Traveling

CONTENTS

Travel Tips & Organization

Through the years of traveling and research, we have compiled plenty of tips and tricks that help with stress-free and eco-friendly adventuring! Within this Traveling page, you’ll have many of our trip planning resources, notes, and templates right at your fingertips. Below you will find travel guides for four different styles of travel: backpacking, camping, RVing, and vacation rentals.

Our mission is to help you plan strategic trips so your next vacation is full of authentic adventure, not overwhelming!! We have a high focus on ecotourism and promoting the best ways to travel in an eco-friendly manner.

Disclosure: Please note that some links below are affiliate links. This simply means that if you click on the link provided and purchase the item, we may earn a (very small) commission from the seller. This is no extra cost to you. We are super grateful to those of you who support our brand by the usage of our affiliate links. This helps us fund this website and continue to add more content.

TRAVEL TRIP TYPES

Whether you enjoy going backpacking, camping, or RVing, or if you prefer vacation rentals and hotels, you will find our favorite go-to links to get you started with making trip plans!

TOP CAMPING & RVING ARTICLES

ECO-TRAVEL PLANNING

Ecotourism conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people. We have a deep appreciation for our planet and take pride in exploring it with respect. We want to share the best practices for how to travel with ecotourism in mind. You’ll also have a chance to receive several customizable and printable planning templates to help you begin your adventure. Everyone’s travel style and needs are unique, so keep that in mind when reading our notes. We ask that you consider how they can be applied or changed to fit your specific travel needs. Whether you are an extensive planner or a “show up and see how things go”, there are a few things you need to think about ahead of time regardless.

DESTINATION

• Will you stay in multiple locations during your trip? This can help break up a long drive.
• If you can, try to spend more time in one area vs rushing around a whole state, country, or region.
• Staying close to home or only driving a few hours or so is the greenest form of exploring. If you must fly, consider flying to a less popular location. For example, instead of visiting Venice, Italy, look into Slovenia! Many areas of Slovenia offer the same experiences and sites as Venice but aren’t overcrowded and polluted.
• Are you going backpacking, camping, or RVing? Or do you live the van life? Support the park systems by picking your destination based on where national and state park/forest campgrounds are located.

DATES & WEATHER

When will you be traveling? How long will you be gone? Is this a busy time of year for where you are headed? Try choosing the “off-season” if possible! What is the average temperature during this time of the year?

• What time a year is it in this region of the world? If kids are off school or it’s the prime weather to experience, consider going a bit earlier or even later after this popular season is over.
• Think about the season- will it be rainy, hot and humid, cold and snowy, etc? Will you see flowers bloom, fall color change, animals migrating, or a festival celebration? Could a several-day tropical storm roll in while you’re visiting? What about a wildfire? Do you have alternate plans if this occurs?
• Pay attention to what the weather is like in the mornings, daytime, and evenings. In many places, you’ll see a major temperature drop once the sun goes down.

ACCOMMODATION

Where will you sleep at night? Do you need reservations? Consider choosing an accommodation that is already contributing to carbon footprint reduction- like an eco-lodge, luxury eco-hotel, or tiny house. Places that implement sustainable ways like reducing the number of times bedding and towels are washed, using renewable resources, or installing energy-efficient appliances and light fixtures.

• View the company’s website to check if they have a sustainability mission and any third-party certifications or verifications.
• Consider renting locally owned accommodations like a bed & breakfast, hostel, or Airbnb.
• Check out local campgrounds to camp or rent cabins. Or better yet, camp off-grid in the backcountry!
• If you’re looking into a cruise, find economically efficient small ships- like charters that use their proceeds to help causes.
• Regardless of where you stay, be conscious of your energy use.

TRANSPORTATION

Nowadays, understanding your carbon footprint is super important. The means of transportation vary greatly, and this can be very beneficial to travelers. Can you travel by bike, bus, train, car, or boat? Or do you need to fly? According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 29% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions account just from transportation. And depressingly, the world’s average isn’t much lower than that. Leisure transportation is contributing to this percentage.

• When vacationing close to home, choose driving, taking a charter bus, or riding on a train before booking a flight.
• If you traveling overseas or along a water source, check out what boats or ferries that might be available.
• Airplanes should be your last choice, but, If you do fly, choose economy over first-class and direct flights.
• If you use a rental car, choose a small, economy-size vehicle with good gas mileage. Or ask about their electric car selection. Instead of using a big-chain company try looking up a car-sharing marketplace like Turo to see if you can rent your car from a local person.
• Once you arrive at your destination, choose to walk, run, or rent a bike. Consider using public transportation like buses, streetcars, or the subway. Check to see if there are bike or water taxis.
• Do some research and find out what local transportation is supplied by nuclear or renewable energy instead of coal. Choose electric vehicles and electric railways if they are an option!

EXPERIENCES & DINING

Start with a tentative list of “to do/to see” things. Research the “must-dos” and “must-sees” before you go but save extra time for off the beaten path things. Engage in activities that take environmental and social impact into consideration. Also, consider what you plan to eat while you’re there. Choose locally-owned restaurants, farm stands, and street vendors.

• Book with local organizations and non-profits that help fight for conservation, preservation, and education.
• Consider visiting wildlife conservations, refuges, preserves, and sanctuaries.
• Educate yourself at the local historical sites, monuments, and museums.
• Entertain yourself at local festivals, theater productions, dances performances, and live music events.
• Explore protected land like national parks, forests, landmarks, and recreation areas. Or try state, city, or county parks.

GEAR & OUTFITS

What are the necessary items you’ll need on your trip? Use a packing list to help ensure you have everything you need. Try to bring reusable items and pack clothing that will mix-match.

• Pack eco-friendly essentials like biodegradable soaps, toxin-free hygiene and beauty products, and reef-safe sunscreen.
• Fill your reusable shampoo and conditioner bottles with products from your big container at home. Or use a biodegradable shampoo all-in-one bar.
• Bring all-natural clothing that is made from fabrics with antibacterial properties like linen, tencel, merino, or hemp.
• If you need to purchase a few goods, choose environmentally conscious brands or buy second hand!
• Consider renting large gear like camping supplies, snowboards, kayaks, bikes, etc.

SAFETY & ETIQUETTE

Your safety should be a priority whenever you travel. It’s also important to respect the locals and the land you visit. If we have enthusiastic travelers, friendly locals and workers, litter-free cities and forests, and a little more of a minimalistic mindset, then we can really utilize the benefits from tourism. Together, we all just have to be willing to put in the effort to practice these ways.

• Appropriately use the trash, recycle, and compost bins.
• Be aware of your surroundings. Inform yourself of the cultures and/or religions you’ll be visiting. Respect others’ ways and beliefs.
• Follow local rules and laws.
• Tell a friend or family member where you are going and check in with them.
• Don’t leave your mark via wood carving, graffiti, or cairns (stone stacking).
• Keep wildlife wild. Don’t disturb or feed wildlife and keep a safe distance away.

FORMS OF PAYMENT & BUDGET

How much money are you prepared to spend? Bring a debit card, credit card, cash, and possibly even a check. Check for coupons or promo codes before booking!

TRAVEL INSURANCE

Deciding on whether you want to purchase travel insurance is dependent on many factors. Insurance can help protect many aspects of a trip like plane tickets, accommodations, gear, healthcare, accidents, etc.

PACKING LIST & ITINERARY

With quite a bit of trip experience, I can assure you that having a packing checklist and a tentative travel plan can save a lot of time, lessen the load of stress, and help the trip run smoothly. There’s nothing worse than rushing around the last minute to finish packing your bag and then realizing you forgot a major item once you’ve already hit the road. Or arriving at your destination only to find out that there are no vacancies. Agh!!! Been there, done that…and it’s not fun!

Two of our favorite go-to planning tools we’ve created are our Packing List template and Travel Itinerary template. We don’t necessarily always rely on them, but they really come in handy when we take longer trips or visit areas we aren’t as familiar with. They make the process of preparing for a trip much quicker and help us organize our must-sees and dos so we can fit everything in. Consider storing your Travel Itinerary plan on your smartphone for easy access or- if you prefer- print a copy after you edit it.

We thought sharing our customizable templates with you could be super helpful and give you a head start for planning your next trip! Now everyone is a little different- and each trip might require a few specific items- so keep that in mind when you go through our checklist.

Once you receive our email with the templates, be sure to download and save the documents so you can edit and perfect them specifically for you.

Leave a place better than you found it

The benefits of tourism can offer so much good around the world if we just travel with smart and moral intentions. Supporting the local people you are visiting, cleaning up after yourself, going out of your way to recycle, using reusable products, engaging in positive environmental impact activities, and lightening your carbon footprint as much as possible- these will all make for a beautiful travel experience for you now and in many years to come.

If you head over to our Ecotourism page, you can learn more about ecotourism and why it is important for our future!

---

POPULAR PAGES TO EXPLORE NEXT

Seeking the unfamiliar – Promoting a sustainable lifestyle – Let’s see what happens