Green Vacation

We are leaving for vacation for couple of weeks. Of course, besides the usual preparations, we are trying to figure it out what can we do to stay green while away. Here are some simple “green” things you can do when in vacation:

1. Leave the house in a “green” state: turn off lights, turn off the water heater, turn off the air conditioning, unplug any things you use daily (e.g., clock, battery charger, razor, monitor, etc.). Leave on only your alarm system.
2. Try to find a green hotel or, even better, rent an apartment – in this way you can be like home. The green hotels are usually a little more expensive than normal ones and than rental apartments.
3. Even you rent an apartment/cabin/house or stay in a hotel you can always keep your “green” routine:
- turn on only the lights you need and only when you are in the room;
- do not let the water run if you are not there;
- turn off the air conditioning when you are not at home. It needs only about 15 minutes to cool a room;
- turn off the TV when you are not using it;
- reuse the towels you find in the hotel (like you would do it at home); do not change them everyday.
- minimize waste;
- do not rent a car – walk a lot. This is the fun part of vacation – walking, taking the train – feeling like when we were younger and strong. However, if you need to rent a car, try a hybrid.

What else?

I’ve read about some advice on the internet and I have found some of them being rather extreme: for example planning your vacation closed to your home so you do not need to fly or drive….maybe bike? Of course it is greener than flying but this will not work for me ever; for me vacation means away, far away from home, work, paying bills, etc. Somebody suggested a vacation in your own back yard. Hmmm…..I do not know if I could go in vacation for 3 weeks in my own back yard! It might be green, but it's lame. Enjoy your vacation!