Go Green Travel Green

We drove a Kea Campervan around New Zealand. Read our Kea Campers review to see what we liked, didn’t like, and what we’d do differently next time.

On recent trips to from Minneapolis to Dallas and Chicago, I noticed Expert Traveler security lanes are cropping up at more airports. That’s great news for savvy travelers.
But be warned — these lanes are self-select so you don’t have to be a frequent traveler to use them. Don’t be surprised to find people there who [...]

I boarded the train from Budapest to Prague without hesitation. Elizabeth and I had taken public transportation around Russia, Egypt, Turkey, and other parts of Eastern Europe. By that time, it was something I did without thinking. Little did we know, the Budapest-Prague route is not your typical train ride.

But the best part of traveling on bicycle is the opportunity to get to know the earth and her people in a much more intimate manner than any vehicle can allow…. There is something about the bikes that draws people toward us; that encourages people to reach out to us in ways they never would if we were in our own car. It might be something simple like handing us a bag of apples or tomatoes, or it could be as complex as hiding caches of Gatorade along the highway, but people of all walks of life have reached out and added magic to our lives.

The best green cruises, green cruise lines, and how to be a greener cruise passenger.

There you have it, green air travel is still a bit of an oxymoron, but you can take a few easy steps to be a more responsible traveler when flying by plane.

We took a family cruise on the Ryndam Holland America ship. Specifically we took the Alaska Inside Passage Cruise which started and ended in Vancouver and stopped in Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, and Glacier Bay National Park.

I posted about a name change on my airline ticket.. In the end, I was able to travel on that ticket without paying a fee — but it wasn’t easy. Read on to learn how to fly with your current ticket, without paying any fees, plus 5 tips for tips for flying without changing your ticket.

We list the ways to may green flights more eco friendly. You can search for green flights using search green travel, you can bring a bottle, and more.

Running on 4.5 hours of plane-quality sleep (we got sucked into Baby Mama on the flight so we didn’t rest as much as we’d hoped), we stumbled through customs, acquired pesos from a bank, and found our way to the bus stop for collectivo 86, the bus to Hostel Arrabal — all in just 30 minutes…. I sat by the window and, had it been open, I could have easily reached out and touched the people in the bus next to us. Fortunately, I was too exhausted to be afraid.

American Airlines and I have had a rocky relationship.
Their lack of communication with their alliance partner Aer Lingus meant my Ireland trip was cut short. Their refusal to hold a plane for me for 5 minutes (because my connecting American Airlines flight was 2.5 hours late due to mechanical problems) meant that Elizabeth and I [...]

Then my environmentalist side kicked in. Considering the sheer amount of plastic that comes with a single airline meal — from the Saran wrapped plastic containers and water bottles to the disposable plastic silverware and individual-size butters — maybe this isn’t such a bad thing, environmentally speaking…. Then reality set in. Are travelers more likely to pack a homemade peanut butter and jelly sandwich and bottle of water, or grab a burger, fries, and soda on their way to the gate?

Why, exactly, are nonstop flights so much better for the environment than flights with a stopover? Here are some calculations: During a 143 mile direct flight (roughly Washington, D.C. to Philadelphia, PA), 51% of fuel burned is from the taxi, takeoff, climb, and landing…. During a 1,151 mile nonstop flight (roughly Washington, D.C. to Minneapolis, MN), a plane burns about 13,896 lbs of fuel (1,819 of which come from take-off and landing).

There are lots of diagonal streets in DC, and when you combine those with the one-way streets, driving from point A to point B can be a time-consuming challenge…. I tried directions in a few different parts of DC and was unimpressed when I was told just about every time to go up a diagonal street that angled away from my final destination — even when there was another street that went straight there.

As there were 4 of us the taxi cab was only about $1 more per person; so we took the cab (that clearly operates solely for tourists: Mendenhall Glacier Cab Company )…. When we got to the Glacier he even got out of the cab and walked around with us for 10 minutes and pointed out spots where you can see salmon (during spawning season) and black bears (usually eating the salmon).

Confused about the ever-changing baggage fees airlines are tacking on? The Washington Post has you covered, with an up-to-date (for now) guide on the latest fees. Remember, always check fees with your airline of choice before booking and traveling, since fees can change over night.
Guide to Airline Baggage Fees

Airline
Baggage Charges
Overweight Bag Fees
Oversize Bag Fees
Carry-on Limit

AirTran
First: [...]

In the U.S. we’re quickly approaching the 4th of July, which conveniently falls on a Friday this year, making for a wonderful 3-day weekend. Along with millions of other Americans we’ll be celebrating Independence Day by hitting the road, driving to New York from our home base in Washington, D.C.
Because gas is now at [...]

You’ve dined on native food, sampled local wine, and explored more museums and parks that you can count. Now your trip is over and it’s time to head home, but your job as a green traveler isn’t quite finished.
As you pack your bags and map your route, here are 6 things to remember to make [...]

[A] person who rides public transportation instead of driving reduces his or her carbon dioxide output, a harmful greenhouse gas, by more than 20 lbs a day and 4,800 lbs annually. That saves more than weatherizing a home, adjusting a thermostat, switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs and replacing older appliances with higher efficiency models, [...]

[A] person who rides public transportation instead of driving reduces his or her carbon dioxide output, a harmful greenhouse gas, by more than 20 lbs a day and 4,800 lbs annually. That saves more than weatherizing a home, adjusting a thermostat, switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs and replacing older appliances with higher efficiency models, [...]

I’m a bit of an airfare search engine geek. I love searching websites and flight aggregators to try to find the cheapest plane ticket possible. As I’ve become more conscious of my environmental impact, this also means searching for nonstop flights. Unfortunately, I’ve found that many websites don’t make this easy.
As a green [...]

Ever since I moved to DC three years ago, I’ve wanted a bike. I thought it would be a fun way to commute to work. Plus, driving around here is intolerable and public transportation can be unreliable.
So I finally did it. I got an 80s blue Fuji road bike with a headlight and quick release [...]

If you already make efforts to be a “green” traveler, what does it take to be even greener? This Shades of Green Series explores various ways to step up your green travel efforts using our shades of green travel spectrum. If you’re not familiar with the spectrum, it ranges from “pea green” travelers [...]

Have you always wanted a bamboo bike, but just didn’t know where to get one? Probably not, but if you have you’re in luck - a new line will be on the market soon. I’d never even heard of a bamboo bike until someone mentioned one on my bike co-op listserv last week.
My research brought [...]

Nausea, headaches, memory loss, neurological illness, paralysis… from flying?
Indeed. When you’re on a plane, you’re likely breathing in toxic fumes from the cabin air.
According to the Daily Mail, half of the air in your plane “comes from the blisteringly hot heart of its engines… [and] once it has been cooled down, that air, together with [...]

Looking to rent a hybrid car? I wish I could say “look no further.” But unless you’re traveling to the West Coast in the U.S., you’re likely to be out of luck. Most of the big car rental companies currently don’t stock hybrids, but there are a few that do:
Of the major online [...]