Sustainable Travel

Sustainable travel is becoming an incredibly important factor for many travellers when planning trips. The way we live, work and enjoy ourselves has a lasting impact on the planet. It is vital that we think deeply about the ways we choose to see the world. Deciding to travel responsibly and sustainably is the way forward for the future of travel! At Expat Explore we value responsible travel and are committed to exploring the world consciously and kindly. We are proud to make responsible travel possible with a number of our sustainable travel practices! 

Sustainable travel is all about aiming to have a positive long-term impact on the destinations, environments, communities and local economies that we interact with on our travels. Expat Explore group tours can help you travel more sustainably in a variety of ways; from the benefits of group coach tours to supporting local products, projects and enterprises. 

1. Coach travel is one of the most sustainable forms of transportation around

By hopping aboard one of the Expat Explore coaches, you’ll be doing your part for the environment! Travelling by coach has one of the least harmful impacts on the environment when compared to other modes of transport (excluding walking and cycling). Expat Explore’s European coaches are modern, low emission vehicles that offer a great way to travel responsibly and sustainably. These coaches are EURO 5 or above which means that the engines are optimised for lower emissions and reduced fuel consumption. Many European cities only allow EURO 5 or 6 vehicles on the road in order to curb harmful emissions. 

We know that group travel is #BetterTogether. Group coach travel is also better for the environment as it allows groups to travel together on one vehicle instead of several smaller groups hiring and driving several cars. Cars may use less fuel individually, however, they are limited in the number of people they can transport. On average, a coach can take up to 50 cars off the road! Larger groups of people on one, greener vehicle (as opposed to many vehicles) is a more sustainable way to travel. It contributes to less congestion and fewer carbon emissions - especially in places like city centres which are notorious for traffic!

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2. Rail travel is the greenest mode of transport

Just ahead of coach travel, travelling by train is the greenest choice you can make! Expat Explore’s rail tours enable you to see incredible parts of Europe by train. Rail travel is the most environmentally friendly form of public transport as it contributes the lowest amounts to general carbon transport emissions. 

Similar to coach travel, when you travel by rail, it means a large group of people use one form of transport leading to lower carbon emissions per passenger. Better yet, travel by electric train or high-speed train for great low-emission public transport options!

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3. We “go local” as much as we can

Supporting local businesses and communities by spending money locally is one of the best (and easiest!) ways to support sustainable travel and tourism.  You can do this by visiting local restaurants, supporting local enterprises and buying locally made items like clothes and souvenirs. Expat Explore “goes local” as much as we can on tour!  

Our team makes a huge effort to use local guides in a large number of the cities that we visit. You can enjoy locally guided tours in all of these cities: Agrigento, Alberobello, Amalfi, Belfast, Belgrade, Berlin, Bucharest, Budapest, Copenhagen, Delphi, Athens, Dubrovnik, Florence, Granada, Helsinki, Iasi, Kyiv, Krakow, Ljubljana, Lyon, Mykonos, Ohrid, Oslo, Oxford, Palermo, Pompeii, Porto, Prague, Rome, Sarajevo, Seville, Sicily, Sofia, Sorrento, Stockholm, Tallinn, Valencia, Vienna, Warsaw, Zaragoza.  

We also offer a number of exciting local experiences. Look forward to activities like in-depth walking tours, museum visits, local food tastings, cultural evenings and much more! Overall, Expat Explore offers over 80 local experiences and 65 local restaurants in locations across Europe; from smaller villages and towns to big cities.

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4. We encourage our travellers to make sustainable choices on tour

Having been in the travel business for 15+ years, we understand how small actions can make a big impact on the future! This is why we encourage our travellers to make sustainable choices while on tour with us. 

Some small actions you can take that will make a big difference include: recycling while visiting new destinations, packing reusable items such as water bottles, coffee travel mugs, shopping bags, metal or bamboo straws and bamboo cutlery (this helps avoid single-use plastics), and making use of zero waste toiletries where possible. While they may seem like little changes, these small actions can have a large impact on responsible travel!

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5. Relate is a sustainability project we support in South Africa

Relate is a South African based not-for-profit organisation that Expat Explore supports. The group aims to help those less fortunate create better lives for themselves through a variety of fundraising initiatives. On our South Africa tours, each passenger will receive an Expat Explore branded Relate bracelet. We donate the cost of these bracelets to our chosen Relate charity: the Nelson Mandela School Library Project. This group has raised millions of rands for worthwhile causes since its launch in 2010! Read more about Relate here.