Green Holidays

Imagine living on a train for nearly 3 weeks - watching the most expansive and amazing landscape pass you by.

That is just what you can do on-board a Trans-Siberian Railway, traveling from St Petersburg in western Russia across one of the most remote places on earth and through to Beijing in far eastern China.

Travelling by train is known to be one of the most environmentally friendly methods of transport – emitting low levels of carbon emissions per passenger than cars and planes – so why not give it a try?

It is also in line with the new thinking that the journey should be part of the holiday itself, rather than something to be endured until you arrive at your destination. And this is certainly one of the best ways to try out this new way of thinking.

Why does it take so long?
Well you are travelling over 10,000 kilometers, through 3 massive countries and 7 different time zones – so unless you want to just sit on the train day and night for about 6 days without getting off or seeing anything along the way – then it’s at least 2 weeks worth of train ride!

Generally, your ticket will allow you to get off and on again at many stops along the way to enjoy the culture or to stay in local hotels or home-stays along the route, and there are several different train companies that follow the route across country.

Many people stop over at Ulaan Baatar to sample nomadic life in the ‘gers’ or ‘yurts’, or to teach English in schools, before completing the journey to China, and Real GAP and STA travel offer these options as part of their packages to Mongolia, as booking the St Petersburg to Beijing route means a change of trains in Mongolia’s capital – Ulaan Baatar. Perfect for those volunteer packages!

Train fares can be as little as £250 single, but as much as £1300 if you go as part of a package – which usually includes travelling with a loose group of people along the route. Great for having a fun time, but maybe a bit limiting – I mean if you are speaking to people in your own language – when will you practice your Russian or Chinese?

Going it alone can often mean that you get more stops and take a little longer on the journey – and are more likely to mix with the locals along the way – making the experience a whole lot more enjoyable!

Responsible Travel offer this route – taking 18 days to explore the areas, and only costing just under £1200 – plus your local payments. Needless to say this trip is one of the most sustainable and ethical versions of the trip – using local services and foods throughout – although you could equal this by travelling independently and researching each destination in advance.

The Return Journey.
However, if you are taking the most eco-friendly route there – how can you match it apart from using the same train to some home? That’s at least a 5 week trek even before you have really dome anything!

If you are planning to travel all the way the the far east – then you may as well make the most of it. Why not set up a much longer tour of the whole region, taking in Japan or south to Vietnam and Indonesia. And if you have ever fancied Australia – why not take the bus and a short boat ride across the the great continent and take a month or so to explore!

I know it all sounds a bit expensive – but many of these tour companies can offer paid positions all the way down and even in Australia and New Zealand. Why not look into some of these when you are planning your great green train ride adventure!

Great tips on how to minimise your traveling ‘footprint’ in fragile or little visited locations.

We all love traveling to isolated, pristine environments where we can experience nature as it was meant to be.  We don’t want giant hotels standing on the beaches, or wide, busy roads leading into the wilderness – but if you want to go somewhere special – you need to take precautions.

I’m not talking about those for your own safety and health while traveling – I’m referring to the impact you will have on those environments.  And how you could ruin them before anyone else has had a chance to enjoy them – sometimes without even meaning to!

Here are some simple tips to make sure you really do ‘take only photos and leave only footprints’!

Keep Erosion To A Minimum:
When hiking through delicate ecosystems, try to keep to the paths to avoid damaging plants unnecessarily.  If people all start to walk side by side just because there is room to do so, the path eats away into the location – and can only get wider each time. 

Also, if enough plant material is trampled when you take a short cut, others who visit later may think it is an actual path, and start to enlarge the route – damaging more land.

Pitch Your Tent Eco-Wisely:
Choose a site for your tent that doesn’t cover native plants or flowers.  Always try to find a sandy or un-vegetated area to settle your ground sheet – otherwise you could be squashing or killing delicate ecosystems or slow-growing wild flowers.

In addition, don’t settle somewhere that is too close to water as you could prevent shy animals from approaching their water source.  Or get your belongings washed away after heavy rain!

Deposit Your ‘Waste’ With Care:
If you are outdoors long enough to need to ‘go’ then make sure you are sensible with your choice – and make sure you are off the main path! (however, this isn’t an excuse to violate ’rule 1′). 

In hot climates, make sure it is buried several inches underground – and to the lower edge of the path.  In rocky regions cover it with leaf litter or rocks, and make sure you don’t leave your toilet paper in the wind!  Either burn it or better still take it away with you – as with feminine hygiene products and dispose of in a bin!

Don’t Pollute Rivers:
Goes as an ‘obvious’ really – but not many people take biodegradable eco-friendly soaps and shampoos with them when camping!  Let alone washing up or cleaning products!

Also, try not to use them in the watercourse itself.  Ideally use a bucket or similar, then throw the waste water into the ground away from the stream or lake, so the ground can absorb most of the chemicals instead.

Depending on where you are and in what country – make sure that you don’t upset local communities by splashing around in water that they use for drinking or are trying to fish in – otherwise you could cause possible friction in the future for other tourists in the area.

Cooking Over Flames:
When thinking of starting a campfire – make sure you are legally allowed to do so – never assume that you can start one anywhere as they are by no means harmless!  And never leave a burning fire unattended.

Ideally, you would use an area that is already burned, or an area that is not covered in plant materials either dead or alive – dry or dead plants can act as fuel across the ground.  And make sure nothing is overhanging so make sure it doesn’t heat up and burn.

Only use fallen branches and wood for fuel – rather than dead branches still on trees – they act as an important natural habitat for birds, insects and mammals.  Also, don’t make it larger than you need as wood is a valuable resource in many communities.

Happy Camping!

This year – 2009 – will see the Worlds 3rd ever Earth Hour. This years attempt is planning to cover entire countries across the globe in swathes of darkness. This will put across the massive statement that there are thousands of people in all the countries – joined together to make a big difference.

Since it’s humble beginnings in Sydney, Australia in 2007 – the Earth Hour has been gaining ground and this years event is hoping to get over 1 billion people to sign up – saying that they agree with the very concept of the Earth Hour. It’s aim is to ‘send a message to World Governments that they must take action to help avoid Climate Change’.

Why So Important?
At the end of 2009 in Copenhagen, the UN Climate Change Summit will take place, and WWF are hoping that this massive event will have an impact on topics raised and policies discussed by the heads of nations. This Summit is going to decide on future International Climate Policy – so really it is the planets ‘Moment of Truth’.

We are already seeing signs of that change across the world in the flooding and diseases affecting corners of the globe – freak weather, sea-level rises and warming temperatures are all impacting on peoples lives, and it will only get worse. 

And where ever on Earth you are taking your green holiday – you must join in – otherwise the very place you are visiting could suffer in the years to come!

What Can You Do?
If you plan to take part, make sure you register and get everyone you know to register too. Although just turning out your lights for the entire hour will show others you are involved, you will not count towards the actual recorded movement as the WWF will not know that you took part. There will be no written record of the part you played.

Last year 50 million people signed up, but many more joined in, but went uncounted. If this years Earth Hour is to reach 1 billion, you must sign up and be counted.

Wherever you are in the world you can make a difference, and every time zone has it’s moment on the global stage – it’s hour of darkness. Like a giant Mexican wave passing around the planet – at 8.30pm wherever you are – you will join others from the very north to the very south of Earth in blanking out the night skies for 60 minutes.

There are national and local events being organised if are not in your home town and want to get involved with the community where you are – or you might get to see a famous landmark plunged into darkness if you change your travel plans to be in a big city on the night! Imagine Sydney Harbour Bridge disappearing from the harbour side glow – or the Golden Gate Bridge on the other side of the world plunging into shadow!

Maybe you will be flying high over a country at the crucial time and you will get to see the stark contrast the Earth Hour has on the worlds surface as you cross from one time zone to the next – from bright to dark in a solid line across the horizon!

Next Step:
Go to the WWF Earth Hour web-page and get all the facts. Make sure you sign up to show your support and to get details of international events and how you can help.

Make sure you involve others in your plans – as the more people you can get to attend your events – the less people will be at home at 8.30pm with their lights on!
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