Greta Thunberg, CO2 emissions, pollution: the reports transmitted by the news agencies seem to catalyze our attention in only one emergency, that of the climate change.
The world we live is transforming under our eyes and we are responsible of this mutation.
Climate change should correspond to a change in our daily habits, to become the protagonists of an important challenge: environment protection.
Travelling allows us to discover the world and to fall in love with it, giving us an extra boost to preserve it from foul-up and damage from human action. But, did you know that also travelling can be highly polluting? Unless you do it in the right way!
Sustainable tourism: why it is important
Tourism industry, in the western world, has an incredible impact to the environment. Firstly, the transportation is really pollutant, both if you choose to travel by car, by plane or by other means.
But there are also other factors contributing to make your vacation with family or friends of strong impact. The accommodation facilities, for example, especially the big hotels that guarantee a h24 operativity, are characterised by significant CO2 emissions. Moreover, we cannot forget the high water consumption, regarding especially the wellness centres!
The mass tourism, such as that of the crowded bathing establishments that consume and dirty the beaches, strikes a severe blow to the environment and, often, while we are on holiday, we do not care at all about it. In this case, we effectively neglect what, instead, a responsible and sustainable journey can give us more.
Choosing to enjoy a walking travel experience against the climate change is healthy either for ourselves! It helps us to slowly rediscover unexplored and hidden lands and to enjoy corners of paradise that are not reachable by plane! But it also helps us to find out, within us, an equilibrium between our limits and our skills, accepting challenges out of our comfort zone.
Certainly, it is not always possible to give up the convenience of fast transportation, but anyway you can choose to compensate by living an eco-friendlier holiday.
Walking tours in Italy: discover and protect the nature
If you choose Italy as destination for your holidays, you can rely on Slow Active Tours for the organization of a walk itinerary among the beauties of the "boot".
The landscape of the South of Italy is wide and various and is perfect to be explored through exciting walking tours, along picturesque paths framed by a lush vegetation, breathing the scents of the fruits and the flowers offered by nature and admiring stunning panoramas over the sea from a point reached with a bit of effort (well, it will be worth it!).
In these trekking tours you will have the opportunity to experience the beauty of nature in all its faces, from the sea to the mountain, from the countryside to the gentle hills. Step by step, following the rhythm that you will impose to yourself, you will enjoy unique emotions, breathing in deeply the pure air of these unspoiled places and feeding your mind with thoughts of freedom and light-heartedness.
A walking tour, indeed, is a true cure-all for your psycho-physic wellness: it enforces the body thanks to the physical activity (always modulated according to your resistance and to your level of training) and enrich your mind with new experiences. Moreover, travelling at a slow pace will allow you to take all the time you need to meditate in corners of absolute quiet.
The close contact with nature will let you appreciate the beauties we have on the earth, giving you a positive energy to face the challenges of daily life and to defend the environment. The Wonder Puglia tour, for example, takes place almost entirely in the beautiful Otranto-Leuca Natural Park.
A guide for the responsible traveller
Travelling in full respect for the environment is possible. There are many arrangements you can follow to give your contribution against the climate change.
Plan your activities and get the adapt equipment to make your journey zero-impact (or nearly). Here you can find the advices of Slow Active Tours for a responsible trip!
- Choose to move on foot (or by bike). An active vacation is exciting, unusual and will bring several benefits to your body and your mood. But, overall, it is eco-friendly! Give also your contribution to drastically reduce the CO2 emissions!
- Means of transportation? The public ones are better! Surely, reaching the other side of the world on foot (or by swimming?) is not so feasible, also for a matter of number of days off. But, once arrived in the travel destination, if it is not possible to move from a part to another on foot or by bike, it is definitely preferable to move with the public means. The less vehicles circulate, the less pollution will be produced!
- Choose eco-friendly receptive structures. No, we are not asking you to sleep on a mattress of dry leaves in open countryside. Unless, we mean, that is a desire of yours! All kidding aside, the big hotels generate a large environmental impact and enormous wastes per every overnight stay. The ideal would be to choose smaller structures, which have a particular attention to the waste management and do not dissipate great quantities of energy to maintain colossal buildings (that contribute also to the consumption of soil). We suggest you to stay in local “masserie”, farmhouses and very pretty family-run B&Bs, where you can rediscover the genuine traditions of the past.
- Responsibly manage your wastes. Obviously, it makes no sense to choose a green vacation if you release your wastes to the environment. But you already know it! Try to keep the disposable products to an absolute minimum. For the water, for example, you can bring with you a flask, instead of charging yourself of plastic bottles. For the rest, collect and sort your wastes: as soon as possible, you can put them into the appropriate bins!
- Eat km0 products. A self-respecting journey always includes tastings of good local food. Better if it comes from a sustainable production! For your meals choose the quality of a small producer, and, perhaps, book in a farmhouse or in a “masseria”, where you can taste delicious dishes made with seasonal zero-impact products. And so, besides the environment, also your palate will be grateful!
Choose Slow Active Tours for your active and sustainable tour: we will offer you our support before, during and after the trip!
