UK tourists are “more aware” of issue of sustainability than European travellers and want to make greener holiday choices, according to research published by London bus tour operator Tootbus.
Of the 3,113 people polled, 69% of UK travellers said they had heard about the concept of sustainable travel, with 41% claiming they had “a strong understanding” of the subject.
In contrast, 32% of respondents in France said they had heard of sustainable travel and 29% in Belgium.
Around 77% of Brits said they understood that sustainable tourism came with an additional cost.
When questioned about city breaks, Brits said they were more likely to book with an operator that is environmentally aware than Europeans, with 86% responding this way.
For short city breaks, around 49% of Brits polled said preserving the environment in their chosen holiday destination was “very important”, while 42% of the French and 37% of the Belgians who were quizzed agreeing with this statement.
Tootbus UK managing director, Gavin Brooking, said: “What our survey has discovered is that Britons are much more aware of sustainability and want to make them part of their holiday choices.
“But I’d like to see how far they are willing to push that awareness and desire with tourism operators. Are they ready to boycott non-green operators, especially when taking cost into account?
“We need to start seeing real, tangible actions, even if it incurs a slightly higher cost, in order to ignite real, positive change.”
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