The Future of Ethical Travel: an Interview with Tourism Concern.

Ethical Travel, from where I stand at least, certainly seems to be attracting more attention of late. Many travel companies and travellers, are becoming more involved in the discussions around Ethical, Responsible or Sustainable Travel.  I caught up with Helen Jennings of Tourism Concern in London to ask her about how things are progressing, and … Read more

Away from the Crowds in Rural Tuscany.

Rural Tuscany

I’m lucky enough to be no stranger to Tuscany. Over the past few years I’ve been able to enjoy a few visits to the region, mainly to Florence itself. This time, however, I was looking to escape the mad(ding) crowds of Renaissance masterpiece seekers in Florence, as the heat, humidity and sheer volume of people got the … Read more

Sustainable Accommodation and Travel: Why Airbnb may not be the Answer.

Image: Amsterdam Houses, Flickr/Tambako. It seems that finding sustainable accommodation, or responsible accommodation is rarely a simple task. My experience has been that it’s certainly not as easy as it should be. With a myriad of accommodation options out there for our travels, it can be hard to pick the right one, let alone be … Read more

Night Train to… Zurich.

There’s always been something that has drawn me to the sleeper train journey. Perhaps the idea of boarding in one city and waking up to the next, gently lulled to sleep by the rocking motion of the carriages on the rails. The reality of course is often a little different than in our poetic (and often nostalgic) … Read more

Voluntourism: Lessons learned from Cambodia {Part 1}.

“International volunteering or Voluntourism is when an individual volunteers their time to work for organisations or cause outside of their home country. In most cases, volunteers work in developing countries on international development programmes with local partners that address basic needs such as education, health and sanitation.Trends show that international volunteering has become increasingly popular across many countries over the … Read more

Airline Sustainability: Which Airlines are Best (and Worst)?

Featured image: Sebastian Lebrigand/Flickr Airline Sustainability As a relatively frequent flier with a couple of different airlines, I must admit that these days I find myself confused. From sitting in my seat reading about innovation in the frequent flier magazine (in this case KLM’s the Holland Herald) you would think that the green future of aviation … Read more

Travel: The Hardest Part.

“And the hardest part was letting go, not taking part…” Coldplay Setting off on my travels for 3 months, I felt many things. Fear was definitely part of it. Fear, anxiety, excitement, curiosity… but perhaps most of all: hunger.  Hunger for new experiences and a new way of looking at life.  Hunger to grow as … Read more

Carbon Offsetting: Mindful Solution or Just Good Marketing?

Should We Offset our Carbon Emissions? I’ve always viewed the idea of Carbon Offsetting with skepticism, interest and concern in almost equal quantities.  As a self-confessed travel ‘addict’, clearly the idea that we can wipe out our carbon sins is highly attractive. Two days after the end of the Paris UN Climate Talks, the commitments … Read more

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