greentraveller

16/01/2025

Yay! A copy of our founder Richard Hammond's book has landed. The Green Traveller - conscious adventure that doesn't cost the earth. It's being published by (an imprint of ) and has been designed by Tina Smith and the Editor is Sophie Allen.

The book is all about how to travel in a way that is sensitive to the climate and nature emergencies, focusing on experiences that have a lower carbon footprint as well as those that provide a positive effect on the conservation of biodiversity. It is also focused on individual actions that can make significant difference to the impact of how we travel.

Richard writes in the intro that being a green traveller "is not about making grand, one-off gestures, it is a state of mind, an ongoing attitude to conscious adventure that influences all aspects of how we holiday, including what we pack in our luggage and how we travel out to destinations, as well as the choice of hotels and activities we take part in while we’re there."

There are lots of tips for planning to go green, as well as itineraries, guides and Top 10s, including the best Off-grid Places to Stay, the best Beaches Worth the Walk, the best Glampsites, the best Citizen Science projects, and the best Rewilding projects.

It'll be out on 5th May, but if you'd like to get your hands on a copy earlier, you can pre-order it here: https://amzn.to/3owZewG

21/12/2024

Introducing a new video series where we ask leading lights in the tourism industry to explain in less than 60 seconds the one thing they'd change to address tourism's impact on the climate and nature emergencies.

First up is Al Judge, founder of AliKats Mountain Holidays, a boutique chalet company based in Morzine-Avoriaz, who has recently announced a €1 million climate action plan. Richard Hammond caught up with Al this week in Morzine and asked him "What is the one thing you'd change?"

A full interview with Al wll be published on greentraveller.co.uk in the New Year.

Richard travelled out to Morzine by overnight Flixbus from London Victoria via Paris to Geneva and then train to Cluses, then back by train from Geneva to London St Pancras via Paris.

12/12/2024

One of my favourite places in Catalonia. Mas Garganta is a beautifully renovated 14th Century farmhouse on a hill overlooking the D'en Bas valley close to the Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Natural Park in the Catalan Pyrenees.

It's about as homely as you could imagine and in a ridiculously picturesque setting. There are 12 simple, comfortable bedrooms at the ‘casa rural’, a wonderful farmhouse kitchen with huge fireplace, a lovely pool, and mountain views from every angle. We visited in the winter, and despite the evening chill and the roaring fire indoors, we couldn’t tear ourselves away from the valley views and instead sat out on the terrace feasting late into the night - as you can see in the photo.

For more characterful places like this, see our Green Traveller's Guide to Spain (link in bio).

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11/12/2024

Our Green Traveller's Guide to Spain aims to showcase how the country is a diverse year-round destination where socially inclusive tourism is beneficial to both visitors and locals alike.

We're trying to encourage visitors to use the country's extensive rail network, stay longer, travel in a slower more meaningful way, and enjoy local experiences... less carbon, more fun!

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03/12/2024

The church of St Climent de Taüll is one of eight Romanesque churches and hermitage retreat of the Boí Valley in the Lleida Pyrenees, Catalonia that are collectively a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

They were built during the 11th and 12th Century, based on an architectural style imported from northern Italy of iconic slim bell-towers and rounded arcading and pilaster strips.

See more epic places places to visit in Spain in our Green Traveller's Guide to Spain (link in bio).
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02/12/2024

Wild swimming is very much part of village life in the wild and sparsely populated region of Extremadura to the south-west of Madrid. Each summer across the region, rivers are dammed using boards between metal beams set into the riverbed to restrict the flow downstream and create large deep pools for people of all ages to gather to chat, swim and relax. There are many of these watercourses outside the medieval town of Garganta la Olla, known for its half-timbered and tile-roofed buildings.

On our trip to Extremadura, we started the day watching the sun rise over this valley (pictured here) then headed down to the river which features a series of waterfalls and pools, popular swimming spots with local families.

Closest to the village, Las Pilatillas de Abajo is a natural swimming pool created by damming a section of water. Other swimming areas include Garganta de Cuartos in Losar de la Vera, Cáceres; Garganta de Alardos in Madrigal de la Vera and Garganta de Pedro Chate in Jaraíz de la Vera.

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02/12/2024

The last light of the day falling on the Cathedral of Segovia, the last gothic cathedral built in Spain, photographed here on our trip to Segovia for our Green Traveller's Guide to Spain, which includes a selection of 25 epic places to visit: https://www.greentraveller.co.uk/post/places-of-interest-in-spain

Photo: Christopher Willan

01/12/2024

The last light of the day on the Cathedral of Segovia, the last gothic cathedral built in Spain.

For more epic places like this in Spain, see our list of 25 places of interest in our new Green Traveller's Guide to Spain (link in bio).

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26/11/2024

Out now! Our latest newsletter features Spain's rail renaissance, Travelski's Express train service to the Alps, sustainable travel in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, community based conservation in Belize, ecotourism in Catalonia, and much more!

The latest news, comment and features on green travel

23/11/2024

A traditional Mediterranean holiday without flying? It is possible, says who explains how (and why) she did it, taking the route by train and ferry all the way from London to Corfu with our 11-year old son.

23/11/2024

A traditional Mediterranean holiday without flying? It is possible, says Rhiannon Batten. This is how (and why) she did it, taking the train and ferry all the way from London to Corfu to stay at GIC The Villa Collection

How (and why) our writer took the train and ferry all the way from London to Corfu

22/11/2024

Richard Hammond and his family take the train to a lesser-known region of the French Alps to try out a series of outdoor mountain activities

20/11/2024

All aboard the train in Spain. We've published an article on how Spain is embracing the rail renaissance given the ‘open access’ liberalisation of the European rail network.

There's no doubt that increased competition among rail operators (especially on high profile routes throughout Europe) has led to improved services and reduced ticket costs. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Spain on the high-speed line between Barcelona and Madrid, which is now served by four operators. Single tickets for the 2.5 hour, 386 mile journey can be snapped up for as little as €7.

The success of these services has led to increased competition on other high-speed lines in Spain, for instance, OUIGO has since expanded to include Madrid–Valencia and Madrid–Alicante.

These operators are also capitalising on Spain’s extensive high-speed rail network – with over 3,400km of track, it’s the longest network of high-speed lines in Europe (and second only to China in the world), with AVE trains (Alta Velocidad Española) linking all the major cities, including Barcelona, Granada, Madrid, Murcia, Malaga, Seville, Valencia and Zaragoza, as well as connecting with France's high-speed network connecting Lyon and Marseille with Barcelona, via Avignon, Montpellier, Perpignan, and Girona.

Train travel in Spain, including high speed networks and other long distance rail services

18/11/2024

The Black Orchid (Encyclia Cochleatum) is the national flower of Belize. I took this photo of it while staying at the Falling Leaves Lodge in San Ignacio while filming with travel writer who has written a wonderful feature on community-based conservation in the latest issue of our Green Traveller magazine [link in bio].

18/11/2024

Here's a taste of some of the first class dining we enjoyed during our week in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, from the Michelin-starred intimate urban diner at Zéphirine, Le Cent 33 – the first restaurant in Aquitaine to be given the EcoTable label (the French eco label for environmentally friendly restaurants) and the exquisite Vivants on rue des Bahutiers (all in Bordeaux) to the intimate Restaurant l’Entrepote in Sarlat and Chez Paulo – a popular fourth generation bistro in a quiet corner in the heart of Brive.

For a guide to where to eat through the region, see our post on 'Where to eat in Nouvelle-Aquitaine' in our new Green Traveller's Guide to Nouvelle-Aquitaine: https://www.greentraveller.co.uk/post/places-to-eat-in-nouvelle-aquitaine

📷 Photos: Richard Hammond and Nicola Kathryn Forsyth

16/11/2024

The wooden-framed glass windows of the facade might suggest a traditional, formal atmosphere at this Michelin-starred restaurant, but inside, Vivants is laid back and welcoming. The elaborately decorated dishes – the attention to detail is exceptional – are the hallmark of chef Tanguy Laviale, previously of Garopapilles who also runs the show at the popular Michelin-starred Ressources restaurant, close to Place Tourny. At Vivants, there are three menus of 3, 4, and 5 dishes – expect dishes such as scallops with persimmon and vegetarian tortelli – and choose from a comprehensive list of over 1,000 wines, thankfully a helpful sommelier is on hand to help you pair your selection with your food.