40 Eco travel
PROMOTIONAL CONTENT
Accelerating the move towards flight-free travel Holidays built around experiences away from the crowds have never been more needed When the brakes went down on global travel, a new type of slow, hyper-personal holiday • trend emerged as a result, taking travellers off the beaten path by train, boat and bike. • According to the UN World Tourism Organization, tourism was responsible for at least 5% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2019. So, it’s clear that some • forms of transport are incompatible with the sustainability agenda. But with borders reopening and international travel resuming, what is next for your travel plans? It is worth noting that even before the pandemic, interest in ecofriendly holidays was on the rise. For example, travel business TUI Group reported an 84% increase in the number of its clients choosing ‘greener and fairer’ holiday packages between 2015 and 2020. Observing this trend, Cat Jones launched no-fly travel company Byway in March 2020. She said: “Even before the pandemic, there was a surge in consumer consciousness and the number of businesses being built on sustainability.
“During the first lockdown, I knew that if there was ever a time to give people a travel experience based on the fact that they aren’t flying, this was it.” In a post-Covid world, fl ight-free holidays are blossoming more than ever, and a vibrant travel ecosystem is flourishing. It is accelerating the transition to sustainable leisure travel and drawing tourists away from airport hubs suffering overtourism to the wonderful places in between, boosting local economies. With rail travel accounting for just 14g of CO 2 per passenger mile, compared to 285g for air, you could get the train from London to Edinburgh and back five times. Even then, your carbon footprint would have less of an impact than if you flew there! In fact, there’s so many fascinating places to stay in the UK and businesses are now really doing their bit for green tourism. Whether that’s using renewables, sourcing local produce or encouraging public transport use, it’s about time we celebrated the staycation. From hotels, B&Bs, campsites and glampsites that go
• In the spotlight Biostays Welcome to the world • of ecotravel and adventure. Biostays is the world’s first and leading travel website where you can book a selection of stunning and off-the-beaten-path ecohotels and ex-periences globally while also protecting the rainforests simultaneously. Join the adventure! Find out more at biostays.com
a whole lot further – there’s so many ways one can go environmentally friendly. The UK’s eco-retreats range far and wide, from Cornwall to the Highlands, or hostels to
farmhouses. Make your next trip a little bit out of the ordinary with off-grid locations, compost toilets, wood-fi red hot tubs, solar lighting, borehole water and homegrown produce. Those looking to take a breather from city life have also been turning to ‘conscious camping’, a recently coined term about camping without leaving a trace. Adventurous types have also been championing a resurgence in bikepacking, a combination of bike riding with lightweight camping. Rather
than using racks or carrying everything in a rucksack, your kit is strapped onto your bike itself, in specially designed bags. Holidays built around experiences away from the crowds have never been more needed, and lockdowns have shown us the environmental recovery that’s possible when we stop flying. So, why not discover the beauty of the world by travelling through it, rather than flying over it? by Laura Forsyth
Carrying your commitment to the environment Win the ultimate backpack bundle. Worth £270! Enter online at checklists.co.uk/win/trakke Fast fashion and our throwaway culture are burdening our planet with a growing mountain of waste. Trakke does things a little differently. Based in Glasgow, Trakke makes vegan-friendly backpacks, messenger bags and accessories that bridge the gap between fashion and function. Trakke bags are crafted from waxed canvas – a traditional fabric woven from natural fibres that are proven to stand the test of time. During production, the densely woven cotton is saturated with wax, which naturally repels water. Unlike synthetic waterproof fabrics that can degrade over time, waxed canvas can be reproofed time and time again – ensuring that Trakke bags will remain functional for many years to come. Indeed, a Trakke bag might well be the last bag you ever need. Trakke is so confident of this that it offers a lifetime guarantee – with an in-house repairs department to fi x products that need a bit of TLC. Founder, Alec Farmer, explains “it’s all about keeping our products in use for as long as possible. The majority of any product’s carbon footprint is generated during the manufacturing
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process, so we try to reduce the impact of our workshop, then spread that impact over as many years as possible. We call it ‘sustainability through longevity’”. Trakke’s repairs service offers an unexpected benefit. Repairing bags at every stage of their lifecycle means Trakke learns more about the weaknesses of any product, so can quickly update designs to prevent fl aws of the past from becoming repairs of the future and make continuously evolving products that last in an ever-changing world. Trakke produces bags in small batches that don’t follow seasonal
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trends, minimising waste. Materials and hardware are sourced from UK manufacturers, reducing transport distance and thereby overall carbon footprint. Investing in locally-made materials also helps support the manufacturing economy across the UK. Whether you’re preparing for your next adventure or trying to carry your commute, Trakke combines timeless design with
the highest quality Britishmade materials to create stylish, sustainable and durable bags that are guaranteed for life.
The ultimate backpack bundle includes: A Bannoch Backpack; Lunch Bag; Pencil Case and Key Fob. Trakke’s award-winning Bannoch Backpack is ideal for daily life or as a stylish work backpack.
Bag for life Get 10% off the entire range of backpacks, messenger bags and accessories using GREEN10 at trakke.co.uk. Follow on @trakkebags