Sustainability
Why Responsible Travel matters
Travelling has always been a big part of our lives, way before we started Trailwise. While walking in the Himalaya, Canada or the Alps, we met new friends, heard old stories and found some of our favourite places on the planet. These are experiences we wouldn't want to miss - and yet, we are aware that travel has increasingly shifted into focus for its negative impact on the environment.
An uncomfortable truth
Tourism produces about 8% of global emissions. It contributes to the climate crisis, overdevelopment and degradation of fragile environments. (read more). Recognising this meant taking on a fundamental challenge as a fledgling travel company: how can we promote holidays in some of Europe’s most fragile natural environments while ensuring that the impact we leave on those places - and on the people living and working there - would be a positive one?
If you tread, tread lightly
We believe that there are three main obstacles to people travelling in a more sustainable way: Lack of time, the fear that you’re not ‘green’ enough and expected additional expenses. Trust me, we have been there!
That’s why we have made our approach as simple as possible. We put in the work and the research to give you straightforward options to make your trip more sustainable. And all you need to do is pick and choose how you would like to help the planet with your holiday. The great thing is that it doesn’t need to be perfect - any commitment is a win already!
And this includes us, too, of course: We wouldn’t ask you to do your part without making the first step ourselves. We can’t claim that we have it all sussed out just yet, but we’re learning and changing to get things as right as possible - so if you have great ideas and best-practice-examples, do get in touch if you’d like to share!
Have a look at some of the big and small ways in which Trailwise holidays aim to create a friendlier, more responsible way of travel:
1. Environmental Responsibility
Our walking holidays are by definition already fairly “green”, but of course, there is lots we can do to keep our footprint on this planet as small as possible:
Low carbon travel:
Our team aims to reduce air travel as much as we can (yes, we have learned to love Europe’s rail network), and offset our flights where we can’t avoid it. The majority of our holidays rely on your feet or public transport - both great for the environment - and for those holidays that require a car, we give you the option of booking an electric vehicle. Make use of our free train booking service and ask us any questions you have on how to travel to and from your trip on public transport.
Reduce waste and single use plastic:
In our office, we keep increasing sustainable swaps such as recycled paper and cardboard storage, while reducing and recycling our waste. We have carefully chosen the elements of our travel packs, keeping a balance between sturdiness and sustainability (e.g. with our pack pockets made from 90% recycled materials). If you want to cut down on paper even further, choose our digital travel pack. And we’re delighted to be adding our little Deuter dirtbag to your pack, to pick up and pack in any rubbish you find on the trails!
Be kind to the environment you’re walking in:
Our travel packs contain many tips and ideas on how to reduce your impact on the environment whilst out on your walk, e.g. by staying on paths and planning ahead. Small things that make a difference if we all stick to them! In addition, we regularly round up our clients’ donations to conservation projects and ensure that all our team are members of the Austrian Alpine Club, supporting an organisation that plays a huge role in maintaining the network of paths and huts in the Alps- something that you could do as well!
2. Economic Responsibility
Money spent wisely can do good things. Tourism can bring economic benefits to local business and people if we make the decision to support them - rather than big international corporations - with our bookings and purchases.
Supporting local businesses:
For your holiday, we will prioritise small and independent hotels and guesthouses which will allow you to get a real feel for the location. Many of our trips promote stays of multiple nights in one location which means better value for local businesses, and less stress for you!
Supporting local businesses also means paying a fair price for their services. This is why we don’t usually offer sales or discounts on our holidays - we believe they already provide great value for money!
Buy local produce:
This is something that we LOVE doing while out on the trail. Nothing better than feasting on local delicacies: try whatever fruit is growing just now, ask the bakery what they would recommend today and eat your way through Alpine cheeses because they’re the best anyway. And all of this will save on food miles, support local farmers and taste delicious!
3. Social Responsibility
Meeting new people is a huge part of travelling. The exchange between different cultures can be hugely beneficial for everyone when we welcome the experience with open arms.
Learn the language:
Learning at least a few phrases in the language spoken in your destination shows respect towards your hosts and is a wonderful opening to interesting conversations. We’ll make this easy for you by including a handy dictionary in your travel pack!
When in Rome (or Chamonix…):
We are always respectful of local customs and how things are done - there is so much to learn and embracing a different way of life is truly what it means to be on holidays. We give you pointers in your travel pack, e.g.what to expect from a hut stay, and we invite you to enjoy the ride!
4. Your turn: Up-green your Trailwise holiday
For climate protection reasons, avoiding carbon emissions has No. 1 priority. If this is not possible, they should be reduced to a minimum and any unavoidable emissions offset through qualified climate protection projects. Here is how we help:
Make use of our free rail journey planning service: Check with us to see how you could reach your holiday by public transport and book your tickets through us to save time, money and the planet.
If arriving by train isn’t an option for you, offset the carbon emissions of your air travel through Atmosfair, an independent and highly acclaimed German non-profit organisation.
If you choose to book 2 of our holidays back-to-back, thus cutting down on emission-heavy travel to your trip, enjoy a 5% discount on your second trip.
If you are interested in one of our Drive & Hike trips, why not consider hiring an electric vehicle for your holiday?
As travellers, we benefit from our beautiful destinations and the local infrastructure and conservation efforts put in to preserve them.
We therefore - invite you to consider making a small - or bigger - donation to the WWF European Alpine Programme which coordinates WWF’s conservation work across the Alpine ecoregion. Regardless of the amount, we will always round up your donation to the next fiver!
Reducing waste is another great way of keeping things nice and green.
Go (almost) paper-free! If you’re not fussed about receiving a printed version of your travel pack, let us know and we’ll send you a digital copy only. But of course you will still receive our guidebook and maps as usual!
Other things you might choose to do:
When packing for a holiday, it’s always tempting to upgrade your kit with some shiny new items. We’d always recommend checking first whether you can repair old kit or get equipment second-hand. If that’s not possible, there are a lot of amazing sustainable outdoor brands out there, such as Patagonia, Vaude, Kathmandu, Rab or Alpkit, which make it easy to do good while purchasing new gear!
We can also recommend becoming a member of the Austrian Alpine Club. This not only gives you mountain Rescue and Repatriation Service, but also access to training courses and cheaper accommodation at some Alpine Club huts. And you are obviously supporting an organisation that plays a big part in making the Alps accessible for us by keeping huts, footpaths and other infrastructure in good shape.
Sustainable travel is a big thing to achieve. The solution is not just on you or us. But we are determined to do our part and we invite you to do yours as well - if one of us wins, we all win. Thank you!