Sustainable travel, eco-tourism, green travel, or any of its other names is becoming more popular and for good reason: our planet needs it. Whilst exploring the world is amazing, it causes extensive damage to our ecosystems and atmosphere that can’t be sustained for much longer.
One thing that we can do is to hugely reduce our emissions whilst travelling, and a great start is by visiting sustainable-friendly countries! Here are the top 7 countries that promote sustainable tourism that you’ve got to visit one day!
1. Costa Rica
Costa Rica demonstrates some impressive stats when it comes to sustainability, and we love to see it in such a nature-rich environment! Over 25% of the country is already protected as nature conservation area, helping to protect thousands of species every year.
On top of that, Costa Rica already produce over 98% of their energy from renewable sources, with the majority coming from hydroelectric power. Their goal is to become entirely carbon neutral by 2050 and it looks like they’re on the right tracks!
As for why you absolutely need to visit Costa Rica, it’s jam-packed nature, wildlife, stunning sights, and adventure. From rainforests to white sand beaches, to perfect underwater corals, you’ve got virtually everything you need to see whatever you’d like! And, with over 500,000 species of animals, it’s one of the most biodiverse countries on the planet.
2. Italy
Italy has been developing its agrotourism industry for over 30 years now, with over 20,000 farms signed up to the initiative. This allows travellers all over the world to experience a more sustainable trip by staying on a farm, often growing, cooking, and eating all organic foods grown on the grounds!
You can find these all across the country, making it a great place to visit if you’re looking for a sustainable escape to the countryside! Italy’s got a huge variety of landscapes to explore too, anything from crystal clear waters, to snow-covered mountains, to cities filled with culture!
3. Slovenia
Slovenia is the first country in the world to have been declared in its entirety as a Green Destination of the world! Whichever direction you turn, you’ll find green in Slovenia, much as a result of the sustainable focus that the residents have.
Over 13% of the country is protected in order to preserve the natural biodiversity and many national parks. Slovenia also use nationwide, approved labels to classify sustainable establishments like restaurants and accommodations so that you can find them more easily!
Trips to Slovenia are packed full of nature, with over 34 stunning national parks. Explore mountain ranges, glossy lakes, deep green forests, and Adriatic coastline, or visit the cultural capital city of Ljubljana. And, as a bonus from the top to the bottom of the country it’ll only take you about two and a half hours in the car, helping you see more without ever needing to fly!
4. Norway
Norway is one of the most sustainable countries in the entire world. 95% of energy comes from hydropower, they have the most electric cars per capita which reduces the use of oil, and they’re on track to become climate neutral by 2030 – 2 decades before most other countries.
The country is also great for sustainable travel in particular; around 2/3s of travel companies there have implemented a sustainable development program already, and they use a range of programs like Sustainable Destination and Green Travel to make it easier for consumers to find sustainable travel routes and options.
Norway’s breath-taking landscapes make it a great place to visit too. Modern cities like Oslo, picturesque coastal towns like Bergen, mountain ranges, the Fjords, beaches, and if you’re feeling brave, the arctic circle!
5. Iceland
Icelandic nature is fragile, and the people who live there are conscious of that. Tourism has now become the nation’s largest industry, so there’s been a lot of focus on making it more sustainable. Iceland use a system called Vakinn which helps travellers to find and use organisations that operate in a sustainable and ethical way. They also have a range of carbon-capturing projects that people can donate to in order to help them grow and lower the levels of carbon in Iceland.
At this point, most people are aware of why you travel to Iceland – huge landscapes of beauty, waterfalls, lakes, glaciers, natural thermal pools, the Northern Lights, mossy mountains…the list goes on! It’s the perfect country for a nature adventure to discover some of the most unique natural sights on earth.
6. Austria
Sustainability is embedded in a lot of what Austria does, making it a great destination for a sustainable trip! Austria are European leaders in organic, farm to table farming, reducing the amount of harmful pesticides used and road miles travelled to transport food.
There’s also a big focus on reducing the carbon footprint in Austria, with car-free zones in some of the most popular cities, electrically powered buses and trams, renewable-energy-powered ski lifts, and free public shuttles to reduce traffic and car use.
Austria’s full of picturesque towns and cities like Vienna, Salzburg and Innsbruck, or head to the countryside for skiing in the winter and lake sports and mountain hikes during the summer. You won’t be short of fresh air with an Austrian getaway!
7. Sweden
This list wouldn’t be complete without Sweden, which was announced the best country in the world for sustainable tourism in 2021. Sweden have a wide range of initiatives that help it and travellers there to be more sustainable. For example, they started the flyskam (flight shaming) movement which has led to fewer domestic flights and many alternative options opening up. Sustainable lodging is also easy to find in Sweden thanks to their Nordic eco designs that rely on natural and renewable resources.
Sweden’s larger cities of Stockholm and Gothenburg are renowned for being some of the most beautiful in Europe, whilst coastal areas such as the Stockholm Archipelago provide amazingly interesting natural landscapes throughout the year. In the north, you can also explore the arctic circle and mountain regions, and if you’re lucky even catch the northern lights!
These have been the 7 sustainable countries that you should definitely visit if you’re into sustainable tourism! It plays an important role in changing the way that we all travel to protect the environment for future generations to be able to do the same. Which of these countries do you want to visit? Or, like us, ALL OF THEM!
