. So you should save that international trip for sometime when you and your family can get a longer time off from work and school. For short vacation windows of a week or less, think about less ambitious trips. Slowtrav.com is a good resource if you’re interested in this philosophy, which they call “slow travel.”

Reward Environmentally Forward Destinations: All destinations are not created equal. Some countries and regions have shown a lot more sustainable and environmental foresight than others. Why not make your choice of vacation destinations on that basis? For example, in the U.S., California is showing leadership on renewable energy and is increasing its renewable energy portfolio standards. Internationally, Costa Rica currently produces 96% of its electricity from renewable sources and aims to be carbon-neutral through reforestation programs by 2030. Iceland has set a goal of transitioning to a 100% hydrogen-based zero-carbon economy by 2050, powered by geothermal and hydroelectric sources. If you switch on a light bulb today in either Costa Rica or Iceland, you cause less environmental harm than if you were to do so at home in the United States, and you can take comfort that you are spending tourist dollars in a place that deserves to be rewarded for its environmental policies. Check out the results of the 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index to see how your dream destination country measures up on a range of environmental metrics. Finland is #1 out of 146 countries, and the U.S. ranks 45^th between Armenia and Myanmar. You can see the ranked list on Wikipedia or you can view the whole report at the official ESI site. National Geographic also rated 115 world destinations on their sustainability and stewardship and published the results in 2004. Another inspiring list of eco-friendly destinations can be found at the Independent Traveler website.

Make the Most of Your Trip: So you’ve decided on a destination. Your next step is to have fun. After you’ve bought your plane ticket and decided on offsets for your emissions, leave your guilt behind and enjoy your trip. Make the most environmentally-friendly decisions you can along the way (and you can see other sections of this guide for details), but don’t let anything get in the way of enjoying your vacation. After all, the two commandments of any environmentally conscious traveler should be to…

1) Reduce your environmental footprint as much as possible

2) Have the most enjoyable trip possible

And if I could sneak in a third commandment, it would be: gracefully share what you have learned with your friends so they can do more with less too!