A travel industry ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recycle’ summer sustainability push has just a month to run with companies urged to maintain the momentum until the end of the season.
The Abta-supported Make Holidays Greener campaign is being run in conjunction with Travelife for Accommodation until September 30.
More than 110 travel firms have registered their support and shared the steps they have taken to help create better places for locals to live in and better places for holidaymakers to visit.
The summer’s campaign has highlighted initiatives that Abta members and Travelife hotels are running.
These include a project reducing food waste in hotels, a holiday clothes swap and providing customers with water bottles that filter as they re-fill to reduce the need for single-use plastic bottles.
Abta is encouraging travel companies to share an MHG infographic with customers as a way to help them ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recycle’ when they are on holiday.
Holidaymakers are being encouraged to make a holiday pledge via www.makeholidaysgreener.org.uk.
More than 1,000 sustainable holiday pledges have been made so far.
Those who register a pledge on the website by September 30 will be entered into a prize draw to win a carry-on travel bag by sustainability leaders Patagonia.
Abta destinations and sustainability director Nikki White said: “There’s still time for travel companies to get involved in this year’s Make Holidays Greener campaign and we encourage as many as possible to get involved during the final month.
“This is a great opportunity for businesses to demonstrate their sustainability credentials to holidaymakers and we have seen some excellent initiatives throughout the campaign highlighting what the industry is doing to reduce, reuse and recycle.
“There are a number of ways businesses are driving this positive change and making a real difference, whether that’s doing more to reduce food waste, switching from disposable bottles to reusable ones or inviting customers to make a holiday pledge.”
Both holidaymakers and travel companies can share their activity on social media using #MHG19.
The holiday pledges are:
- Reduce, reuse and recycle
- Organise a holiday clean up
- Look for the Travelife logo – stay at a hotel that demonstrates care for the environment and its staff
- Respect animals
- Eat local produce and buy local goods
- Go meat free
- Protect biodiversity
- Respect local customs and talk to locals in their languages
- Protect children – support local community projects and refrain from giving money to begging children or visiting orphanages
- Use local transport
- Switch off electrical devices in your accommodation when you’re not using them
- Reduce or offset your journey footprint
- Save water– reuse towels and take shorter showers
- Tell the world – tell the world about your positive holiday experiences
- Free choice – the chance to organise or suggest an activity specific to your holiday