Numerous places call themselves ‘eco’ or ‘green’, yet standards differ enormously throughout the world. This guide features those very special places that also go the extra mile to provide responsible holidays. We have sought out and visited people with a passion for the local culture and environment, from the heart of Borneo to the African savannah. Our approach is unusual and subjective, but all the delightful places to stay featured in this guide provide tangible benefits to local communities and minimize the impact of holidays on the environment.
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About the Author
Alastair has been publishing the Special Places to Stay guides since 1994. His travel publishing company was born of a successful tour company that took groups on off-the-beaten-track trips across Europe. An avid environmentalist (founding Avon Friends of the Earth and currently a trustee of the Soil Association), he is keen to encourage B&B and hotels owners’ by celebrating their use of organic and local food. Alastair Sawday Publishing off-sets its carbon emissions and strives in other ways to be as green and as ethical as possible, for example by printing on recycled paper.
Richard Hammond is a travel journalist and researcher who specialises in ecotourism and responsible travel. He writes a regular column on eco-friendly holidays in The Guardian and his work has appeared in several magazines, including BBC Wildlife, Food and Travel and Green Futures. He is also one of the judges of the highly respected Responsible Tourism Awards.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By Trillion
Format:Paperback
This is the book I've been waiting for! A selection of exciting, intriguing and ethical places to stay around the world, hand-picked by people whose judgement I trust.
Special Places is like having a trusted and well-travelled friend who can suggest somewhere lovely to stay wherever you want to go. I've been relying on them to find great B&Bs in the UK for five years, and they never fail. The places they recommend aren't just good, they're quirky, interesting and friendly too, and a world away from boring old B&Bs that have nothing to offer beyond a bed for the night and an indifferent breakfast.
Green Places to Stay follows the same trust-based approach. It provides short descriptions of wonderful places from South America to Central Asia, allowing travellers to combine adventure with a commitment to the planet, and to be confident of finding a warm welcome too.
Eco-tourism is a complex field, and no one system for evaluating venues is infallible. But the Green Places guide does its best to identify the different contributions these places make. Some use solar energy, others build from recycled materials, and some give discounts for guests arriving by public transport. And the guide awards points for social responsibility as well. So if a travel lodge is supporting local schools or hiring staff from nearby villages, its efforts are recognised.
The book also discusses the ethics of international air travel. If you're hoping that visiting a green place will salve your conscience about the carbon emissions it took to get there, forget it. But at least there are tips on reducing your environmental impact and offsetting the carbon emissions of your trip.
This is a lovely book, but be warned: it's impossible to use it to find a B&B where you're going without coming upon six other places you want to visit on the other side of the planet as well.
Special Places is like having a trusted and well-travelled friend who can suggest somewhere lovely to stay wherever you want to go. I've been relying on them to find great B&Bs in the UK for five years, and they never fail. The places they recommend aren't just good, they're quirky, interesting and friendly too, and a world away from boring old B&Bs that have nothing to offer beyond a bed for the night and an indifferent breakfast.
Green Places to Stay follows the same trust-based approach. It provides short descriptions of wonderful places from South America to Central Asia, allowing travellers to combine adventure with a commitment to the planet, and to be confident of finding a warm welcome too.
Eco-tourism is a complex field, and no one system for evaluating venues is infallible. But the Green Places guide does its best to identify the different contributions these places make. Some use solar energy, others build from recycled materials, and some give discounts for guests arriving by public transport. And the guide awards points for social responsibility as well. So if a travel lodge is supporting local schools or hiring staff from nearby villages, its efforts are recognised.
The book also discusses the ethics of international air travel. If you're hoping that visiting a green place will salve your conscience about the carbon emissions it took to get there, forget it. But at least there are tips on reducing your environmental impact and offsetting the carbon emissions of your trip.
This is a lovely book, but be warned: it's impossible to use it to find a B&B where you're going without coming upon six other places you want to visit on the other side of the planet as well.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Alastair Sawday practises what he preaches. The offices from which his numerous Special Places to Stay books are put together are eco-friendly, and benign to the environment. His guides are produced using minimal energy for the lowest ecological impact.
But his books are beautiful to the eye and have a feel-good factor, and prove that travel doesn't have to be harmful to the environment. What better to prove that than this Green Places fo Stay guide, with its verdant cover and beautiful pictures?
Green travel doesn't have to be a drudgery. This book is brimful of places to stay all over the world which are pleasurable, which awaken the senses, rather than dulling them with luxurious uniformity. It includes eco lodges, working farms or vineyards, beach huts, guest houses, campsites, hotels, tipis, yurts, safari camps, and the colourful pictures whet the appetite.
Another lesson taught by this guide is that environmental friendliness doesn't stop with nature. There is also such a thing as being friendly towards the social, cultural and linguistic environment. Tourism should not be exploitative, but should contribute to the local economy and show respect for the traditions of the locality which one visits.
This book is a treat to read. It is ideal for the armchair traveller. It offers a feast of descriptions of places worldwide which sound and feel great, and it is a lesson in geography and cultural diversity. There is a detailed introduction, and features on fair trade tourism, and how to make a positive difference when you travel.
This is a unique guide book, different from all others, full of treats and full of discoveries. I recommend it wholeheartedly.
But his books are beautiful to the eye and have a feel-good factor, and prove that travel doesn't have to be harmful to the environment. What better to prove that than this Green Places fo Stay guide, with its verdant cover and beautiful pictures?
Green travel doesn't have to be a drudgery. This book is brimful of places to stay all over the world which are pleasurable, which awaken the senses, rather than dulling them with luxurious uniformity. It includes eco lodges, working farms or vineyards, beach huts, guest houses, campsites, hotels, tipis, yurts, safari camps, and the colourful pictures whet the appetite.
Another lesson taught by this guide is that environmental friendliness doesn't stop with nature. There is also such a thing as being friendly towards the social, cultural and linguistic environment. Tourism should not be exploitative, but should contribute to the local economy and show respect for the traditions of the locality which one visits.
This book is a treat to read. It is ideal for the armchair traveller. It offers a feast of descriptions of places worldwide which sound and feel great, and it is a lesson in geography and cultural diversity. There is a detailed introduction, and features on fair trade tourism, and how to make a positive difference when you travel.
This is a unique guide book, different from all others, full of treats and full of discoveries. I recommend it wholeheartedly.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
We have used Alastair Sawday's Special Places to stay in Ireland (where we live) book on numerous occasions and never been disappointed with the recommendations in it. As my husband works in the area we were excited to learn about this new publication and ordered it before our recent holiday to Spain. There were a few listings for the Andalucia region, where we had booked our flight only holiday and we were torn between the Yurt Hotel near Rhonda and a hillside retreat closer to Malaga, where our flight would land. We went for the mountainside retreat and what a hidden gem it turned out to be. The book also provided bedtime reading as we drooled over the quirky places listed worldwide. We will be planning our holiday next year around some of the books contents. It is great to have real options for eco-minded tourists ranging from luxurious hotels in the Indian Ocean to eco-lodges in South America. This is a fast growing area and it is fantastic to have some of the best places around the globe listed in one publication.
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Green Places To Stay
This is an excellent book for anyone who's even remotely concerned about the impact that travel and tourism has on the planet. Read more
Published on 22 Nov 2006 by M. Esther Stephens
5.0 out of 5 stars
SUCH a lovely book
This is such a lovely book, exciting and inspiring (I'd had numerous people make a beeline for it during the short time it's been resting on my desk). Read more
Published on 22 Nov 2006 by H
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