Can I still be on the plane? Or travel to the overcrowded Venice? Are cruises a form of vacation that should not exist? Do I only have to travel by train? Ever since the Swedish student Greta Thunberg started the demonstrations "Fridays for Future", the discussion in families has become more relevant than ever.
No question: for the climate, nature, the environment, it is probably best if we spend our holidays on the balcony or at the place of residence. But that need not be. The so-called gentle tourism takes into consideration - also on the people in our holiday countries. And where guests are hosted and welcomed, there are also opportunities: jobs, earnings, development.
In the photo gallery we give tips on how a holiday can be as sustainable as possible:
photo gallery
11 pictures
Tips: How to make you feel greenerFor example, around 130 tour operators have come together in the forum Forum Anders Reisen to be "friendly to the environment and fair to the local people". In an interview with SPIEGEL, Managing Director Petra Thomas talks about what matters when planning a holiday:
Who moans at home over the overflowing yellow sack, the despair seized in the plane: A plastic cup, a plastic stirring rod, a Tetrapak, a plastic straw, a plastic packaging for the plastic straw, a paper napkin, a Pfefferbriefchen and a Salzbriefchen - that remains alone when eating of compulsory tomato juice next to a water left over. Claus Hecking has thought about what passengers can do to avoid waste in the air :
Do not fly anymore? Is that possible? What would be an extreme restriction for many, Meike Lobo is not difficult: "I no longer fly, because the climate crisis in my neck," she writes, flying is absolutely optional for her. Where the author now likes to spend her free time, she tells:
The cruise industry is often scolded - and indeed there is still much to do before the floating hotels can be considered environmentally friendly. Zero emission and climate neutrality, after all, the industry has set itself for the future, and some shipping companies are on their way with new high-tech ships. The use of liquefied natural gas LNG is a first step, the next would probably be the use of fuel cells or hydrogen.
The Norwegian Hurtigruten has just had the "Roald Amundsen" put to sea - after all, the hybrid ship can drive for half an hour on battery. Julia Stanek was on board:
However, at home it is still on ... most environmentally friendly. But do not panic, it can also be adventurous around big cities. It always depends on how you define "adventure". And a night in a sleeping bag can be exciting somewhere in a meadow in the Pampa. The followers of the micro-adventure movement are creative - and tell us what matters.
The most liveable city, the most expensive, the most popular - for many, rankings are created, even for the most sustainable cities . In number one to six of the Global Destination Sustainability Index 2019, Scandinavian cities, including Copenhagen , are in second place. The Danish capital, like Venice, Lisbon and Barcelona, is now suffering from overtourism, but wants to cope with the sustainability strategy "Tourism for good". Here are Copenhagen's green highlights - not just for hipsters.
Eco-vacation means abandonment? Not at all. Tree houses in Picardy, floating houses in the Franche-Comté region, design accommodation in Amsterdam or a finca in Andalusia - does that sound like simple hotels? In her illustrated book "Bon Voyage" Clara Le Fort has gathered more than 50 accommodations under the theme "The most beautiful boutique hotels for conscious travel ". Here is the book presentation.
To be sustainable and provide regional services, restaurants, farmers and manufactories also strive to do this. In the north of Germany, many have joined forces with the Genussverein Feinheimisch . Antje Blinda and Anne Martin met the chairman, restaurant manager Oliver Ferla, and rose jam maker Sven Jacobsen: