​Top Tips for Sustainable Tourism

​​Culture

​​​​17th February 2017

Sustainable tourism refers to visiting a location as a tourist and doing your best to only positively impact the environment, the economy, and the society. It might seem like all of your individual choices while travelling makes little difference but, to guarantee continued sustainable tourism, good decisions must be made collectively.

Here are a few of our top tips for sustainable tourism for your travels: 

Research Where You’re Going

Looking into your destination before you go is essential for sustainable travel, as you find out all of the distances between accommodation, airport, and local amenities so that you can use public transportation as much as possible. You’ll also be able to find the best, non-stop flights, which reduce your carbon footprint: take-offs and landings create the majority of an aeroplane’s carbon emissions. This also includes researching local traditions and respecting the way that the local population lives.

Visit Local Markets

Buying local produce and souvenirs helps to promote the local economy, which leads to the creation of more jobs and the sustainability of the local population. When buying local, shops and market stalls thrive and invest the money back into each other’s shops.

Respect the Local Wildlife

A big step into sustainable tourism is to respect the local wildlife and the environment, ensuring that you don’t harass or harm the animals. When visiting conservation sites, make sure to donate in order to contribute to its continued existence. Don’t buy any products deriving from endangered or protected species, including animals and plants, to help prevent the extinction of both fauna and flora.

Tourists’ support of these organisations helps to add pressure in conserving them, which positively impacts the country you visit both short and long term.

Clean Up After Yourself

Make sure that you don’t litter when you travel! Plastic, for example, is responsible for thousands of animal deaths and disfigurements across the world as it easily gets mistaken for food or it gets trapped around an animal.

Cleaning up your litter ensures the protection of the wildlife and the people, as litter brings diseases and health concerns for the environment. And litter keeps tourists away, which has a negative impact in countries who need tourism.

Environmentally Friendly Accommodation

When travelling and visiting historic sites, staying in villas instead of staying in big chain hotels greatly reduces your impact on the environment. You experience life as a local and consume only the energy and the food you need. While staying a local villa, you will have more contact with local inhabitants and learn about their culture, improving your knowledge and deepening your respect for the country.

At Pure Crete, all of our houses are owned by local families, which means that by booking with us local communities benefit. Our local packs are supplied by local producers and we invest in streamlining every aspect of life.

We have over 20 years of experience in providing holiday villas in Crete, and offering stunning accommodation choices. Have the holiday of your dreams surrounded by local culture and beautiful landscapes!

Just book your stay with us by giving us a call on +44 (0) 1444 880 404; our friendly team is always happy to help! You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to see our latest news and updates.