Advice - what do you look for in a holiday?

[titch7069]

aside from price - is the eco-side an issue with you? for a long haul tropical holiday - assuming its something you would go for if funds allow - would donations to climatecare, local projects in health and education, grey water re-cycling, sustainable development, solar and gasification, etc hold any sway?

[Martin]

flew once, haven't bothered again for the last 30 years, stuffed if I'm going to start flying now! - it has to be the most singularly ghastly torture ever designed!:roll:
Should I ever be fortunate enough to go and see places like India, I shall do it properly, and travel by land and sea (preferably sail), get a real feeling of the distance and scale - it'll just take a bit longer!
To my mind, the journey should be part of the holiday - you meet lovely people on trains in foreign climes - you get to really see the countryside......
Far better than flying, which is totally indefensible, and cannot be "made up for" by "green tokenism" - don't b*** well fly in the first place!

[titch7069]

Fair enough - anyone else? This is what we are doing in order to fund our 'life change', so am just canvassing opinions.

[Pilsbury]

I do consider the damage flying causes and try to minimise the impact me and my family have but i do like my 1 week away in the sun every year so we do fly. if i had the time and money i would love to sail there or travel on sustainable carbon free methods but i refuse to feel guilty about the 1 return flight i take per year.
I do try and make up for the damage it causes and try to reduce our carbon footprint and i think if everyone in the country tried to do the same it would have a much bigger effect than everyone not taking 1 flight per year.

[Martin]

it's an attitudinal thing - I've found no inconvenience by not flying - it hasn't HURT me not to fly, therefore why should anyone else claim it as some sort of god-given right?
To my mind it is unnecessary, it is dreadfully polluting, and we shouldn't do it! If you've seen the scenes of global devastation caused by global warming, how on earth can you carry on contributing further to it, by doing things which are essentially selfish?
I think the flight thing sums up the public's laissez-faire attitude - "oh well, I'll do my bit, but I'm taking my holidays by air, come what may"

[Pilsbury]

To my mind it is unnecessary, it is dreadfully polluting, and we shouldn't do it! If you've seen the scenes of global devastation caused by global warming, how on earth can you carry on contributing further to it, by doing things which are essentially selfish?
I think the flight thing sums up the public's laissez-faire attitude - "oh well, I'll do my bit, but I'm taking my holidays by air, come what may"

I've had this discussion on several forums now and someone always comes up with the ' I manage fine without flights so you are just being selfish quote' so have developed this answer in response
If doing something that is not nessacery but produces pollution is selfish and you are not selfish then it has been very nice talking to you on the fourms but i gusee you are going to be turning off you computer perminantly as it uses unnessacery power therefore you are being selfish and just like me.
If you wish to use the argument that 1 flight produces massive amounts more harm than 1 P.C. running for a few hours per week perhaps someone could tell me how much unnessacery pollution is acceptable before it becomes unacceptable?

I know i could do more as could everysingle person here, but we chose as at personal level how far we are prepared to go, I will give up my 1 flight per year when i am ready to do so and in the meantime i will take any steps i can to reduce my global impact.

[Martin]

as has recently been shown, planting trees and similar exploits to "offset" flights are a fallacy - the only sensible thing to do is to stop flying for pleasure!
We have to face the fact that if we don't take radical steps, and soon, that life on earth will cease - that means our Grandkids will not know the wonders of nature that we have now, and will be fighting for their very existence!
We need a screaming u-turn, not a gentle application of the brakes!
I can remember the times of industrial unrest - things like "3 day weeks", and other such horrors - it wasn't pleasant, but we survived - we have FAR worse on the way!
I'm not trying to stop people travelling - just suggesting that we do so sensibly!
Take the "week in the sun" holiday - there are perfectly good ferries that'll take you to Spain, and a train can get you to your choice of hotspot - if that becomes the norm, you'd take 11 days, not 7! - no big deal, you've had your holiday - you've done far less damage to the environment - why the fuss?

[Pilsbury]

Trains dont go to tenerife

[red]

as a red-head, I burn - so the sun does not suit me anyway. We used to go to France etc, but when we converted our van, and went off on a 'grand tour' at home - UK, found that there are fantastic things to see right here. We also go to a fair number of festivals.
Now - though, we have moved house and are broke and have stacks to do, I am looking forward to holidaying at home.

[Martin]

If there is a trade for holidays in Teneriffe, and flights were stopped, there would very soon be regular sea voyages available - if they were sail-powered, then everyone's happy! This would involve a "change" - it would take longer to travel, but society would just have to adjust to allow for it! - no big deal - lots of really nice employment running the boats, no pollution - the return of leisurely travel!
Is that so dreadful and unimaginable?

[Pilsbury]

Nope i would love it i quite enjoy sailing although only done inland stuff to date , 2 wek hols instead of 1 with the second week used for traveling, sign me up for the first crossing. Until then though i will have to fly

[PurpleDragon]

I gotta ask - why the mad mad rush to visit countries abroad when we have such a lovely country we live in already? I for one haven't seen the whole of the British Isles. Never been to Wales (although my ancestors are Welsh), went to Dublin once, but there are SO many beautiful places to visit.

We spent a week on Luing (west coast Scottish island) in a caravan a couple of years ago and it was one of the best holidays I've ever had. Otters under the caravan, loads of birdlife, a beautiful unspoilt island and the weather was fine. Yes, it rained a couple of times, but so what? Why the rush to get a tan? I don't want wrinkles any quicker than they are creeping up already and I'll take a miss on skin cancer too, if you don't mind!

Since we have lived in this house, it is a joy to spend time in the garden, pottering about, growing stuff, watching and caring for the animals, and if the children start to get restless, we take a day trip to the coast or a local park.

Our parents and grandparents didn't feel the need to rush hither and thither across the globe, and although I would love to see the pyramids, paddle down the Amazon, take a Yak up the Peruvian mountains, I don't want to do it to the detriment of the same children who take such joy in their own country.

There used to be a recruitment poster in the last war with a small child sitting on her Daddy's lap and the caption said "What did YOU do in the Great War, Daddy?" - the implication being she would respect you less for going out shooting The Enemy.

When my grandchildren sit on my knee and ask "What did you do to help offset global warming, Granny" I want to be able to tell them.

My son - aged 7 - wants to be a journalist when he grows up so that he can tell everyone how to combat climate change. He also wants to know why no one is passing laws to stop us doing the damage. Anyone got any replies I can give him?

[Martin]

I suppose you could tell him the simple truth that the capitalist house of cards depends on ruining our planet............
-the moment someone says "flying IS an eco disaster" - the intellectual pygmies in government all chorus "got to build more runways, the economy depends on it" - kinda sums it up - it's all sums! The moment you start talking about doing and consuming LESS the sums don't work anymore!
As I heard someone say on the radio yesterday - "about the only hope for life on earth is a massive slump and depression" - with which I unfortunately concur!

[PurpleDragon]

As I heard someone say on the radio yesterday - "about the only hope for life on earth is a massive slump and depression" - with which I unfortunately concur!

Which is flippin pathetic really, when you consider we are supposed to be the intelligent species.

[titch7069]

I guess none of you are coming to Mafia then?!!!! Sad too, when you realize that this is the poorest and most forgotten part of east africa it missed out on all the develpment cash and the only way of getting cash in is thru tourism. but i guess being right is the only way forward for some. a blinkered viewpoint makes for selfrightousness, but doesn't actually feed people, the wrong question in the wrong place, will stick to my 'Q's about solar, gasification, veggie growing and animal rearing in future. Not one person answered the actual question, many soap boxes were mounted however........