Let’s face it – we love to travel.  Navigating the endless alleyways of a Middle Eastern bazaar, diving into an island’s turquoise waters alongside a pod of dolphins, and strolling the cobblestone streets of some ancient city while indulging in our third scoop of gelato (hey, we’re on vacation!) give us the sense that time has ceased and that we’re on the cusp of achieving pure bliss (usually compounded by the fact that we’re not staring at a computer screen counting the secondhand as it ticks down to 5pm).  “Ah,” we sigh to ourselves.  “This is what we live for.  These few precious moments when we stop worrying about our daily routine, and simply…be.” 

Indeed, with 880 million international tourist arrivals in 2009¹, it’s clear that crossing the globe has never been easier.  But with your average plane producing 244 lbs of carbon for each mile that it flies and your average cruise ship passenger accountable for over 7 lbs of waste per day², it is also clear that all of this trekking can be hard on the environment.  So, should we just throw in the towel and limit our travel to work, the gym, and home? 

The Green Globetrotter thinks not!  You see, travel and tourism are still a vital part of the global economy.  Many communities and even entire countries depend on tourists for income and job generation.  And, despite the numbers above, it’s been proven that tourism can even be a catalyst for conservation and sustainability.  What’s the solution, then, you ask?  Simple.  Travel smart, travel green^TM.  That’s our motto, and we’d like it to be yours, too. 

But what exactly is green travel, and how does one do it?  Head to our introduction page to find out…

¹U.S. Travel Association   ²Our Planet (UNEP), Vol. 10, No. 3, 1999