Green Travel
Green Travel: the World's BEST Eco-Lodges & Earth-Friendly Hotels
Green travel has arrived. Coinciding with Richard Branson's efforts to find alternate energy for his Virgin fleet, is Fodor's first guide to eco-travel around the globe.  Entitled Green Travel: the World's BEST Eco-Lodges & Earth-Friendly Hotels, it covers environmentally friendly, economically and socially beneficial travel. Fodor's has been a top seller of worldwide travel books since 1936, and it's clear from the breadth and organization of this book that they have applied their experience in travel publishing to this user-friendly guide.
Green Travel is divided into 6 sections: North America & Caribbean, Central & South America, Europe, Africa & the Middle East, Asia, and Australasia (including Australia, New Zealand and Fiji). Each section has about 15 or so destinations (hotels, resorts, or lodges) such as "Hoopoe Yurt Hotel, Spain" or "Serengeti Under Canvas, Tanzania".
Along with a discussion of each resort and local activities is an Ecofile. This is a twist on traditional guidebook information, so as well as rooms and rates, the Ecofile includes the carbon emissions from your flight, the cost to offset them, plus a ‘5-leaf' (instead of 5-star) rating system of Environmental and Social Responsibility for each locale.
What makes the destinations so interesting is the human-interest angle. The Chalalan Ecolodge in Bolivia, for example, is the result of the Tacana people's efforts to stop illegal logging in their forests using the power of ecotourism. They built the lodge as a way to protect the forests, and their traditional lifestyle, from destruction.  Run entirely by Tacanas from the nearby village, the Chalalan Ecolodge is solar-powered, while all waste is composted or recycled.
Also included in each section are special features of green interest. You'll find chapters on cycling routes in Scotland, sea-kayaking in Baja, the Gnaoua World Music Festival in Morocco, and ‘Voluntourism' and wildlife conservation in Botswana, among others. Ethical travel dilemmas - articles on issues such as whether to hire a car or give to beggars - are also discussed. With plenty of glossy colour photographs, and so many fascinating destinations, it will be hard to choose just one of these guilt-free holidays.
Green Travel is due out April 29, so be ready to go green this winter!
Related articles:
- Green Legends of the Sunshine Coast
- The Greenhouse: a very green conversation
- Buying Green
- Rockcote shows its green colours
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