Written by Logan Tait

If we are privileged enough to travel, we must take responsibility for our impact on the places we visit. This eco-conscious journey begins before you’ve even left home and starts with the items you take with you and use on your trip. What you leave when travelling is just as important as what you take. The goal should always be to reduce your consumption, ditch the frills, and try to leave as little waste in your path. Luckily, several innovative products can help you reduce your impact during your travels. 

Here are our recommendations for sustainable travel products to make your travels easier while caring for our planet.

Quick tips for sustainable products

We recommend always using what you already have; the most sustainable item is the one you already own! It is also essential to respect your belongings and make sure you take care of them to ensure that you need to replace them less often. Support local brands that help the environment and the surrounding communities to ensure your spending has the best impact possible for you and those around you. Lastly, you can always use the sustainable items you take on your journeys at home, too.

1. Reusable utensils

Travelling often means eating on the go - whether you’re on  a plane or enjoying a local delicacy, cutlery is usually provided for your convenience to enjoy your delicious meal. Sadly, convenient eating is often synonymous with single-use cutlery. But, you can easily mitigate the waste associated with single-use cutlery and utensils by investing in your own set of reusable cutlery and bringing it along. Buying a set with a knife, fork, and spoon will prove to be very useful. It can also be more sanitary to bring your own cutlery if you want some extra peace of mind. Camping cutlery may not be the most glamorous, but it is undoubtedly a cost-effective alternative that will never let you down, or you could just bring a set of your regular kitchen along with you on your travels. 

Many restaurants and cafés have begun transitioning to eco-friendly straws. However, it is more sustainable to use one straw all the time than to promote the constant production and consumption of many ‘eco-friendly’ straws. Therefore, it would be a great idea to buy a reusable straw to prevent the unnecessary use of other straws. These nifty tools have found widespread use worldwide and are easily found. There are a number of different shapes, sizes, and materials available. Take your pick from metal, silicone, glass, bamboo, and more.

We recommend: 

• Using your existing cutlery as it  is always more sustainable to use what you have, rather than buying something new.

• Supporting your local camping store by picking up some eco-conscious, multi-use cutlery from a camping or adventure store near you.

• Purchasing from To-Go Ware, a B-Corp certified brand that manufactures cutlery out of bamboo. These sturdy bamboo utensils are dishwasher-safe, free of phthalates and BPA, heat and stain-resistant, and won’t absorb flavours.

2. Reusable water bottles and flasks

Another tremendous reusable item is a water bottle. The global plastic water bottle consumption rate is absurdly high, as the population consumes roughly 1-million water bottles every minute! To break this cycle, one can purchase their own reusable water bottle and bring it along for the ride. There are many different brands, sizes, models, and functions to choose from. Having your own water bottle ensures that you stay hydrated while saving the planet. You could even take it one step further and continue your positive impact by using a  reusable flask as a coffee mug AND a water bottle. 

We recommend:

• Klean Kanteen produces some of the most eco-friendly water bottles on the market. The company is a certified B-Corp, it supports ‘1% for the Planet’ by giving back a portion of its profits, and all products are Climate Neutral Certified.

• Soma crafts reusable water bottles from glass and silicon. This company partners with nonprofit organisations like Parley and Lonely Whale and donates a percentage of proceeds to charity.

3. Tote bags

Disposable plastic bags are notorious for their environmental impact - they are made from greenhouse gas-emitting fossil fuels, take countless years to break down, and are commonly associated with ocean pollution, which endangers marine life. We believe plastic bags are a no-go when travelling or at home. Instead of indulging in this harmful practice, we advocate for reusable, sustainable hemp tote bags. The average person uses up to 700 plastic bags per year - this can be significantly reduced by using tote bags.

Tote bags are large bags used for carrying several items. The best part of a tote bag is that it is reusable - this allows you to employ your bag in a number of different contexts and really justify the use of the resources used to make it. They are perfect for groceries, beach trips, yoga, and more. You can use your tote at the airport or other stages of your travelling, especially if you plan on doing some shopping.

Cotton tote bags are not as sustainable as touted (haha!). Sadly, the resource consumption, production process, and recycling difficulties mean that you should stay away from cotton totes. Hemp is a far more eco-friendly alternative that promotes sustainability. Hemp tote bags are durable, stylish, and save the environment - that makes them a no-brainer for everyone. 

We recommend supporting a local initiative in your home country or travel destination to purchase a stunning new tote. Alternatively, you can make use of some old clothes or fabric offcuts and make your own tote bag - it’s super easy if you follow the tutorial below.

4. Reef-safe sunscreen

It’s imperative to look after your skin, so why not do it while looking after our oceans? Preserving our oceans is a vital part of ensuring environmental and ecological longevity and sustainability, and the use of certain sunscreens threatens this. 

Coral reefs are one of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet, and their survival is inextricably linked to our own. Not only do these habitats support  thousands of species, but they also help stabilise the seafloor, prevent coastal erosion and storm surge damage, mitigate climate change , promote tourism and filter seawater. Every year, around 14.000 tonnes of sunscreen are thought to wash into our oceans. The chemicals in certain sunscreens contribute  to coral reef bleaching and are damaging underwater habitats.

While it is of the utmost importance to apply sunscreen to prevent skin damage and even cancer, it is equally important to ensure that the products you use do not destroy the natural environment. It’s time for all of us to start using reef-safe sunscreen at home and on our journeys.

We recommend: 

• Stream2Sea Sport Sunscreenis incredibly effective at resisting water - it can provide up to 80 minutes of protection and is also biodegradable and paraben-free. The sunscreen uses non-nano titanium dioxide with green tea, tulsi leaf, seaweed, aloe, and coconut oil. It comes in 100% recycled or recyclable packaging!

• REN Clean Skincare Clean Screen Mineral SPF 30 does not use parabens, synthetic fragrances, silicones, artificial colouring or mineral oils and is a great option for daily facial protection. The British company has also pledged to become zero-waste by the end of 2021.

5. Environmentally conscious toiletries

Environmentally conscious toiletries are kind to your body, hair, and teeth while also remaining kind to the planet. There are a few factors to consider when moving towards environmentally conscious toiletry products. These include the company, the ingredients, the packaging, and the other materials used to make the product. As a rule of thumb, it is always better to go for products that do not use palm oil and are not packaged in plastic. Our tip picks for environmentally-friendly toiletries are shampoo bars and soap bars, refillable silicone shampoo, body wash and conditioner bottles, and bamboo toothbrushes.

Solid shampoo and soap bars are easy to fly with, as they are not liquid, and they take up less space in your luggage while remaining lightweight. Solid hygiene bars also help reduce the use of plastic packaging, plus they typically last longer than liquid body wash, shampoo, and conditioner. Other solid toiletries that you can explore include face wash, perfume, and deodorant. 

If you’re not quite ready to move to solid shampoo, body wash, and conditioner, you may want to consider using refillable silicone bottles for your toiletries. These allow you to decant your liquid care products into flexible mini-bottles that are easy to pack and safely contain your products. Bonus points if you can find a local store that allows you to directly fill these bottles instead of transferring your fluid from another source. Silicone travel containers also reduce the weight of your luggage and can even be carried in your hand luggage if they are small enough!

Bamboo toothbrushes work just as well as regular toothbrushes and also help to reduce plastic production and waste. Plus, bamboo toothbrushes are super lightweight.

We recommend: 

• KOHA Beauty Shampoo Bar’s are handmade and vegan, and designed to nourish and cleanse your hair with a blend of gentle oils. KOHA’s bars are paraben-free, soap-free, sulphate-free, and do not come in a tin!

• GoToob+bottles are easy to squeeze with large openings that make them easy to fill, empty, and clean. They are small enough to pass through airport security and are made from food-safe, BPA-free material.

Are you ready to begin your next adventure with your sustainable gear? Head over to our website to start your own planet-conscious journey. Also have a look at our other exciting destinations and experiences with our fully customisable trip builder. Be sure to check out our Complete Guide to Being a Sustainable Traveller to learn some more handy tips before your next trip!