Sustainable holidays: what it really means and how to organise them

Organising sustainable holidays doesn't mean giving up travelling: it means choosing where, how and when with a little more care, so that the trip leaves the destination more than it takes. The reference definition is that of UN Tourism (formerly the UNWTO, the UN agency for tourism): tourism that takes full account of present and future economic, social and environmental impacts, meeting the needs of travellers, the environment and the host communities. Three pillars, then, not just the ecological one.

To see why it matters, two verified figures suffice. The study by Lenzen and colleagues published in Nature Climate Change (2018) estimates that tourism generates around 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. And the UN Tourism–International Transport Forum report presented at COP25 in Madrid (2019) attributes to tourism transport alone around 5% of human-caused CO2 emissions, a share set to grow as flows increase: UN Tourism forecasts 1.8 billion international arrivals by 2030. By far the heaviest item is transport. That's where it makes sense to start.

Cutting back on flying

How to do it, in practice? First: cut back on flying, especially on short routes, where the train is competitive in real terms (city centre to city centre) and far lighter in emissions per passenger. Italy lends itself well. You can cross Emilia-Romagna by train along the Via Emilia, tour the Langhe and the Monferrato without a car between Alba, Barolo and Canelli, or venture into eastern Sicily between Catania, Syracuse and the Val di Noto leaving the car at home. Even the deep South is reachable at a slow pace: an itinerary like Basilicata without a car in three days proves it. For longer distances, the night trains that are making a comeback across Europe replace a flight and a hotel night in one go.

Choosing when

Second: choose when. Concentrating trips into the most popular months and places means aggravating overtourism, that is, the pressure that wears down services, prices and residents. Moving to the shoulder season lightens everything: the guide on why low season pays off explains how both the traveller and the destination gain from it. And spreading visits across destinations under less pressure is the heart of the seven rules for avoiding overtourism: it isn't a sacrifice, it's often a better experience.

Choosing where

Third: choose where. Sustainability doesn't live only in cities; much of it passes through nature, provided it's visited with respect. Protected areas and well-managed parks can hold up under visitors when you stay on the trails, pick nothing and carry away every bit of rubbish. In this light, walks like those of the Three Lakes Ring and the Lavì Gorges in Valsesia, or the walks among the deer of the Bosco della Mesola, the last forest of the Po delta, work well. Beyond the border, the high Balkan mountains of Durmitor in Montenegro and the Vikos gorge in Greece offer rugged nature without the crush of the icon-parks. Lakes too can ease the pressure: instead of the most crowded ones, the romantic and quiet lakes of northern Italy are well worth it, along with the silent corner of the Hermitage of Santa Caterina del Sasso on Lake Maggiore or the lesser-known villages by the sea and lakes of Italy.

Spending on the spot

Fourth: how to spend once you've arrived. This is where the economic pillar becomes concrete. Staying in family-run places, eating local produce, buying from artisans: the money stays in the community instead of evaporating towards outside chains. A town like Gavoi, in the slow heart of the Barbagia between cheese and lake shows what this means: you go for the territory, and the territory gains from it. For accommodation, there are independent certifications recognised by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) that help you not to trust the word "green" on a homepage alone.

In short, sustainable holidays are organised by acting on four levers in order of impact: transport (less flying, more train), time (avoiding the peaks), place (destinations that can hold up under visitors) and spending (local economy). None of them requires giving up the trip. They only require choosing it better.