Conscientious travelers and the adventurous will have a new travel aid at their fingertips. On Jan 20 Sustainable Travel International will launch Green.travel (http://green.travel/) as the authority on where and how to travel respectfully and sustainably anywhere in the world.
Green.travel’s focus is to connect environmentally, socially and economically responsible travelers with sustainable travel companies globally. Green.travel was launched by its parent company STI (Sustainable Travel International). Founded in 2002, STI is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to providing education and outreach services in the travel industry to support environmental conservation and to protect cultural heritage while promoting cross-cultural understanding and economic development.
Green.travel has been years in the planning. Based on what Alexia Nestora, spokesperson, calls "meticulous research," the new website anticipates surfacing quickly to the top of Google-searches for people looking for eco-friendly travel options.
Green.travel will help people learn about sustainable travel practices and even change the way they travel. The site will list sustainable travel companies. An on-line booking program will automatically take one percent of a client’s reservation costs and donate it to a sustainable travel initiative.
"In the coming months," says Nestora, "we’re hoping that large to small travel companies that support the principles of sustainable travel will immediately recognize the benefits to them and their ideals by becoming part of Green.travel. Our vision, as we state on our home page, is "that through working together, trip by trip, we can protect the environment, preserve authentic cultural heritage and promote the social and economic well-being of local communities."
A one-stop-shopping array of a rich variety of accommodations, tours, cruises and activities will bring desired preferences within a few clicks to a client. Travel companies will also be rated through a five-step program as regards their sustainability practices and how deeply imbedded these are. An online directive assists companies that want to be rated and move up the five-rung rating ladder, with those scoring highest on sustainability ratings listed at the top in their respective categories.
Because the object of Green.travel is the environment, and not, as is normal, money, there are no commission fees or similar monetary incentives involved in any of the online recommendations, bookings or transactions, notes Nestora.
The website summarizes these key points of value and differentiation:
-Green.travel is a comprehensive directory of sustainable travel companies from around the world.
-Green.travel uses a 5-Green-Suitcase Rating System to rate these companies based on the progress they've made in incorporating sustainable travel principles into their business practices. The harder a company has worked to initiate, maintain, and improve its sustainability policies, the higher its Green Suitcase Rating will be.
-Green.travel donates one percent (1%) of revenue generated from travel bookings to credible, well-managed sustainable travel initiatives.
-Green.travel seeks out and promotes (free of charge) community-based tourism entities (CBTs) from around the world that otherwise would not have the ability to advertise to the global travel community.
For more information please visit http://green.travel/ on or after Jan 10, 2011. You may also send requests and questions to them at:
info@Green.travel or call 1-800-276-7764 or 503-488-5500.
Contact:
Alexia Nestora
Lasso Communications
27 Long Spur
Littleton, CO 80127
1.303.898.3376
