Travel sparks the imagination and drives adventurers to explore outside of their own country. The whole idea of worldwide travel is meeting new people, immersing yourself in the local cultures and discovering ancient architecture and historically rich sites.
And on 27 September 2012 the world unites to celebrate World Tourism Day which this year focusses on Tourism and Sustainable Energy. The official WTD celebrations will be held this year in Maspalomas in Gran Canaria, part of the Spanish Canary Islands. There are various activities that you can take part in including a photo competition on the official WTD website and we will also publish a series of sustainable and eco travel tips such as being a responsible traveller. It’s expected that 2012 will see over 1 billion international journeys being made for the first time which is a staggering figure. Our hunger for travel and discovery is not waning despite recession and other environmental factors. However multiply one billion people’s worth of energy it takes to fly airplanes, run accommodation and mobilise tourism related employees. This all adds to a huge amount of energy needed, hence where the focus upon sustainable energy within travel comes in. September 27 is a day for reflection on how you live your day to day life sustainably and how you can carry those practices with you on your travels. Be it turning off lights when not needed, unplugging charging devices, using towels, linen and clothes one more day, using a responsible tour operator and conserving water, we can all do our bit to preserve the planet.
