We design every aspect of your trip around you — and that includes helping you travel responsibly.
We’ve been granted B CorpTM certification, as well as Travelife Partner status, in recognition of our commitment to responsible travel. That means you can be confident that our specialists will advise you on the best responsible travel choices for you, from the experiences you have to the places you stay and how you get around.
There are also plenty of things you can do before and during your trip to make it more responsible. Our specialists share their ideas below.
Choosing your trip
Choosing where to go for a more responsible trip
Choosing where to go for a more responsible trip
By Sabrina, Global Sustainability Manager
When deciding where to go on your travels, it’s worth considering areas away from the crowds. It’s tempting to focus on the highlights, but when too many people visit the same spots, it can strain local resources, damage environments, and change the character of the communities that live there.
Quieter regions often offer just as much character, and they give you the chance to see authentic everyday life without the rush. Choosing to travel to lesser-visited places also means the money you spend is more likely to support smaller locales that rarely see visitors.
As inspiration, we’ve put together some trip ideas for places and experiences a little more under the radar. You could head north in Japan to Tohoku, where mountain roads lead to hot springs and traditional ryokan inns. In Italy, Umbria rivals Tuscany for its hilltop towns, vineyards, and Renaissance masterworks but with much less fanfare (or visitors), and you can pair the two regions on this driving trip. And, in India, Sariska National Park’s forests provide a quieter alternative to Ranthambore and the Golden Triangle, while still leaving time for sunrise at the Taj Mahal.
Deciding when to travel
By Natasha, Africa safari specialist
There are obvious benefits to visiting a destination outside its busiest months — sights are less crowded, you have a wider choice of places to stay, and it often represents the best value. But, what I hadn’t appreciated until more recently is that it also helps the local economy.
If more people travel outside peak times, local businesses and communities benefit from visitors all year, rather than competing to make all their money in the same few months. And, you don’t have to compromise on your experience — your specialist will know what your destination is like throughout the year and can help you make the most of whichever month(s) you visit in.
Choosing a more responsible stay
By Anna, South America specialist
Choosing a more sustainable place to stay is one of the simplest ways to travel more responsibly. A property’s size doesn’t automatically make it sustainable. However, I’ve often found it’s the smaller, family-run stays that do more to give back to the community, and they can offer you a far more intimate experience than larger resorts. In certain destinations, you could also choose to stay at ecolodges, nature-focused properties that have been specifically designed to have minimal environmental impact.
At Audley Travel, we hand-pick places to stay for their character, service, and facilities, but also for following responsible travel practices. It might be that they support their local wildlife, are locally owned, or work hard to ensure they have a minimal impact on nature. It means that, if responsible travel is an important consideration for your trip, we can suggest options for the route you’re taking.
Carbon offsetting your trip
By Bex, from our Southeast Asia team
You can mitigate your carbon footprint by choosing to carbon offset your trips. In a nutshell, carbon offsetting funds projects that work to reduce or prevent emissions elsewhere in the world. Projects vary, but could involve contributing to clean energy technologies, reforestation, or conservation efforts.
We give you the choice to offset the flights you take during your trip. When you book, your specialist will confirm the cost of offsetting your specific flight routes, which is based on fixed rates for each route calculated by our carbon offsetting provider, Climate Impact Partners, a specialist in voluntary carbon market solutions.
As a business, we also offset our own operational and business travel emissions.
Advice for while you travel
Interacting with local communities
By Sabrina, Global Sustainability Manager
Responsible travel is not only about sustaining the environment but also respecting the places you’re visiting and the communities that live there.
- Be respectful of privacy by asking before you take photos or videos of people or sensitive sites.
- Abide by local customs and traditions wherever you go — your specialist can provide practical advice.
- Avoid visiting in-session schools, orphanages, or other establishments for children. We advise against buying from children or giving them gifts, as well as taking images of them without consent from their parent or guardian.
- Choose local businesses to help keep your money in the local economy. Your guides can advise you on where to go to support the community directly.
- Barter thoughtfully, keeping in mind that small amounts can often mean a lot to vendors. Different cultures also have different attitudes toward tipping and bartering — your travel documents will provide details, or you can ask your guide for advice on the etiquette.
- Be mindful when buying souvenirs. Relics and products that harm the environment, people, or wildlife could be illegal.
Using reusable water bottles on your trip
By Sabrina, Global Sustainability Manager
We know that plastic bottles are one of the biggest offenders when it comes to single-use plastic, particularly in countries where tap water isn’t deemed safe to drink. So, we encourage you, as we do ourselves, to bring and use your own reusable water bottles whenever you travel. We also encourage you to refuse single-use bottles whenever possible.
Some hotels may offer you a reusable water bottle as a gift, but don’t feel pressured to accept it if you already have one. That said, we’re always on the lookout for hotels that are doing a great job of reducing plastic waste, so we’d love to hear feedback from your stays.
If you don’t already have a reusable bottle, you can buy one from our partner Water-to-Go, offering all clients a 20% discount on reusable water bottles and replacement filters by using the code “AUDLEY20”.
On top of that, 10% of every purchase will be donated to Take 3 for the Sea, one of the charities we support through the Audley Travel for Good Fund.
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