Pledges have been made by 18 tour operators and other travel companies to inspire staff and clients on sustainable holidays as part of The Travel Foundation’s Make Holidays Greener campaign.
The Association of Independent Tour Operators, Cosmos, Kuoni, Thomas Cook, Tui Travel and companies such as Hilton Worldwide, Holiday Extras and Travel Matters have all got behind the cause, which runs throughout July starting this Saturday.
Pledges include Thomas Cook’s committment to use the Travel Foundation’s Greener Excursions tool to assess the sustainability of excursions in its charter destinations and Cosmos’ decision to involve its staff in a Go Greener Holidays quiz.
Aito is collecting top tips from its operator members to help holidaymakers link to local experiences associated with food, culture and history, to improve their holiday experience. The tips will be displayed on makeholidaysgreener.org.uk.
Kuoni will raise awareness of greener holidays through social media, with tips and travel inspiraion on tweets, blogs and Facebook posts during July.
The Travel Foundation urged travel agents as well as operators, tourist boards, hotels, airlines and car hire firms to get involved in the campaign by pledging their support and raising awareness of “green” holidays among their clients.
Its website offers posters to display in offices and shops and information on running training workshops for staff and competitions for customers.
Salli Felton, acting chief executive, said: “This year we want to raise awareness about the things that make holidays special – local culture, local delicacies and souvenirs, local history, the environment and above all, local people.”
Ideas for pledges are listed on the Travel Foundation’s website.